CSLR Senior Fellow's reference book wins Dartmouth Medal |

A reference book edited by CSLR Senior Fellow Brent Strawn has won the 2016 Dartmouth Medal.

Oxford Encyclopedia of the Bible and Law, published by Oxford University Press, includes comprehensive entries from scholars from all points on the religion spectrum including topics such as marriage, divorce, testimony and witness, and gender.

“Extensive bibliographies and suggestions for further research make this a useful and balanced resource for library shelves,” according to a statement from the Reference and User Services Association, a division of the American Library Association, which presents the annual award. The book is part of the Oxford Encyclopedias of the Bible series, consisting of eight sets with essays by scholars from many countries and with a wide variety of perspectives.

The Dartmouth Medal, established in 1974, honors the creation of a reference source of outstanding quality and significance.

Strawn has a special interest in ancient Near Eastern iconography, the Dead Sea Scrolls, Israelite religion, comparative Semitic philology, legal traditions of the Old Testament, and Old Testament theology. Within the Old Testament proper, he works in the Pentateuch and poetry, focusing especially on Deuteronomy, the Psalms, and theological exegesis.

He has published articles in journals such as Revue de Qumran, Zeitschrift für die alttestamentliche Wissenschaft, The Asbury Theological Journal, The Journal of Biblical Literature, Vetus Testamentum, Perspectives in Religious Studies, Ugarit-Forschungen, Teaching Theology and Religion, Homiletic, Journal for Preachers, Journal of Theological Interpretation, Biblica, and Journal for the Study of the Pseudepigrapha.  Strawn is on the editorial board of the Catholic Biblical Quarterly. He is an ordained elder in the Church of the Nazarene.

Strawn joined the Candler faculty in 2001, and in addition to teaching Old Testament, serves as director of the Doctor of Ministry degree at Candler. He previously taught at Rutgers University and Asbury Theological Seminary, held a visiting lecturer position at Princeton Theological Seminary and taught as a visiting professor at Columbia Theological Seminary.

Strawn earned his Doctor of Philosophy in 2001 and his Master of Divinity in 1995, both from Princeton Theological Seminary. He holds a bachelor of arts from Point Loma Nazarene University in San Diego.