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James Charlesworth

James H. Charlesworth (A.B., B.D., Ph.D., ET, Litt.D. [hon]) is George L. Collord Professor of New Testament Language and Literature as well as Director of the Dead Sea Scrolls Project at Princeton Theological Seminary. He has authored or edited over 60 books and 600 articles. He has also been a professor at Duke University (1969-1984), Lady Davis Professor in the Hebrew University in Jerusalem (1988, 2001), Annual Professor in the W. F. Albright Institute in Jerusalem (1998-99), and McCarthy Professor in the Pontificia Università Gregoriana in Rome (2005). He has lectured in over 35 countries. Charlesworth has received numerous honors, including publication awards from the Biblical Archaeology Society, the Distinguished Achievement Citation from Ohio Wesleyan University, the first Frank Moore Cross Award from the American Schools of Oriental Research, the Comenius Medal from Charles University in Prague, and the Pentecost Medal from the Patriarch of Jerusalem. He was elected to Det Kongelige Norske Videnskabers Selskab (The Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letters).

Presenter at

Bible & Archaeology Fest XV, November 16-18, 2012
Jesus, Mary, and the Newly Discovered Synagogue at Migdal
Mary of Migdal (Mary Magdalene) is one of the most mysterious and intriguing persons in the Bible. She becams a follower of Jesus and was at the foot of the cross. This presentation will address some of the enigmatic questions surrounding her as well as what a newly discovered synagogue in Migdal can tell us about Mary and Jesus. Why was she there? What can be known about Migdal? Did Jesus pass through it on the way from Nazareth to Capernaum? How old is the synagogue found recently at Migdal? Can we be certain that it is a “synagogue”? What are the meanings of the symbols etched on the large stone found in the synagogue? Is there any relation between the Parables of Enoch and Migdal? Was Jesus influenced by this mysterious document? Where did Jesus meet Mary of Migdal? When was the synagogue destroyed?

Bible & Archaeology Fest XIV, November 18-20, 2011
Does the Gospel of John Accurately Describe Jerusalem Before 70 CE?
Before the nineteenth century, the Gospel of John was once considered an accurate description of Jerusalem. However, for the last 200 years the text has been considered a Christological creation by an author who was ignorant of Jerusalem. Yet surprisingly, recent excavations have indicated that the Gospel of John is sometimes strikingly accurate. The author knew the importance of stone vessels, describes large pools that have been unearthed, and perceives the importance of mikvaot near the Temple. This presentation examines the most recent evidence for the Gospel of John’s accuracy in its portrayal of ancient Jerusalem.

Bible & Archaeology Fest XIII, November 19-21, 2010
Understanding Jesus: What We have Learned from Archaeology, Research, and the Dead Sea Scrolls
Thirty years ago, a new phase in the study of the historical Jesus emerged. This new phase included archaeological science and generally excluded scholarship that was generated by faith concerns or Existentialism. New questions arose from this new era of scholarship: How can Jesus’ message be understood in light of the Apocryphal Books [the OTP and the OTA], the Dead Sea Scrolls, the Books of Enoch, and the Jewish Magical Papyri? How did topography influence Jesus’ life and message? How does sociological research help us comprehend his time and his unique claims? What has archaeology, refined by the scientific advancements since 1967, revealed about Jesus’ time? Have archaeologists finally found a synagogue in which Jesus could have taught or are the Evangelists misinformed by later developments? How and in what ways—and why—is archaeology significant for both enlightened Jewish thought and Christian faith?

Bible & Archaeology Fest XII, November 20-22, 2009
Should the Gospel of John be used in Jesus Research?
In choosing sources for historical Jesus research, most scholars choose to focus on the Synoptic Gospels (the books of Mark, Matthew and Luke). Sometimes, the focus is narrowed even further to include primarily the alleged source of Jesus’ sayings found only in edited passages in Matthew and Luke. Many leading scholars judge the Gospel of John to be defined by creative theological reflections, which may be determinative for Christian faith but that are far removed from Jesus’ time and culture. Archaeologists, not influenced by theological claims, have observed that the Gospel of John knows about Jewish life in ways far superior to the Synoptics. Thanks to research on the Dead Sea Scrolls, scholars now agree that John is much more Jewish than was formerly thought. This presentation examines whether the book of John should be dismissed from Jesus research, and whether or not it preserves any reliable history about Jesus’ life and thought.