Growth in Sydney Membership; Sydney Coordinator Appointed
There has been a considerable growth recently of new members in Sydney, with much interest in there being meetings of biblical scholars in that city. In the past, there had been FBS meetings in Sydney, and they are now being revived.
The Executive has accordingly appointed Dr Ian Young as Coordinator of FBS events in NSW (especially Sydney). The Executive is grateful to Ian for taking on this role, to Ian and his colleague Yael Avrahami in Sydney for encouraging new people to join, and to Anne Gardner for discussing the idea with them last year. His contact details are:
Dr Ian Young
Department of Hebrew, Biblical and Jewish Studies
School of Languages and Cultures
University of Sydney NSW 2006
Email: ian.young@usyd.edu.au
The first meeting of Sydney FBS members will be:
Date: Friday, 19 June
Time: 1.00 pm for lunch, meeting from 2.00 pm
Venue: Moore College, TC Hammond Common Room
Speaker: Dr Andrew Shead, Moore Theological College
Topic: The Dimensions of Faithfulness: Jeremiah LXX as a Translation
To attend, please contact Ian as soon as possible for further details about lunch arrangements.
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2009 Symposiums
Anne Gardner will be delivering the paper at the next FBS symposium on 18 June. The symposiums during the remainder of 2009 are:
| Date | Speaker | Title of Talk |
| 18 June | Anne Gardner | שכל: Wisdom Term? Or Key to the
Author(s) and Construction of Daniel? |
| 24 September | Dinh Anh Nhue Nguyen | The Wisdom Literature |
| 5 November (AGM) | Brian Boyle | Ezekiel 40–48 |
All symposiums will be held at Queen’s College, 1–17 College Crescent, Parkville at 6.30 pm for a 7.00 pm meal. Please look for the sign as you come through the arch. Members should advise the Secretary of their intention to attend. The cost of the dinner is $30.00.
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Catherine Playoust Delivers First Paper for 2009
Catherine Playoust delivered a paper entitled, “Heavenly Ascent in Early Christianity” at the first symposium for 2009 at Queen’s College on 16 April. Her paper actually covered themes of both ascent and descent in the scriptures and the apocrypha. Spirited discussion followed. Brendan Byrne thanked Catherine for her excellent and thought-provoking paper.
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New Book by New Member Dr Ian Elmer
 New member of the Fellowship, Dr Ian J. Elmer, Lecturer in Biblical Studies, St Paul’s Theological College, Australian Catholic University, Brisbane, has had a new book published: Paul, Jerusalem and the Judaisers: The Galatian Crisis in Its Broadest Historical Context(Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2009).
For a synopsis of the book, see the publisher’s summary. Ian argues that the crisis that gave rise to the Letter to the Galatians arose in the dispute between the Hellenists and the Judaisers in Jerusalem.
Ian contributed an article, I, Tertius: Secretary or Co-author of Romans, in the 2008 issue of Australian Biblical Review.
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Review of Book by Francis J. Moloney; Review by Mary Coloe
 A review by Stephen Witetschek of the book by FBS member Francis J. Moloney, The Living Voice of the Gospels (Peabody: Hendrickson, 2006) is now available at the Review of Biblical Literature web site.
FBS member Mary Coloe has also written a new review for RBL of the book by Margaret Barker, Temple Themes in Christian Worship (London: T & T Clark, 2007).
Mary’s review can be read here.
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Member Achievements
In addition to the achievements by FBS members already mentioned on this news page, the following members made noteworthy book contributions during 2008:
- Alan H. Cadwallader, Beyond the Word of a Woman: Recovering the Bodies of the Syrophoenician Women (Adelaide: ATF Press, 2008).
 Brendan Byrne, A Costly Freedom: A Theological Reading of Mark’s Gospel (Strathfield, NSW: St Pauls Publications, 2008)- Francis J. Moloney, The Life of Jesus in Icons: From the ‘Bible to Tbilisi’ (Louisville: Liturgical Press, 2008)
- Antony F. Campbell: God and Bible: Exploring Stories from Genesis to Job (Mahwah, N.J.: Paulist, 2008) and The Whisper of Spirit: A Believable God Today (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 2008).
- James S McLaren (ed.), Judaism in Transition, 175 BCE—150 CE: Christian and Jewish Perspectives (Melbourne: Council of Christians and Jews Victoria, 2008), containing articles (among others) by James S. McLaren, “Jewish Literature of the Period,” David C. Sim, “Torah in Transition,” James S McLaren, “Worship: A Shared Treasure,” John S. Levi, “Hopes and Expectations about the Future,” Raymond Apple, “Chronological Table.”
- David Runia and Gregory E Sterling, The Studia Philonica Annual: Studies in Hellenistic Judaism. Volume XIX (Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature, 2007)
- David Sim and Boris Repschinski (eds), Matthew and His Christian Contemporaries. Library of New Testament Studies 333. (London: T & T Clark, 2008)
- Catherine Playoust and Ellen Bradshaw Aitken, ”The Leaping Child: Imagining the Unborn in Early Christian Literature,” in Imagining the Fetus: The Unborn in Myth, Religion, and Culture (eds: Vanessa R. Sasson and Jane Marie Law; AAR Cultural Criticism Series; New York: Oxford University Press, 2009) 157–183.
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Annual General Meeting
The Annual General Meeting of FBS was held at Queen’s College on 6 November 2008. The Presidential Address was delivered by Dr Brian Boyle: Holiness Has A Shape: The Place of the Altar in Ezekiel’s Visionary Plan of Sacral Space. The second part of Dr Boyle’s work on Ezekiel will be delivered at the 2009 Annual General Meeting, as he has been re-elected as president.
