189688 Resource 169992 170084 170084 1195109432927 1196875679988 Controlled ASOR gets off to a traditional start

Opening evening shows how traditional approaches of archaeology still defy postmodern theory

The opening event of the annual gathering of members of the <placename w:st="on" />American</placename /> <placetype w:st="on" />School</placetype /> of Oriental Research (<a href="http://www.asor.org/">ASOR</a>) got underway in <city w:st="on" /><place w:st="on" />San Diego</place /></city /> this evening. Scholars and archaeologists from many parts of the world gathered to hear the opening comments and lectures.What was evident was an organization that was fighting back against the tides of post modernism that influences so much in academia today. In his opening remarks, president <a href="http://www.duke.edu/religion/home/eric/emeyers.html">Eric Meyers</a> of <place w:st="on" /><placename w:st="on" />Duke</placename /> <placetype w:st="on" />University harked back to a discussion with Yigal Yadin who had anticipated a divide in the academic sphere. Yadin’s solution was to establish endowed chairs in biblical archaeology in at least 10 American universities</place /></country-region />. As a start toward raising the necessary funds, he had offered his draw as a speaker.  Sadly, Yadin left for <country-region w:st="on" /><place w:st="on" />Israel</place /></country-region /> after that meeting and died the next day without being able to start on the challenge. In his place, <a href="http://ucsdnews.ucsd.edu/newsrel/soc/kershaw.asp">Norma Kershaw</a> rose to the challenge and with her husband endowed two chairs in <place w:st="on" />Southern California.Norma Kershaw was part of the welcoming committee this evening, as was <a href="http://historyweb.ucsd.edu/faculty.htm">David Noel Freedman</a> of the <place w:st="on" /><placetype w:st="on" />University</placetype /> of <placename w:st="on" />San Diego</placename /></place />. In his remarks Freedman followed Meyers lead in discussing a ring found on a female skeleton at Meggido 75 years ago in a controlled dig supervised by a licensed archaeologist. The inscription on the ring has challenged epigraphers ever since. Freedman offered his interpretation. In his opinion, the inscription lines up with a woman mentioned in <bible w:st="on" />Judges 5:28—the mother of Sisera, a warrior who battled against the Israelite forces under the leadership of Deborah and Barak. To Freedman, the inscription on the ring is cause for accepting that the Bible contains historical information relating to the beginning of <country-region w:st="on" /><place w:st="on" />Israel</place /></country-region />.The focus of the evening was a lecture by <a href="http://www.unc.edu/depts/rel_stud/people/facultydocs/bio-magness.shtml">Jodi Magness</a>, a religious studies professor of at the <placetype w:st="on" />University</placetype /> of <placename w:st="on" />North Carolina</placename />, <place w:st="on" />Chapel Hill,</place /> titled “The Current State of Qumran Archaeology.”  Magness tied the confusion on the subject to those who wished to separate the archaeology from the textual evidence associated with the site. For Magness, this is characteristic of the post-modern approach to archaeology. Magness went on to show that by the use of both archaeological and textual evidence an understanding of the intimate purity regulations of the Essenes could be understood.Eric Meyers, in a brief discussion during the reception following the meeting spoke to the vitality of the traditional approach to archaeology. According to Meyers, the difficulty is that younger members are too interested in anthropology by itself and won’t consider the textual evidence that needs to be brought into the discussion.So the first evening ended on a high note with a reception. 10 application/xml false archaeology ASOR Dead Sea Scrolls Eric Meyers Essenes Jodi Magness Norma Kershaw post-modernism Qumran Yagel Yadin Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; MSIE 7.0; Windows NT 5.1; Avant Browser; SU 3.005; .NET CLR 1.0.3705; .NET CLR 1.1.4322; InfoPath.1; .NET CLR 2.0.50727) 127.0.0.1 127.0.0.1 pnathan 66.125.198.98 false true false false true 188838 false false true false false false true 193037 Resource 188838 173239 173239 1198349060615 1198349060615 Controlled The ASOR session on Qumran was rigged (see linked article)

Magness is on board of trustees, annual meeting committee

<a href="http://www.nowpublic.com/culture/charity-fund-involved-dead-sea-scrolls-conflict">http://www.nowpublic.com/culture/charity-fund-involved-dead-sea-scrolls-conflict</a> 10 application/xml true Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; MSIE 6.0; Windows NT 5.1) 127.0.0.1 127.0.0.1 69.86.34.90 false true false false true 169992 blog blogsite/FirstFollowers/web