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Durham University Centre for Death and Life Studies

Current Projects

 Conference: Death, Dying and Disposal (DDD9 and DDD10)

The ninth meeting of the Death Dying and Disposal Conference (DDD9) was hosted by the Centre at Durham September 9th - 12th 2009 with approximetaly 200 delegates, forty percent of them from outside the UK. The Book of Abstracts edited by Douglas J. Davies and James Jirtle is published as Volume 14 Supplement to the journal Mortality September 2009. A book of selected papers on the topic of Emotions, Death and Identity is to be published in 2011.

The Tenth DDD Conference was held in September 9th-11th 2011 at The Centre for Thanatology Radbout University Nijmegen. It included the showing of the film  Earth to Earth: Natural Burial and The Church of England . Both of these spoke to the film which was given a second showing by popular request. Members of the Centre's Cremation in Scotland team (see below) also made a significant contribution to this conference by presenting a panel on this Leverhulme funded project.

Film

During late 2010 the Centre commissioned a film on its woodland burial project. Funded both by the Centre and Durham University's Wolfson Research Institute this film Earth to Earth: Natural Burial and The Church of England was made by a former Durham University graduate Sarah Thomas, now an ethnographic film-maker. This has been shown at a variety of public events, including the 2011 Open Day at Barton Glebe Woodland Burial site, with many of the people appearing in the film being present at the day. It has alos been selected for inclusion in a variety of film festivals including, for example, Turin and Cambridge, and has been shown at academic seminars in Helsinki and Nijmegen, as well as at training days for clergy at St George's House Windsor Castle and Cuddesdon Theological College. 

    

 Woodland Burial

Funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council and Economic and Social Research Council's Religion and Society programme this Collaborative Doctoral Award focused on developments in woodland burial in general with a special focus of The Arbory Trust and its Barton Glebe site near Cambridgeshire. The Project ran for three years from October 2007 -2010 with Ms Hannah Rumble, B.A., M.A (Distinction) as the primary researcher. She successfully completed her doctoral examination in December 2010. Her thesis is accessible through Durham University Library.

Part of this research, along with furether research and analysis will be published in 2012 in a joint volume with Prof. Douglas Davies dealing with woodland burial and other aspects of contemporary funeral rites in Britain. For more information, email h.j.rumble@durham.ac.uk 

See also the previous note on the DDD Conferences.

Cremation in Scotland

The Cremation in Scotland Project is now drawing to its close and a major book on the material is currently being preapred for publication. Members of the project team have given numerous papers in UK, France, and Romania over the last year, they also made a significant contribution to the DDD10 Conference at Nijmegen.Funded by the Leverhulme Trust this three year project (2008-2011) is strongly interdisciplinary. Led by Professor Davies and Prof. Hilary Grainger (University of the Arts, London) the research team includes the Revd Dr Peter Jupp and  Mr. Stephen White as Research Fellows and Mr Gordon Raeburn who is working for his doctorate. Together the team has been exploring the social and religious history of Scotland as the medium within which cremation emerged. Prof. Grainger has a special interest in the architectural history of Scotland's crematoria, Mr White in legal aspects of cremation and burial, Mr Raeburn in the theology of death in Scotland at and after the Reformation, Dr Jupp in the historical dynamics of the process of funerary change, and Prof Davies in its ritual and symbolic aspects and in the interdisciplinary nature of the project itself.

Death and British Funerals

Funded by the ecumenical, Churches Group for Funerals, Profs Douglas Davies and Prof. Tony Walter (of Bath University's Centre for Death and Society CDAS) completed and presented to that Group in summer 2008 a preliminary report on contemporary aspects of death and funerary rites in England and Wales.

 Research leave

In summer term 2011 Prof. Davies was given research leave held as a Visiting Research Fellow at the Collegium Institute for Advanced Studies at the University of Helsinki. There he continued work on the joint volume with Dr Hannah Rumbe on woodland burial and contemporary funeral rites in the UK, to be published by Continuum in 2012. He took part in a variety of research seminars and also showed the film Earth to Earth: Woodland Burial and The Church of England to the Scandinavian Thanatological Association, Helsinki University's Department of Anthropology, and to a local Helsinki circle of interested parties. He was able to meet leading figures in Finland's palliative care world. In November 2011 Prof davies will return to give a plenary lecture at a conference hosted by the Collegium as part of its ongoing programme on death studies.

 

New Testament Research Seminar

Seminars are usually held on Monday at 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House, but you should check the seminar details for exceptions. Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information about this seminar series.