Catherine Playoust is now the new FBS Secretary. ABR editors and other Executive members are unchanged. Catherine McCahill stays on as a member of the Executive.
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Book Reviews by David Sim
FBS member Associate Professor David Sim has reviewed the recent book of Ben Witherington III entitled Matthew, a Smyth & Helwys Bible Commentary. The RBL published review can be found at http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=5436.
He has also reviewed the book, Understanding Matthew: The Early Christian Worldview of the First Gospel by Stephen Westerholm (Grand Rapids: Baker, 2006). The RBL published review is at http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=6121.
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2008 Issue of Australian Biblical Review Mailed Out
The 2008 issue (Vol. 56) of Australian Biblical Review was mailed out to subscribers and members on 9 October 2008. For details of the articles in this issue see the Table of Contents.
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Book Reviews from 2008 ABR Now Online
The book reviews from the forthcoming issue of Australian Biblical Review (to be mailed out early in October) have now been added to this web site: see the Reviews Index. The full text of the book reviews is available there. For details of the articles in the 2008 issue of ABR see the Table of Contents. The Index of Authors has also been updated for the 2008 entries.
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Postage Rates Change for ABR
Australia Post will be raising postage rates from 15 September 2008. Updated ABR subscription and postage rates can be found on the ABR Home Page.
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David Runia Speaks on Philo at FBS Symposium
Professor David Runia delivered the paper at the FBS symposium at Queen’s College on 21 August 2008, entitled, “ Why Philo of Alexandria Was an Important Writer and Thinker.” David provided members with useful background on Philo and described his writings, especially his views on heavenly bodies as gods. Good discussion followed. See here for David’s latest book.
The next meeting will be the Annual General Meeting at Queen’s College on 6 November 2008 at 6.30 pm. The Presidential Address will be delivered by Dr Brian Boyle: Holiness Has A Shape.
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FBS Member David Sim Joins NTS Board
Congratulations to FBS member David Sim, who has been elected a member of the editorial board of New Testament Studies for 2009–11. David’s new book (see below) will be launched on 27 August; download the flyer for details.
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New Book by David Sim
 FBS member David Sim, recently promoted to Associate Professor at Australian Catholic University, has co-edited a new book with Boris Respschinks, Associate Professor at Leopold-Franzens University, Innsbruck, Austria: David C. Sim and B. Repschinski (eds), Matthew and His Christian Contemporaries (Library of New Testament Studies 333; London: T & T Clark International, 2008). A short description of the book from the back cover can be downloaded here.
David has also written a review of the book by Markus Bockmuehl and Donald A. Hagner (eds), The Written Gospel for the Review of Biblical Literature.
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New Book by David Runia
 FBS member David Runia has co-edited a new book on Philo with Gregory E Sterling, The Studia Philonica Annual: Studies in Hellenistic Judaism, Volume XIX, 2007 (Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature, 2007).
A review of the book can be read here.
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Book Review by Howard Wallace
FBS member Howard Wallace has recently reviewed the book by Mark D. Futato, Interpreting the Psalms: An Exegetical Handbook. The review can be read on the RBL site here.
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Subscription Rates for 2009 ABR Unchanged
Subscription rates for the 2009 issue of Australian Biblical Review will remain the same as for the 2008 issue—the third year at the same level. FBS membership fees will also remain unchanged for 2009 ($28.00/$18.00). ABR subscription and postage rates can be found at the ABR Home Page.
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Associate Professorships
Congratulations to Dr Mary Coloe and Dr David Sim for their recent promotion to Associate Professor at the Australian Catholic University (Melbourne, St Patrick Campus).
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Tribute to Professor Eric Osborn
With the death on 11 May 2007 of the Rev. Professor Eric Osborn, Australia has lost an outstanding scholar.
Eric will be remembered, above all, for his passionate commitment to scholarship, especially to patristic studies, but also to the formation of an educated ministry. Few scholars can claim to have had no fewer than eight books published by Cambridge University Press. Eric could:
- The Philosophy of Clement of Alexandria (1957)
- Justin Martyr (1973)
- Ethical Patterns in Early Christian Thought (1976)
- The Beginning of Christian Philosophy (1981)
- The Emergence of Christian Theology (1993)
- Tertullian, First Theologian of the West (1997)
- Irenaeus of Lyons (2001)
- Clement of Alexandria (2005)
Eric had been an active member of the Fellowship for Biblical Studies for fifty years and contributed dozens of articles and scores of book reviews to Australian Biblical Review — far more than anyone else (see the ABR Author Index for his 19 articles, commencing in 1960).
He is survived by his wife of more than sixty years, Lorna, two sons and their wives, grandchildren and greatgrandchildren. As one who was Eric’s colleague for twenty-three years, I recall, with gratitude, many stimulating conversations with him, and also his genuine delight in the successes of his colleagues. Eric Osborn, ave atque vale!
Contributed by Nigel Watson
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The FBS Web Site
Welcome to the web site for the Fellowship for Biblical Studies which is designed to make the work of the Fellowship more visible to the public, particularly the Fellowship’s biblical journal, Australian Biblical Review — a journal that is now over 50 years old.
Visitors to the FBS site can peruse the Table of Contents of any issue of ABR, and read the book reviews from recent issue. The site contains the complete index of all articles that have been published in ABR since 1951, together with an index of the authors of all those articles.
Keep watching this page for news, or check out the Updates Page to see recent changes to the site.
Suggestions about the content of the site are welcome. Please email the Site Administrator, Brian Incigneri.
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