Next week I’m headed to San Antonio, TX, 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. Time with the Executive Committee. As a former president of ETS (2019), I am still serving on the Executive Committee (though this is my final year) which now consists of Al Mohler, D.A. Carson, Timothy George, Gregg Allison, Craig Keener, Karen Jobes, and Craig Blomberg. 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.
2. 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 Timothy George who is speaking on “ETS at 75: A Community of Conviction and Love.” Since this is my last year on the EC, I will be receiving my honorary “plaque” at the banquet and giving the opening prayer. After seven years of service, I am ready for my “sabbatical”!
3. NT Canon/Textual Criticism Group. Although I’ve now rolled off my role as co-chair of the NT Canon Group (after 15+ years!), I still attend the sessions when I can. The open NT Canon Group is Tuesday, 9AM (Grand Hyatt, Fourth Floor, Republic A), and the Invited NT Canon Group is Wednesday, 8:30AM (Convention Center 304A). Both sessions look to have a great line up of papers.
4. NT Textual Criticism Lunch. After the Wednesday NT Canon session, we will gather for the annual Textual Criticism lunch. We will meet at 11:45 outside the book stalls. Thanks to Elijah Hixson for putting this together.
5. Papyrology and Early Christian Backgrounds session at SBL. Although I am not giving a paper for this group this year, it looks like another great line up. Saturday’s session is particularly interesting to me as the theme is the Oxyrhynchus Papyri. It meets at 1PM (Convention Center 213B). The theme seems particularly relevant in light of the recent publication of P.Oxy. 5575.
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).
7. Eating amazing Mexican food! Last, and certainly not least, I will be gathering with some colleagues and friends to enjoy some of Texas’s best Mexican food all along the San Antonio River Walk.
If you plan to attend either ETS or SBL, I hope to see you there!