Reflections on SBL 2022

Okay, I’ve just finished attending the Society of Biblical Literature’s (SBL) annual conference held in Denver this week gone by. The theme was “Reconnect” which was especially appropriate as this was the first big post-COVID conference in biblical studies since 2019. I heard that 7,800 people attended the conference, down from the usual 12,0000 that they normally have. Not packed, but definitely robust in attendance. It did give me vibes of, “Chewy, we’re home!” So grateful to have been there and for so many good things that I heard and saw!

In sum, highlights for me were:

Reconnecting with friends and colleagues I haven’t seen for three years!

David deSilva’s lecture on Paul and Sanctification (280% Wesleyan) for the Institute for Biblical Research (IBR).

The IBR worship on Sunday was amazing too, I’m always blessed and encouraged by it, and Joey Dodson (Denver Seminary) preached up a storm.

My papers went well, first one on New Testament Theology, then a second one on Mark’s Counter-Imperial Imperial Christology (email me if you want a copy!).

For me, the best papers were on in Johannine sections, esp. on John within Judaism, some good stuff going on there thinking about how John talks about “the Jews.” I also caught some great papers in the Philo section, most notably, David Wilhite on Philo's Logos. I also heard a terrific paper by John Jerome Markowski on “Christ and Conquest: How the Markan Jesus Subverts the Brand of Empire” which showed comparisons between Roman treatment of its conquered peoples and police brutality against racial minorities in America - powerful stuff. Also, Andy Johnson on the “white man” of lawlessness in 2 Thessalonians 2:3-12. The irony is at ETS a few days earlier someone gave a paper saying that “lawlessness” means secular laws about CRT and transgender rights.

I loved seeing my new book Jesus among the gods on display at the Baylor booth.

It was also a great opportunity to catch up with many former and current PhD students and I really do covet those opportunities.

Got to experience - how can I put it - the distinct aromas and ambiance of downtown Denver (let the reader understand).

The saddest part was that so many friends have either lost their job or are losing their jobs in academia. Also, so many friends and their families are seriously struggling with mental health issues. So while there was the joy of reconnecting, there was also a tragic tinge of melancholy and insecurity for so many.

Anyway, I’m hanging around Denver for Thanksgiving, doing some lectures at Denver Seminary, then heading home for the Aussie summer!