BARlines
020
You Made It Happen! ABT Becomes a Reality
“Do we need a Bible-teachers association?” we asked BAR readers in
The response is in, and its quantity (more than 150 letters and countless phone calls) and enthusiasm spurred us to invite nine of the respondents to Washington for an organizational meeting. For two days last August, the BAS staff and these nine persons formulated plans for an association that would meet the many needs identified by teachers from across the educational spectrum. At the end of the second day, a resolution was adopted to establish the Association of Bible Teachers (ABT) “to assist those who have a passion to teach and understand the Bible.”
Dahood Prize Competition Resumes
After a lapse of several years, the Mitchell Dahood Memorial Prize Competition in Hebrew Bible and Northwest Semitic is being resumed under the sponsorship of the Society of Biblical Literature (SBL) and the Ecumenical Theological Center in Detroit, Michigan. Established as an incentive for young scholars, the prize honors Mitchell Dahood, a distinguished Ugaritic and Hebrew Bible scholar who taught at the Pontifical Biblical Institute in Rome until his death in 1982.
This year’s competitors must write a paper on the Hebrew Bible. The winner will receive a cash award of $1,500 and the opportunity to read the prize-winning paper at the 1994 SBL Annual Meeting.
The competition is open to qualified junior faculty members and graduate Students who have not reached their 40th birthday by December 31, 1994. The deadline for manuscript submissions is February 28, 1994. Send all nominations, inquiries, manuscripts and other correspondence to: Dahood Prize Competition Committee, Dr. Astrid Beek, Co-Ordinator, Program on Studies in Religion, 445 West Engineering Bldg., University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109–1092.
During the 1993 Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C., the Ecumenical Theological Seminary and the SBL will hold a reception to announce formally the competition’s resumption. The reception is scheduled for 7:30 to 9:30 p.m., Sunday, November 21, in the Congressional Room of the Omni Shoreham Hotel.
The ABCs of the ABCs
The founding of Association ALPHABETS, based in Nice, France, promises to delight abecedarians around the world. The nonprofit association sponsors lectures and traveling exhibitions on the history of writing and the birth of the alphabet. Founded in 1991, ALPHABETS also prepares software and films on the latest research in epigraphy, archaeology and languages, and it sells posters depicting nine different alphabets and replicas of important ancient inscribed objects, such as Jewish coins and a Hyksos scarab. According to ALPHABETS president Rina Viers, the group hopes that a better understanding of languages will improve relations among the peoples of the 073world. For more information, contact Association ALPHABETS, 5 Bd. Edouard VII. 060000 Nice, France.
Museum Guide
Ethiopia’s Sacred Art Comes To U.S.
Anyone intrigued by Ephraim Isaac’s fascinating review-article, “Is the Ark of the Covenant in Ethiopia?” BAR 19:04, will not want to miss “African Zion: The Sacred Art of Ethiopia.” Showing at the Walters Art Gallery in Baltimore, Maryland, from October 17, 1993, through January 9, 1994, this exhibition includes more than 100 of the finest surviving examples of Ethiopian religious art. With icons, illuminated manuscripts and metalwork in gold and silver, the display traces the history of the Christian kingdom of Ethiopia from the Fourth century through the 18th century. According to Gary Vikan, assistant director and curator of medieval art at the gallery, “This is the first major exhibition ever to come out of Ethiopia. Most of these objects have never been seen outside of Ethiopia before.”
A highlight of the exhibit are fourth-century coins minted by Emperor Ezana of Aksum, who led the Aksumite kingdom in its conversion to Christianity. These coins may be the first to bear the Christian cross. Also on display are two wooden chests from the Zagwe dynasty (1137–1270) that are meant to symbolize the Ark of the Covenant, which Ethiopian tradition claims is held in the Church of Mary Zion in Aksum.
After closing at the Walters, the exhibit will continue its U.S. tour to the following locations: Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, New York (Feb. 1–Mar. 29, 1994): The Menil Collection, Houston, TX (Apr. 21–June 16, 1994); Museum of African American Life & Culture, Dallas, TX (Sept. 28–Nov. 30, 1994); DuSable Museum of African American History, Chicago, IL. (Dec. 23, 1994–February 26, 1995); The Fogg Art Museum, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA (Mar. 20–May 15, 1995); Cincinnati Museum of Art, Cincinnati, OH (Aug. 25–Oct. 20, 1995); Museum of African American Art, Los Angeles, CA (Nov. 12, 1995–Jan. 7, 1996).
You Made It Happen! ABT Becomes a Reality
You have already read your free article for this month. Please join the BAS Library or become an All Access member of BAS to gain full access to this article and so much more.