'Reading the Transfiguration: Character and Plot'

Presented by Dr Martin Kitchen,

12 March 2012 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

'Psalm 95[94]/Hebrews 3-4: Wilderness Typology'

Presented by Prof Francis Watson, Durham University

5 March 2012 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

For research postgraduates.

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

'1 Corinthians 6.9-20 and Baptismal Participation in Christ'

Presented by Dr Rodrigo Morales, Humboldt Research Fellow, Ludwig-Maximilians Universität, Munich

27 February 2012 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

'Scripture in Qumran Messianic Texts'

Presented by Dr Lutz Doering, Durham University

20 February 2012 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

For research postgraduates.

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

'Divine and Human Community in the Gospel of John'

Presented by Prof Richard Bauckham, Emeritus Professor, University of St Andrews

13 February 2012 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

'4 Maccabees 5: Torah as Philosophy'

Presented by Dr Jane Heath, Durham University

6 February 2012 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

For research postgraduates.

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

''Prologue' to 'Gospel Writing: A Canonical Perspective''

Presented by Prof Francis Watson, Durham University

30 January 2012 16:15 in Abbey House, Seminar Room C

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

'Gospel Writing: A Canonical Perspective' (Book Preview)

Presented by Prof Francis Watson, Durham University

12 December 2011 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

'Were the Pauline Churches House Churches?'

Presented by Dr Eddie Adams, King's College London

5 December 2011 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

'Grammar, Polemic and the Development of Patristic Exegesis 150-250'

Presented by Prof Lewis Ayres, Durham University

28 November 2011 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Postgraduate Presentations

Presented by Dorothee Bertschmann and Leonard Wee, Durham University

14 November 2011 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Dorothee Bertschmann, œThe Good, the Bad, and the State: What is the meaning of to agathon in Romans 13.1-7?

Leonard Wee: œFeatures in Paul's Summaries of OT Historical Narratives

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

'Paul and the Gift' (Book Preview)

Presented by Prof John Barclay, Durham University

7 November 2011 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

The Narrative Characteristics of the Pastoral Epistles in the Light of Ancient Epistolography

Presented by Prof Dr Jens Herzer, University of Leipzig

30 May 2011 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Looking at the Letter of Mara bar Sarapion in the Context of Ancient Epistolary Theory and Practice

Presented by Dr Annette Merz, University of Utrecht

23 May 2011 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Did Jesus Challenge the Purity Laws? A Close Reading of Mark 5:21-43

Presented by Dr Cecilia Wassén, University of Upsala

16 May 2011 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

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The Lukan Preface

Presented by Prof John Moles, University of Newcastle

9 May 2011 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Righteousness and Reciprocity: Justification by Faith and Participation in Christ in John Calvin’s Pauline Exegesis

Presented by Dr Stephen Chester, North Park Theological Seminary

2 May 2011 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Pseudepigraphy in 2 Thessalonians

Presented by Dr Christina Kreinecker, University of Salzburg

14 March 2011 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

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Genesis in Hebrews

Presented by Dr Susan Docherty, Newman College, Birmingham

7 March 2011 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Contested Paternity and Contested Readings: Jesus’ Conception in Matthew 1:18-25

Presented by Prof Andrew Lincoln, University of Gloucestershire

28 February 2011 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

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Presented by Prof David Parker, University of Birmingham

14 February 2011 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

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Memory and Paideia: The Gospel Tradition and the Hellenistic Schools

Presented by Prof Loveday Alexander,

7 February 2011 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

‘Race’, ‘Nation’, ‘People’: Ethnic Identity-Construction in 1 Peter 2.9

Presented by Prof David Horrell, University of Exeter

31 January 2011 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Plato’s Demiurge and the Hellenistic Origins of Intelligent Creation

Presented by Prof George Boys-Stones, Durham University

24 January 2011 14:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Constructing the Fourfold Gospel

Presented by Prof Francis Watson, Durham University

17 January 2011 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

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Heresy and Scripture

Presented by Prof Judith Lieu, Cambridge

13 December 2010 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Recent Developments in New Testament Textual Criticism

Presented by Prof Keith Elliott, Leeds

6 December 2010 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Paul and Ancient Jewish Letter Writing

Presented by Dr Lutz Doering, Durham University

29 November 2010 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Introduction to the Diatessaron

Presented by Dr Lionel North,

15 November 2010 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Schweitzer and Harnack: the History of an Unlikely Alliance

Presented by Dr James Carleton-Paget, Cambridge

8 November 2010 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Ancient Ethical Theory and Paul: What Plutarch, Alcinous, and Galen Have to Say about the Apostle's Moral Landscape

