The Pacific Northwest Regional Meeting for AAR and Biblical Studies Scholars
will take place at
Pacific Lutheran University, Tacoma, Washington
May 17-19, 2024
PROPOSAL INSTRUCTIONS
Paper and proposal submissions are now open for the 2024 regional conference this May. The deadline for proposals has been extended until March 31, 2024.
Proposals should be submitted electronically using this from:
2024 Pacific Northwest Regional Meeting Abstract Submission
(If you are unable to use the form, email your proposal directly to the chairs of the program unit in question.)
Presentation or panel proposals should be NO LONGER than 400 words (unless indicated differently for a specific program unit).
Presentations should be no longer than 20 minutes in length to allow for fuller engagement. Discussion of presentations and questions typically follow each presentation.
Participants with accepted proposals will be notified by early April.
All accepted presenters MUST register for the conference. Be advised: any presenter not registered by April 21 will have their presentation automatically cancelled and will be omitted from the program.
Please choose one of the following program units for your proposal:
ARTS AND RELIGION The Arts and Religion section is committed to exploring the relationship between creative expression and spiritual practice. We invite multiple perspectives, embodied passionate scholarship, and rich discussion about the ways in which the arts and spirituality contribute to a deeper understanding of the human condition.
Call for Papers
Our program unit is interested in all forms of spiritual, creative, and ritual work. We recognize and take seriously the many creative forms undertaken by human beings in pursuit of leading meaningful lives. This includes but is not limited to handiwork, the use of image, symbol, ritual, music, percussion, dance, poetry, theatre, myth, folklore and storytelling. We invite you to contemplate about how art is created and used and perceived in human society, especially in times of peril and struggle. Consider: How do people engage in the creative act in order to affirm their humanity, recover their dignity, and commemorate joy and grief with an aim towards healing? Interdisciplinary approaches and multimedia presentations as individual or panel proposals are welcome. We look forward to hearing from you.
For more information, contact the co-chair: Octavio Carrasco, PhD (doctavioc@gmail.com)
ASIAN AND COMPARATIVE STUDIES
To promote scholarship in non-Western areas of religion and theology and to assess various comparative methods of investigation.
For more information, contact the chair: Nick Gier, University of Idaho (ngier006@gmail.com).
HEBREW BIBLE
The primary goal of the Hebrew Bible session is to foster study and interaction in the field, more specifically:
• To promote academic dialogue between scholars in the Pacific Northwest Region.
• To showcase and promote research in the Hebrew Bible.
• To advance the quality of research and writing in the area of Hebrew Bible by mentoring and recommending work for publication.
• To provide mentoring and opportunities for graduate students to present their work to the Hebrew Bible session, thus incorporating new scholars into the greater goals of the SBL.
1 General Call for Papers: We welcome papers on any topic related to Hebrew Bible, with priority given to papers that deal with language and linguistics, wisdom literature, and prophetic literature. Early proposals are especially welcome with the goal of organizing a panel discussion for a regional scholar’s recent work and/or organizing a thematic topic session. Graduate students are required to send full copies of their papers for consideration.
2 Hebrew Bible Research Group on Dress 2022-2024: The Hebrew Bible unit welcomes proposals to third research group on the topic of dress in the Hebrew Bible. The work of the third research group on this topic is approaching publication submission. The goal of this third group is the sustained examination of the multivalent importance of clothing in ancient Israel and the ancient Near East. This group has worked closely over the course of two years in the manner of a think tank. Each member of the group undertakes the investigation of a topic that s/he will selects. Each member shares her/his research with the rest of the group for peer review, brainstorming, and feedback. The members of this group will meet during the Pacific Northwest AAR meeting. The minimum commitment time to this research group is two years.
Questions should be submitted directly to the chair: Antonios Finitsis, Pacific Lutheran University (finitsak@plu.edu).
HISTORY OF CHRISTIANITY AND NORTH AMERICAN RELIGIONSThis program unit invites both historians of Christianity and scholars studying North American religions to present their research and engage in collegial discussion of their work. Review panels of selected new works in these fields are also included in the sessions. The section seeks to develop an ongoing dialog and network among participants.
Call for Papers
Papers are welcome in any area of the History of Christianity and North American Religions. Proposals are especially invited on the following themes:
• Papers reflecting current research in the history of Christianity (any era).
• Papers related to the history and practice of North American religions.
• Papers related to churches and religious organizations in the Pacific Northwest.
For more information, contact the co-chairs: Laura Jurgens (lkjurgen@ucalgary.ca) and Christopher Roberts (robertschristopher4@gmail.com).
MORMON STUDIES
Mormon Studies promotes the exploration of a wide range of topics relating to Mormonism. This section seeks to provide scholarly inquiry into Mormon history, culture, belief and practice, theology, scripture, and the role of Mormonism in contemporary politics. This section encourages the study of Mormonism from multiple disciplines and methodologies. This section will better equip those in the academy to teach on the subject of Mormonism and actively promotes opportunities for interfaith dialogue.
