The 2008 Primaries or How the Democrats Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bible in Politics(A lengthier version of this article, along with further analysis from Simon Staffell, whose insights on this paper I am grateful for, will be presented at the Society of Biblical Literature Conference in Boston 2008.)
In a now infamous incident during the 1988 presidential campaign, George H. Bush told a Wall Street Journal reporter that when his plane was shot down in World War II, “I thought about mother and dad and the strength I got from them, and God, and faith, and of course the separation of church and state.”
Of course. Of course, the thoughts of a 20-year-old American soldier falling from the sky at 120 miles per minute were turned to the love of his parents and the unofficial U.S. policy that sifts those matters that concern the church from those matters that concern the state. Perhaps, that may have seemed plausible to a late-1980s audience. But as the Democrats came falling out of the sky sixteen years later after John Kerry was shot down by the reelection of George W. Bush, their thoughts were turned to their folly of keeping church and state separate.
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NEW ONLINE ANCIENT NEAR EAST MONOGRAPH SERIES ESTABLISHED
The Society of Biblical Literature, in partnership with the Centro de Estudios de Historia del Antiguo Oriente, Universidad Católica Argentina (CEHAO/UCA), announces the establishment of a new online, open-access monograph series. The focus of the series will be on the ancient Near East, including ancient Israel and its literature, from the early Neolithic to the early Hellenistic eras. Proposals and manuscripts may be submitted in either Spanish or English. Manuscripts are subject to blind peer review by two members of the series’ editorial board before acceptance. Published volumes will be held to the high scholarly standards of SBL and CEHAO/UCA.
A prestigious international group of scholars has agreed to serve on the editorial board:
Co-General Editors:
Ehud Ben Zvi, University of Alberta
Roxana Flammini, Universidad Católica Argentina
Editorial Board:
Marcelo Campagno, Universidad de Buenos Aires, CONICET
Michael Floyd, Centro de Estudios Teologico, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
José Galan, Director of the Spanish-Egyptian Mission at Dra Abu el-Naga, Luxor (Egypt)
Erhard Gerstenberger, Philipps Universität-Marburg
Steven Holloway, American Theological Library Association
Alan Lenzi, University of the Pacific
Santiago Rostom Maderna, Universidad Católica Argentina
Martti Nissinen, University of Helsinki
Juan Manuel Tebes, Universidad Católica Argentina, Universidad de Buenos Aires
The partnership between SBL and CEHAO/UCA was initiated under the auspices of SBL’s International Cooperation Initiative (ICI) and represents the type of international scholarly exchange that is the goal of ICI. Scholars from anywhere in the world are invited to submit proposals, and the online nature of the series will provide global access to the published scholarship.
Questions about the series or proposals for volumes should be directed to Ehud Ben Zvi (ehud.ben.zvi@ualberta.ca), Roxana Flammini (roxflamm@yahoo.com.ar), or Billie Jean Collins (billie.collins@sbl-site.org).