Today, I am headed to Denver, CO, for the annual meetings of the Evangelical Theological Society (ETS) and Society of Biblical Literature (SBL)—two of the largest gatherings for biblical scholars in the world. In addition to the normal meals, gatherings, and meeting with old friends, here’s a little preview of what I will be up to.
1. Speaking at Colorado Christian University. On Monday, I will be speaking on the topic of “Hidden Gospels: Our Culture’s Quest to Rewrite the Story of Jesus” to the staff, faculty and students of Colorado Christian. My friend Don Sweeting is the Chancellor there and was kind enough to invite me. I hope to encourage their folks that our canonical Gospels are trustworthy sources for the life of Jesus, particularly when considered in light of the so-called Lost Gospels we know about. You can watch the live stream here.
2. Time with the Executive Committee. As a former president of ETS (2019), I am still serving on the Executive Committee which now consists of Al Mohler, D.A. Carson, Timothy George, Gregg Allison, Craig Keener, David Dockery, and Karen Jobes. And I should not forget to mention our executive director, Ken Magnuson. I always enjoy time with this impressive group of scholars and we will be gathering together for dinner and business Monday night.
3. Attending presidential address. As a past president, I always try to encourage each year’s president as they give the address. This year it will be D.A. Carson who is speaking on “Trishagion: Foundation for Christian Mission.” Next year will be Timothy George, and the year after it will be Karen Jobes.
4. Giving paper and chairing session. On Wednesday morning, I will be giving a paper for the invited section of the NT Canon, Textual Criticism and Apocryphal Literature study group. My paper will be on “New Testament Manuscripts Possibly from the Second Century.” On Thursday afternoon I will be chairing the open section of the same group. There’s a great line up of papers for both groups:
Wednesday AM
P 8:30 AM – 11:40 AM
New Testament Canon, Textual Criticism, &
Apocryphal Literature
Theme: Dating New Testament Manuscripts
Tower Building, 2nd Floor – Windows
Moderator: Paul Hartog
(Faith Baptist Theological Seminary)
8:30 AM – 9:10 AM
Stanley E. Porter
(McMaster Divinity College)
The Dating Game: The 2022 Edition for New Testament
Manuscripts
9:20 AM – 10:00 AM
Michael J. Kruger
(Reformed Theological Seminary)
New Testament Manuscripts Possibly from the Second
Century
10:10 AM – 10:50 AM
Charles E. Hill
(Reformed Theological Seminary)
Dating and Breaking Up (the text of P4+64/67, P66, and
P75)
11:00 AM – 11:40 AM
Elijah Hixson
(Center for the Study of New Testament Manuscripts)
Does It Matter if Our New Testament Manuscripts Are
Early?
Thursday PM
P 1:30 PM – 4:40 PM
New Testament Canon, Textual Criticism, &
Apocryphal Literature
Tower Building, Majestic Level – Majestic
Moderator: Michael J. Kruger
(Reformed Theological Seminary)
1:30 PM – 2:10 PM
Aldert J. Vorster
(The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary)
Canonical Shape in Irenaeus’s Against Heresies
2:20 PM – 3:00 PM
Jonathan A. Campbell
(Dallas Theological Seminary)
History in the Margins: Paratextual Features in Codex
Koridethi
3:10 PM – 3:50 PM
Rex J. Howe
(University of Aberdeen)
Ancient Models for Including the Nomen Sacrum for
in Modern Critical Editions of the GNT
4:00 PM – 4:40 PM
Nelson S. Hsieh
(Tyndale House Cambridge)
A Detailed Comparison of the Paratextual Features of
the Tyndale House GNT and Nestle-Aland 28
5. Attending the Papyrology and Early Christian Backgrounds session at SBL. Last year I gave a paper for this group, and this year it looks like another great line up. I can’t stay as long for SBL, but I am glad to be able to attend this session on Saturday afternoon.
6. Checking out the book tables. We all know why scholars really attend ETS/SBL—it’s for the books! This is the key time every year to see what’s coming out in the academic world, and usually these books can be purchased at a massive discount (the problem is just getting them home on the plane). And my new book will be there at the Zondervan booth: Bully Pulpit: Confronting the Problem of Spiritual Abuse in the Church.
If you plan to attend either ETS or SBL, I hope to see you there!