CALL. 31.12.2016: Jerusalem in the Roman-Byzantine times - Münchenwiler (Switzerland)
FECHA LÍMITE/DEADLINE/SCADENZA: 31/12/2016
FECHA CONGRESO/CONGRESS DATE/DATA CONGRESSO: 02-03-04-05-06/09/2017
LUGAR/LOCATION/LUOGO: Münchenwiler, Switzerland
ORGANIZADOR/ORGANIZER/ORGANIZZATORE: Katharina Heyden; Maria Lissek
INFO: web - Maria.Lissek@theol.unibe.ch - katharina.heyden@theol.unibe.ch
CALL:
You are cordially invited to participate in the interdisciplinary conference „Jerusalem in the Roman-Byzantine times (from 2nd to 7th century)“ in 2017. This conference will prepare a compendium for the series Civitatum Orbis MEditerranei Studia (COMES) which is hosted by the German publishing house Mohr Siebeck. The conference will bring together experts of international reputation and younger researchers from various disciplines such as archaeology, ancient history, classics, religious sciences, Jewish studies, Islamic studies, and Christian theology (see the list of contributions below).
In accordance with the COMES-series’ profile the conference will focus on the history of religions and its impact on urbanistic issues. In this regard, Jerusalem is of special and paradigmatic interest. The coexistence and sometimes rivalry of Jewish, Hellenistic, Roman and Christian cults impacted urban planning. The city’s importance as a centre of international pilgrimage and educational tourism affected demographic and institutional characteristics. And the rivalry between the various religious traditions at the holy places effected a polyvalent sacralisation of the urban area. Transformations and coexistence of cults are of special interest: firstly, the replacement of Jewish by Roman sacred sites under the emperor Hadrian; then, in the 4 th and 5th centuries, the transition from Roman to Christian sanctuaries, and finally, the addition of Muslim sacred sites after the Islamic conquest, especially the architectural replanning of the Temple Mount. The conference will examine these transformations, the related political aims and the effects on the face of and the living in the city. The main sections will be (1) the physical appearance of the city (topography, infrastructure etc.), (2) the sacred topography and embodiment of the holy places, (3) the population (residents, pilgrims, soldiers, monks), with a special focus on the interaction between the various groups, and (4) the religious and political importance of the city in Palestine and beyond. All these topics will be examined with focus on the (inter)religious aspects.
We invite younger researchers to participate in the conference and present detailed studies on specific topics or new sources. One afternoon is dedicated to the contributions of 8 young researchers, who can present their works in short communications of 15 minutes and discuss them with the experts. The contributions will be reviewed before publishing in the COMES volume. If you would like to contribute to this conference, please submit your proposed paper, title and abstract (no more than 250 words) with a short curriculum vitae (max. one page) to Maria Lissek at: Maria.Lissek@theol.unibe.ch by 31st December 2016.
The paper can be written in English or German. For the conference, passive or active understanding of German and English is desirable. Travel and accommodation expenses will be covered by the conference.