Papers are welcome in any area of Mormon Studies. We encourage papers from multiple disciplinary and methodological perspectives.
For more information, contact the co-chairs: Jenny Webb (jennywebb37@gmail.com) and Amanda Buessecker (amandambuessecker@gmail.com).
NEW TESTAMENT AND THE WORLD OF EARLY CHRISTIANITY
This program unit strives to be inclusive of a wide range of topics of interest to the study of early Christian writings and the world in which they developed. With this objective, we encourage explorations from researchers in archaeology, classics, late antiquity, and Christian texts (canonical and non-canonical), and we welcome disciplinary and interdisciplinary examinations that incorporate insights from the social sciences and humanities.
Call for Papers
This year our Program Unit will continue to work on our ongoing research, discussion, and publication project: Power and Authority in the Early Christian World. We had our first year for this project in 2021. The minimum commitment to this research group is two years as the objective is to provide two opportunities for discussion of all papers.
For more information, contact the co-chairs: Anne Moore, University of Calgary (amoore@ucalgary.ca); Stan Helton (snhelton@abccampus.ca); and Ron Clark, Portland Seminary (rclark@georgefox.edu).
RELIGION AND SOCIETY
Our section welcomes all papers related to ethics, contemporary social issues or events, and social scientific perspectives on religion. Recurring themes in our discussions include neuroscience, psychology of religious experience, demographic and cultural transitions, war and violence, science, and Speculative Fiction (SF).
Call for Papers
We are excited to announce our call for papers that address the phenomenon of community. How does religion and/or religious groups or individuals build community through the use of hospitality or diplomacy? Other topics could look at conundrums (phenomenon or issues that defy easy answers) to community. What constructs, religious, social, or cultural, create obstacles to community? How can religious or spiritual resources be engaged to overcome these obstacles?
For more information, contact the co-chairs: Joseph Paxton, Claremont School of Theology (joseph.paxton@cst.edu) and Jenna Ferrey, University of Calgary (jennaferrey@gmail.com).
RELIGION AND THE SOCIAL SCIENCES
Religion and Social Sciences invites interdisciplinary perspectives that address the integration of religious scholarship with disciplines focused on psychology and culture, including anthropology, education, psychology, sociology, or social work. Each of these disciplines involves the careful examination and understanding of human experience. This unit hopes to provide a venue to showcase and discuss scholarship that advances the intersection of these streams of scholarship.
Presentation proposals may consider, for example, topics including religion and mental or physical health (e.g., religion and disabilities, infertility, or COVID-19); religion and trauma; neuropsychology and theology; guilt and shame; forgiveness; humility; gratitude; God image/concept; faith development; religion and sexuality; the psychology of the pastorate; the sociology of faith communities; religious faith in culture; religious and spiritual struggle or social crisis; disappointment or anger with God; religion and aggression, conflict, and violence; religious attitudes; religion and migration; and religious multiplicity.
Questions should be submitted directly to the co-chairs: Marcia Webb, Seattle Pacific University, (marcia@spu.edu) and Chakrita Saulina, Seattle Pacific School of Theology (saulinac@spu.edu).
THEOLOGY AND PHILOSOPHY OF RELIGION
The Theology and Philosophy of Religion Section exists to provide a forum for scholars to
critically examine politics, scriptures, ethics, history, art, literature and/or culture from explicitly
philosophical and theological perspectives. We welcome diverse perspectives and encourage the
collegiality of frank and open dialogue between and among disciplinary areas.
Call for Papers
The Theology and Philosophy of Religion Section welcomes proposals for papers or panels
concerning any aspect of theology and/or the philosophy of religion. Proposals may focus on any
topic or issue.
Please note that all individual presentations will be limited to 15-20 minutes in order to allow
time for questions and conversation immediately after the presentation.
For more information, contact the co-chairs: Norman Metzler (npjmetzler@gmail.com) and Gilad Elbom (gilad.elbom@gmail.com)
WOMEN AND RELIGION
The Women and Religion unit invites individual papers and panel proposals from a variety of religious traditions that develop and utilize methods of interpretation and scholarship that centers the lived experiences of women-identified individuals and communities.
We invite papers addressing the following areas:
• The centering of women’s scholarship within a given religious tradition;
• Feminist, Womanist hermeneutics of scripture, theology, and/or spirituality;
• Historical revisionist reworkings of female religious figures;
• Women’s roles in places of worship throughout history; and
• The significance of women’s bodies in sacred text, sacred spaces, and sacred rites.
There is an opportunity to offer a joint session with Gender, Religion, Sexuality and Power, and we will gladly consider any papers that appear to bridge the two units.
For more information, contact the chair, Kristen Daley-Mosier (kristen.daley-mosier@garrett.edu).
PNW AAR 