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Sean Freyne

Sean Freyne is Professor of Theology (emeritus) in the School of Religions and Theology, Trinity College, Dublin. His academic interests include a study of Galilee in the Hellenistic and Roman periods, the historical Jesus, the gospels, and aspects of early Jewish and early Christian history and development. He has published several books, most recently Jesus a Jewish Galilean: A New Reading of the Jesus Story. Dr. Freyne has lectured widely in Australia and in the U.S., at Loyola University New Orleans, and was a visiting scholar at the University of Notre Dame. Most recently, he was Visiting Professor of Early Christian History and Literature at Harvard Divinity School (2007–2008). He is a member of the Royal Irish Academy and a fellow of Trinity College, Dublin, as well as a trustee of the Chester Beatty Library of Oriental Art, Dublin. Professor Freyne’s expertise is widely sought by media, and he has appeared on many televisions and radio programs.

Presenter at

Bible & Archaeology Fest XII, November 20-22, 2009
The Archaeology of Roman Galilee: What we have and have not learned about Jesus the Galilean.
This lecture will address various aspects of Galilean life and culture that have emerged from archaeological exploration of the region over the past 35 years, such as the markers of Jewish ethnicity, signs of urbanization as well as the contrasts between city and village life. The presentation will then discuss the uses and misuses of this information in the ongoing quest for the historical Jesus. Some new questions will be posed, the answers to which could better help us to understand the gospels’ account of the Galilean ministry in its religious and cultural setting.