‘And you shall be unto me a Kingdom of Priests, a Holy Nation’: Chosen Peoples from the Bible to Daesh, Ertegun House & Radcliffe Humanities Building, University of Oxford, June 20–21, 2016
This two-day, single-strand conference addresses the conception of divine nations and elect peoplehood, forms of ethno-centrism found in countless historical moments. Often perceived as a phenomenon tied to particular, even peculiar examples such as Jewishness, notions of divine election and chosenness are essential to the self-situation and mobilisation of a wide variety of ethno-national actors and political entrepreneurs. Bringing together twelve speakers in comparative sessions, alongside three keynotes assessing the Islamic example from the seventh century to the contemporary world, the event comprehensively opens debate on divine nations and elect peoplehood across time and place.
Registration is £10. RSVP by June 13, 2016, to identity@TORCH.ox.ac.uk.
The conference is organized by the TORCH Long History of Identity, Ethnicity, and Nationhood network.