Presented by Dr Max Lee, North Park Theological Seminary

1 November 2010 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Knowing and Obeying the Law in Ben Sira

Presented by Dr Shane Berg,

25 October 2010 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Galatians and the Gift (2)

Presented by Prof John Barclay, Durham University

18 October 2010 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Galatians and the Gift (1)

Presented by Prof John Barclay, Durham University

11 October 2010 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Learning Not To Know: Paul, Postmodernism, and Biblical Interpretation

Presented by Dr A. K. M. Adam, University of Glasgow

15 March 2010 16:15 in Seminar Room B

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Title TBC

Presented by Dr Tom Wright, Bishop of Durham

8 March 2010 16:15 in Seminar Room B

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Discussion based on his book, Reading Romans in Pompeii (2009)

Presented by Dr Peter Oakes, University of Manchester

1 March 2010 16:15 in Seminar Room B

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Discussion based on his book, Scripture: A Very Theological Proposal (2009)

Presented by Dr Angus Paddison, University of Winchester

22 February 2010 16:15 in Seminar Room B

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Noncanonical gospels (3): the Gospel of Peter

Presented by Dr Bill Telford,

15 February 2010 16:15 in Seminar Room B

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Compelled to Preach: The Meaning and Significance of Paul's Stewardship Metaphor in 1 Corinthians 9; Becoming ‘Gods’? 2 Corinthians 3.18 and Theosis

Presented by John Goodrich; Ben Blackwell,

8 February 2010 16:15 in Seminar Room B

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Title TBC

Presented by Prof Philip Esler, University of St Andrews

1 February 2010 16:15 in Seminar Room B

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Noncanonical gospels (2): P. Oxyrhynchus 840

Presented by Dr Lutz Doering,

25 January 2010 16:15 in Seminar Room B

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Mark’s Portrait of Jesus

Presented by Dr Bill Telford,

14 December 2009 16:15 in Seminar Room C

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Eschatology and the Emotions in Early Christianity

Presented by Dr Stephen Barton,

7 December 2009 16:15 in Seminar Room C

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Bethany Shmethany! What does it matter as long as it's over the Jordan? (Jn 1.28)

Presented by Dr Wendy North,

30 November 2009 16:15 in Seminar Room C

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Jesus and God in the New Testament

Presented by Prof Larry Hurtado,

16 November 2009 16:15 in Seminar Room C

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Gospel Narrative and Cultural Criticism: Reading the Gospel of John in a Secular World

Presented by Dr Tony Cummins,

9 November 2009 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

What is ‘precritical interpretation’?

Presented by Prof John Riches,

2 November 2009 16:15 in Seminar Room C

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

'Greetings ... and good peace': Letters in the Septuagint and Other Greek Versions

Presented by Dr Lutz Doering,

26 October 2009 16:15 in Seminar Room C

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Philo and the Septuagint

Presented by Dr Jutta Leonhardt-Balzer,

19 October 2009 16:15 in Seminar Room C

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Rethinking Gospel Origins

Presented by Prof Francis Watson,

12 October 2009 16:15 in Seminar Room C

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

The Apocrypha and the Septuagint

Presented by Loren Stuckenbruck, Durham University

18 May 2009 16:15 in Seminar Room C

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

A Quarter Century of Markan Studies: Developments and Prospects

Presented by Bill Telford, Durham University

11 May 2009 16:15 in Seminar Room C

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

What do we mean by grace? Paul, Sanders, and Second Temple Judaism

Presented by John Barclay, Durham University

4 May 2009 16:15 in Seminar Room C

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Diatribe, Declamation, and Desire: Reading Romans with a little help from Pierre Bourdieu

Presented by Paul Holloway, Glasgow

27 April 2009 16:15 in Seminar Room C

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Title TBC

Presented by Professor Donald Hagner, Fuller Theological Seminary

15 December 2008 16:15 in Seminar Room C

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Passion Traditions in the Gospel of Peter

Presented by Dr Paul Foster, Edinburgh

8 December 2008 16:15 in Seminar Room C

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Chrestians and Christians in the First Century

Presented by Professor John Moles, Newcastle

1 December 2008 16:15 in Seminar Room C

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Postgraduate Research Presentations

Presented by ,

17 November 2008 16:15 in Seminar Room C

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Points and Stars: John and the Synoptics

Presented by Dr Wendy E.S. North,

10 November 2008 16:15 in Seminar Room C

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

C. K. Barrett Lecture: Turning the World Upside Down: Israel's Scripture in Luke-Acts

Presented by Professor Richard Hays, Duke Divinity School

5 November 2008 16:15 in Seminar Room C

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Hidden in order to Be Revealed: Jesus as the God of Israel in Mark's Gospel

Presented by Professor Richard Hays, Duke Divinity School

3 November 2008 16:15 in Seminar Room C

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Luke, Papias and Gospel Origins

