As I write, undergraduate teaching is coming to an end for the year, and we are busy with preparations for our Alumni Weekend in May to celebrate the 50th anniversary of our graduate programs. Join me in looking back on a busy month of March.
As we do regularly in March, we hosted a pizza lunch to celebrate the achievements of undergraduates who had done particularly well in their Level 1 and Level 2 courses. Despite the dreary weather, UH 122 was packed to the rafters with talented students who had responded to their personal invitations. Hugh swathes of pizza and soft drinks were eagerly consumed as students chatted with each other, faculty members and staff. We took the opportunity to congratulate students on their success in our courses and to let them know of the many other opportunities to enjoy our courses, whether as majors in Religious Studies, combined honours students, or just for interest. As always, this event was a great opportunity to connect with our students and it is one of the highlights of this term
Conference Papers and Invited Talks
James Benn, "Tea and Other Health Drinks in Song-dynasty China: Some Clues from the Buddhist Monastery" Department of Religious Studies, Yale University.
"Buddhist Arts of Tea in Medieval China," Lewis and Clark College, Portland Oregon. Plus guest lectures in classes on "Buddhist Art" and "Women in Buddhism."
Louis Greenspan gave a talk on “The Doull Fackenheim debate and The End of the History” to the Annual Meeting of the Hegel Society of Ontario.
Travis Kroeker presented “Saint Paul at Sea: a Mystical Political Reading of Moby Dick,” at a conference on “The Impossibility of God,” Centre for Advanced Research in Catholic Thought, King’s College, Western University.
Liyakat Takim, “Fiqh for Minorities: Islamic Law in the Diaspora” Hartford Seminary, Connecticut.
“Rahma as an Ethical Term in Muslim-Catholic Dialogue” presented at conference at the University of St Michael's College, University of Toronto commemorating 50 years of Muslim-Catholic dialogue.
“The Other Within the Other: Demystifying American Muslims” Symposium on Islam in North America: History and Contemporary Manifestations”, McMaster University.
Graduate Student Appointments
Anthony Meyer (PhD candidate, Biblical) will take up an appointment at the University of Michigan as Research Associate in Rabbinic Literature and Ancient Judaism. Congratulations, Anthony!
Graduate Student Presentations
Michael Johnson (PhD candidate, Biblical), “Approaching Manuscripts Digitally: A Retrospect on a Year of Applying Digital Scholarship to a Research Problem in 1QHodayota,” McMaster Ancient Judaism and Christianity Seminar, McMaster University.
“The Puzzling Case of Fragment 10 in the Thanksgiving Hymns Manuscript 1QHodayota: A Case Study about Two Computer-Aided Approaches for Evaluating the Placement of Fragments in Dead Sea Scrolls Reconstructions,” Sherman Centre for Digital Scholarship Colloquium, McMaster University.
And Finally...
I hope you enjoyed this brief sketch of the department's activities in March. I wish you a pleasant April. Please let me know of any errors or omissions. Don't forget to follow us on Twitter and find us on Facebook.
Be seeing you!
James Benn
Chair