Inaugural Graduate Conference on Early Christian Studies: Memories
A three-day academic conference was held from Monday, May 23, to Wednesday, May 25, 2022. The event featured a variety of presentations and discussions on topics related to early Christianity, including theology, biblical studies, and classical studies.
Conference Sessions
The conference opened with remarks from Timothy Matovina, Luca Grillo, and Hildegund Müller. Over the course of the event, attendees participated in multiple sessions covering diverse subjects.
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New Testament and Early Christian Life: The first day's sessions explored topics such as the interpretation of scripture, female agency in early Christian writings, and early Christian graffiti.
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Latin Fathers, Poetry, and Art: The afternoon sessions on Monday focused on the works of Latin Fathers like Lactantius and St. Augustine, as well as the depiction of Christian themes in late antique poetry and art.
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Latin Poetry and Origen: Tuesday's sessions included discussions on Latin poets like Prudentius and Boethius, as well as the theological writings of Origen of Alexandria.
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Christians and Ancient Culture: A session on Tuesday afternoon examined the relationship between early Christians and ancient culture, including rhetoric, gender roles, and education.
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Greek Fathers, Syriac, and Anti-Chalcedonian Writers: The final day's sessions covered the works of Syriac and Greek Fathers, with presentations on topics ranging from the Council of Nicaea to the Christology of Pseudo-Dionysius and Maximus the Confessor.
Keynote Lectures
The conference featured two keynote lectures. On Monday, Robin Jensen discussed "Visual Typologies: Prodigies of the Passion in Early Christian Art", and on Tuesday, Éric Rebillard spoke on "Early Martyr Narratives as Living Texts: The Case-Study of North Africa".