Presented by Professor Francis Watson,

27 October 2008 16:15 in Seminar Room C

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Revisiting Biblical Theology

Presented by Professor C. Clifton Black , Princeton Theological Seminary

20 October 2008 16:15 in Seminar Room C

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

'Interpret the Bible like any other book?' Requiem for an Axiom

Presented by Walter Moberly,

12 May 2008 16:00 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Postgraduate Presentations

Presented by Susan Mathew, Kristian Bendoraitis,

28 April 2008 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Susan Mathew: 'Reciprocity in the Pauline Mission: Reflections on the Role and Status of Phoebe in Rom 16:1-2'

Kristian Bendoraitis: 'My Father in Heaven' and 'Angels of God': Matthew's Only Omission of Angels (Matt 10:32-33; Luke 12:8-9)

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

The economy of the kingdom: theological reflections on money matters in early Christianity

Presented by Stephen C. Barton,

21 April 2008 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

The world of the New Testament: why some things do not matter

Presented by Dr Justin Meggitt, Cambridge

3 March 2008 16:15 in Seminar Room C

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

New Testament Eschatology and the Ecological Crisis

Presented by Dr Stephen Barton, Durham University

25 February 2008 16:15 in Seminar Room C

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Paul, Prophet to the Nations: Paul's Self-Understanding in the Light of Jeremiah 1

Presented by Dr Mark Bonnington,

18 February 2008 16:15 in Seminar Room C

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Postgraduate short papers: i. The Motif of Glory (doxa) in Romans; ii. Where on earth is the divine fulness? Christ, Church and plērōma

Presented by Mr Ben Blackwell and Mr Brad Matthews, Durham University

11 February 2008 16:15 in Seminar Room C

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Is There a Scandal in This Text? Exhibiting an Accursed Messiah in Galatians

Presented by Dr Ward Blanton, Glasgow

4 February 2008 16:15 in Seminar Room C

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Martyrdom is a Queer Thing: Gender-Bending in the Acts of the Martyrs

Presented by Dr Paul Middleton, Edinburgh

28 January 2008 16:15 in Seminar Room C

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

By Faith (of Christ): An Exegetical Dilemma and its Scriptural Solution

Presented by Professor Francis Watson, Durham University

21 January 2008 16:15 in Seminar Room C

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Manna and the Circulation of Grace: A Study of 2 Cor. 8.1-15

Presented by Professor John Barclay, Durham University

14 January 2008 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

New Testament Eschatology and the Environmental Crisis Today

Presented by Dr. Stephen C. Barton,

10 December 2007 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Romans 1:18ff as a Decline of Israel

Presented by Mr. Kevin Bywater,

3 December 2007 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Johannine Christology and Jewish-Christian Dialogue

Presented by Professor Walter Moberly,

26 November 2007 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Does the Early Enoch Literature Represent a Judaism that is in Tension with the Mosaic Torah?

Presented by Professor Loren Stuckenbruck,

12 November 2007 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Who were the Hellenists and what did they contribute to the beginnings of Christianity?

Presented by Professor J.D.G. Dunn,

5 November 2007 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Paul's Body Talk

Presented by Dr. Eddie Adams, King's College, London

29 October 2007 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

Am I not a Man and a Brother? The Bible and the British Anti-Slavery Campaign

Presented by Professor John Barclay,

22 October 2007 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

The Hermeneutics of Salvation: Paul, Isaiah and the Servant

Presented by Professor Francis Watson,

15 October 2007 00:00 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

'Minding the Gap': The Hermeneutical Problem of Pauline Gender Discourse in 1 Corinthians 11:2-16

Presented by Mr Michael Lakey,

21 May 2007 00:00 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

The Infancy Gospels in Armenian

Presented by Dr Igor Dorfmann-Lazarev, Durham University

14 May 2007 00:00 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

On Being the Righteousness of God: Another Look at 2 Cor. 5:21

Presented by Professor Morna Hooker, University of Cambridge

4 May 2007 16:00 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

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Pagan Philosophy in Acts

Presented by Professor John Moles,

30 April 2007 00:00 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

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The Healing of a Paralytic (Mark 2.1-12)

Presented by Professor Maurice Casey,

23 April 2007 00:00 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

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Paul and the Roman Empire

Presented by Rt Revd Tom Wright, Bishop of Durham

12 March 2007 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information

The Parable of the Samaritan and the Inn-Keeper (Luke 10:30-35)

Presented by Dr Bruce Longenecker, University of St Andrews

26 February 2007 16:15 in Seminar Room C, Abbey House

Contact francis.watson@durham.ac.uk for more information