OK. So what was ISBL? Good question. Technically it is a gathering of biblical scholars from around the world who are all members of the Society of Biblical Literature. There are some plenary events and a whole series of mini-meetings focussed on the giving of papers. The meeting travels around the world - last year in Cambridge, this year in Groningen, next year in Singapore. The main SBL meetings, of course, are always held in North America - last year Atlanta, this year San Antonia, the year after Philadelphia and then Washington DC. The international meeting is a kind of 6 monthly miniSBL out in the sticks (i.e. anywhere outside North America)
At this year's ISBL, the two key addresses were given by members of the Faculty at Groningen - Ed Noort and Fiorentino Martinez. Noort talked about, well I'm not sure really. Something about hermeneutics and culture but it didn't really hit the target unfortunately. Martinez talked about the history of Dead Sea Scrolls study at Groningen - entertaining because of Martinez - a rather colourful character.
The paper sessions were intense. People are given half an hour to present but this must also include question time. So technically you time your paper for 22 minutes and leave five minutes for questions (and a few minutes for panic in the middle!). However, people tended to speak for 29 minutes thus removing most of the potential for questions. Sad really when some of the papers demanded a response and some were so shocking they deserved five minutes silence!
I gave my paper on John's Prologue and Sociolinguistics on the first morning. Download isbl_paper.DOC It went fine although there were not so many people and few questions...I think the technical nature of the language probably flummuxed people. eventually over the few days I had some great conversations about the stuff I am doing on the Prologue and so on. In the end, ISBL is about networking, talking to people who have given papers and teasing out the implications over coffee or over lunch.
In fact I went to some great papers - some of the highlights - Jaime Clark-Soles from Perkins on Anthropology and John; Matthew Anderson from Concordia on mirror-reading (or not) in 1 Corinthians; Rafael Rodriguez - a very promising PhD student from Sheffield - on Social Memory and the Jesus Quest; Elizabeth McNamer from Rocky Mountain College on the Bethsaida excavations and Historical Jesus research - some pretty elementary stuff but I needed it at that level by then!; Istvan Czachesz from Groningen on the emergence of Christianities (I have written to Istvan to ask whether I could have a copy of his paper) - a lot of good stuff on his site; and of course our own David Firth on 1 Samuel - followed by a scary OT paper on source criticism which made me glad I am an NT scholar! How can anyone make decisions on source criticism based on personal preferences like that?
Wednesday lunchtime saw me heading back to Amsterdam to fly home and so I missed the final Johannine papers but Brian Johnson has given me a copy of his paper on the Beloved Disciple which I am reading through and hope to comment on.
Of course the most important part of being at ISBL was the fellowship of De Drie Gezusters - apparently the largest bar in Europe with an amazing 24 bars scattered within a series of interconnected old houses on the historic Grote Markt. Great beer (Belgian, Dutch and others) as well as great decor and lovely leather chairs. I laughed a lot in this place and shared in wonderful fellowship with Paul, Raf, Brian, Bart, Gary and one or two others. Thanks for this refreshment, guys.
I must ask what ISBL is all about. I mean is it really pushing the boundaries of Biblical or Johannine Studies? Some of the papers really needed to be discussed rather than presented and left. Edward Klink's paper on Elisha imagery in the Cana miralce needed some interaction rather than simply passing onto the next paper in the schedule - so also with Elizabeth McNamer's paper which really gave some simplistic historical Jesus definitions and background without really answering the difficult questions. At BNTC the Johannine group has a much more community orientated setting. We gather for more sessions and discuss fewer papers for longer. Moreover, because we stay together rather than cherry picking papers from all over the place (usually), it means that you can develop themes and think through things. Because ISBL is self-catered, you lose the opportunity to meet with the Johannine group over lunch or dinner and crash through some more ideas. In the end, it just seemed a little bit unsatisfying. Anybody could have said anything (and some did) - does this make it peer-reviewed? I think not.
Having said that I'd love to go again when it comes closer than Singapore! Moreover, I know want to sample the big one - SBL. That could be great fun.
Pete
Oh yes, me and the missus have been married for 16 years today! In fact, we have been 'going out' for more than half my life!!! Well done, Theresa! You deserve many medals! Love you loads.
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