A group of Oberlin students in Dr. Chapman’s “Biblical Womenin Text and Tradition” seminar recently attended a conference on “Women in the Religious and Intellectual Activity of the Ancient Mediterranean World: An Interdisciplinary and International Conference Honoring Adela Yarbro Collins.” The three-day conference took place March 15-17, 2009 at Ohio State University and The Methodist Theological School of Ohio. Students in the Oberlin seminar have studied the inter-textualdevelopment of the stories of several biblical women as these stories were translated and retold in the Second Temple period. Many of the papers presented at the conference further developed the interpretive trajectories of these same biblical women.
For more information on the conference visit, http://www.mtso.edu/collinsconference/
2009 Haskell Fellows
Sari Gardner and Danny Moss
The Haskell Lectureship Committee is pleased to announce that Sari Gardner and Danny Moss are the 2009 recipients of the Haskell Fellowship in Ancient Near Eastern Studies. Inaugurated last year in honor of the 100th anniversary of Haskell lectures at Oberlin College, the Haskell Fellowships are awarded annually to two religion majors who have excelled in courses within the areas of biblical studies, Jewish studies focusing on the period of formative Judaism, and/or early Christian history.Fellows assist with the planning and implementation of the Haskell Lecture series.
Sari Gardner is a senior Religion and Jewish Studies double major, with a minor in Gender, Sexuality, and Feminist Studies. She has taken a wide variety of courses at Oberlin, ranging from those focusing on Jewish and Christian Scriptures and Gender in Religion, to those in French, Art History, and Politics. She spent last spring semester studying at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, Israel, where she continued her studies of the Hebrew language and Jewish history. She is especially interested in the role of women in the Hebrew Bible, and last fall completed her senior capstone project entitled "The Hand that Rocks the Cradle: Sarah and the Akedah in Interpretive Tradition and the Case for Her Agency." Her extracurricular activities include working at the Oberlin Early Childhood Center, being a writing associate, taking voice lessons, and singing with an a cappella group. While she ultimately plans to go on to graduate school and earn her PhD in Religion, she plans to work for acouple of years first. She is currently under consideration for a position with Teach for America in New York City beginning in the fall.
Danny Moss is also completing a double major in Religion and Jewish Studies. His academic interests have led him to courses in New Testament, formative Christianity, Rabbinic thought, and Jewish mysticism. He spent his Junior year abroad in Haifa, Israel, where he studied Hebrew, Hebrew Bible, and Jewish social history during the week and explored the country on weekends. His senior capstone project--currently in progress--concerns the 18th-Century Hasidic Rabbi Nachman of Bratslav. When he's not studying, Danny's time is split between Hillel, his job on the board of KESHER (the North American college body of Reform Judaism), and job applications. He is also a musician and bibliophile. Danny’s long-term career goals remain open, but next year, he hopes to find a job with a Jewish nonprofit organization.
