Gillian Asquith was awarded Doctor of Philosophy Summa Cum Laude for her thesis entitled “Paul’s Unexpected Words: A Register and Semantic Study of Selected Epistolary Formulae in Paul’s Letter Openings in light of Documentary Papyri.” Her doctoral studies were undertaken at Australian Catholic University under the supervision of Michael P. Theophilos and Stephen C. Carlson.

Natalie Mylonas received the Early Career Researcher Award from the Australasian Society for Classical Studies for her project “Emotions of exile: The role of place attachment in ancient Israelite spatial ideologies and identity formation.”

“Seeing the Biblical World of Sodom-Mamre Through Surveillance.” Biblical Interpretation Online, August 09 (2023): 1–25. Open access link here.

“Methodological Issues in the Study of Ancient Villages.” Pages 27–72 in Cadwallader, et al (eds) The Village in Antiquity and the Rise of Early Christianity. London: T & T Clark, 2023.

“Village Life in the Lycus Valley.” Pages 240–71 in Cadwallader et al, The Village in Antiquity and the Rise of Early Christianity. London: T & T Clark, 2023.

“Moneyed Women in Phrygia.” Numismatic Chronicle 183 (2023): 1–36 plus plates.

“Nicodemus—A Rabbi Seeking Wisdom.” Interpretation: A Journal of Bible and Theology 77, no. 4 (2023): 316–24.

Abstract: The study highlights the theological closeness of early Christianity to the theological frame of John, which affirms the essential fluidity of the meaning of Christ’s death relating it to an intertextual use of the Old Testament. The elements of Jn.19:34 (blood and water from Jesus’ pierced side) reflect a theology ‘of memory’ since the author offers a re-reading of the Old Testament Jewish sacrificial and feast tradition as an ‘opaque theatre script’ taking its ‘stage’ on the Passion Narrative. The book discusses a full range of exegetical lines and intends to see the different interpretations of Jn.19:34 within a textual-critical survey.

It examines the interaction between modern and early Christian hermeneutical traditions about the meaning of Jesus’ death in John’s Gospel. The methodological advance of this approach is twofold: first, it moves modern exegesis to a wider exegetical frame including early Christian interpretations (within the first five centuries in Latin, Greek and Syriac writers) and offers new interpretations of the Gospel; and second, it goes beyond the limited hermeneutical framework of the episode to a more productive examination of its function in the text and in the broader context of the New Testament.

Abstract: In the book of Ezekiel, in a visionary walk guided by a ‘mysterious’ man (Ezek 9), the prophet witnesses a momentous event: the departure of the כבוד, the glory of YHWH, from the Temple (Ezek 9–11). In this scenario, Ezekiel is commissioned to transmit YHWH’s oracles to the house of Israel in a very particular and often bizarre way. His ministry is a symbolic communication conveyed by means of a ‘body’ and a ‘performance’ – a mode of expression consisting of actions to be interpreted by the observers. The book of Ezekiel vividly expresses the fullness of this reality, in a moment coincident with the departure of the כבוד, with the statement “I have made you a מופת” (Ezek 12:6). This phenomenon raises questions about the function of the prophet within the narrative of the book of Ezekiel. The role played by the prophet as מופת, within the frame of YHWH’s presence/absence and the traumatic experience of the Exile, is a key element in my study. In a metonymic dimension, Ezekiel’s narrative and life seem to serve as a means of YHWH’s self-disclosure, conveyed through the profound and intricate semantic significance of Ezekiel’s מופת-identity. Ezekiel as מופת is mentioned only four times in the book. In chapters 12 and 24, the lexeme is used to identify the prophet within the context of two specific symbolic actions. Therefore, what does being a מופת imply for the story of the prophet and the theology of the book of Ezekiel? How to define this prophetic experience? What does the lexeme מופת indicate? In which way does מופת identify the prophet? Could Ezekiel be a form of YHWH’s visible presence, especially in relation to the Exile and the absence of a temple? Could the lexeme מופת indicate an alternative form of theophany or category of prophetism? What is the relationship between Ezekiel and the מִקְדָּ֣שׁ מְעַ֔ט? Ezekiel, as מופת, seems to act as an alternative instrument of divine communication, a provoking performer of visible messages, a sign among many other signs, a symbol of, and communicative bridge in, YHWH’s relationship with his people. Thus, by recognising himself as מופת, Ezekiel's self-understanding switches from the personal self to a functional self. Therefore, this study focuses on the interpretation of the meaning, role, and influence of the statement “I have made you a מופת” within the narrative of the book of Ezekiel, through the lenses of semantics, exegesis, and theology.

Gott, der die Last nimmt: Eine Begegnung mit dem Matthäus-evangelium. Aus der Englischen von Ralf Klein, SJ. Ostfildern: Matthias Grünewald Verlag, 2022.

Words of Faith: A Vocabulary of Paul the Apostle. New York–Mahwah: Paulist, 2023.

Sharing the Treasure: Reflections on the Sunday Gospels Years A, B, C. Strathfield, NSW: St Pauls Publications, 2023.

The Village in Antiquity and the Rise of Early Christianity (London: T & T Clark, 2023).