Byzantines and the Bible, thematic session at 23rd International Congress of Byzantine Studies, Belgrade, August 22–27, 2016

Recent scholarship has turned its attention to the role of the Bible in the Byzantine world, notably with two recent Dumbarton Oaks Colloquia on the Old and New Testaments respectively, but much remains to be done in bridging the gap between mainstream Byzantine studies and the activities surrounding the reading, studying and copying of the principal sacred text in Christianity. Following a successful and stimulating paper session organized within the European Association of Biblical Studies meeting in Cordoba (July 2015), we would like to continue to open a dialogue between Byzantinists and biblical scholars by proposing a broader thematic session at the International Conference.

Papers can address any period of Byzantine history but must focus on the impact and reception of the biblical text on the work of known (or unknown) scholars, writers and readers in the Greek language. Papers can be manuscript-based (e.g. work on annotations to biblical mss or their illumination), author-based (e.g. focus on a particular author's use of the Bible), text-based (e.g. work on citations from the Bible in different authors) or period-based (e.g. intersecting the significance between a certain historical period and biblical themes). We welcome comparative contributions with respect to other languages (Latin, Hebrew, Syriac, Armenian, Arabic) and other cultures in relation to the concept of a sacred text: does its normative status encourage or impede philological study? What is the role of interpretation and what forms did it take in Byzantium? Was the Greek Bible a uniting force, or the first place of attrition between different readers, cultures and theologies?

Organizers
Reinhart Ceulemans (Leuven)
Barbara Crostini (Stockholm)
Mariachiara Fincati (Milan)