I’m sure the rest of you got this email today:
Find out how Jerusalem became ancient Israel’s capital at the ASOR/BAS Seminar
And then followed an advert for the aforementioned joint seminar. This, I have to say, troubles me. It seems a very odd coupling, a strange marriage. What has ASOR to do with BAR?
ASOR rejects any essays for publication which contain unprovenanced ‘discoveries’ (rightly, in my view) while BAR is festooned regularly with adverts for artifacts genuine and otherwise. ASOR is a learned society of professionals. BAS is not.
I understand the mission of ASOR and I understand the purpose of BAR. My pondering centers on the propriety of their blending.
Why is ASOR partnering with BAR? It’s as though the National Enquirer has entered into a partnership with Vetus Testamentum in an attempt to legitimize the one and to popularize the other.
What has Jerusalem to do with Athens? And who decided the marriage would take place? And what kind of unnatural offspring can such a merger produce?
joe
30/12/2011 at 04:21
Other than the weather in Fla it’s a bit difficult to understand why scholars participate in any of these BAR over priced seminars, particularly when on the same page one sees an advertisment for antiquities. In fact, BASOR refuses to publish unprovenanced artifacts yet one sees well known scholars and antiquity dealers on the same page here.
Eric H. Cline
30/12/2011 at 14:41
Hi Jim —
As I understand it, ASOR is partnering with BAS in order to get the many who subscribe to BAR, and who attend their seminars, to join ASOR. I applaud the attempt to enlarge the numbers of those who are exposed to professional presentations, etc, which is why I have agreed to participate. Here is the part that you might have missed in the online adverts:
“A Special Offer from ASOR
Register today for the ASOR/BAS Seminar on Biblical Archaeology and you’ll also receive a contributing membership to ASOR (a $125 value) absolutely FREE. Your membership includes a year’s subscription to the popular journal Near Eastern Archaeology. So what are you waiting for? Register for the ASOR/BAS Seminar on Biblical Archaeology today.”
This is the very first attempt to hold such a joint program and if it works, we will all benefit.
Cheers,
Eric