Bible scholar to present Quayle Bible Lecture March 9

Guest speaker Dr. Tammi Schneider will deliver Baker University’s annual Quayle Bible Lecture at 7 p.m., March 9, in the Owens Musical Arts Building A/V room. Schneider’s lecture is titled “Women in Genesis: Believe What You Read, Not What They Say.”

“Students who have taken my courses have read her books, and this gives many of the students the opportunity to meet the scholar that they are reading,” said Dr. Nicholaus Pumphrey, assistant professor of religious studies and the organizer of the lecture.

A feminist biblical scholar and a professor of religion at Claremont Graduate University, Schneider teaches Hebrew Bible and Near Eastern history, religion, and archaeology. Schneider is also the director of the educational program at the Tel Akko Excavations in Israel, where she excavates every year with students. She has written several books, including An Introduction to Mesopotamian Religion and Mothers of Promise: Women in the Book of Genesis. Schneider received her Ph.D. in Ancient History from the University of Pennsylvania.

Schneider was selected as the guest lecturer because her work is closely related to the current Quayle Bible Collection exhibit “More than Matriarchs: Women in the Book of Genesis.” Pumphrey plans to connect exhibits with visiting scholars’ work in similar ways for future installments in the lecture series as a way to increase student and faculty awareness of the collection and the discussions it can produce.

Pumphrey also sees the lecture series as a way for the university to engage and interact with the surrounding public.

“The community is just as much a part of Baker as Baker is a part of the community, and I hope these lectures will somehow go into enriching Baldwin City,” Pumphrey said.

The Owens Musical Arts Building is located on Baker University’s Baldwin City campus at 408 Eighth St. The event is free and open to the public. Refreshments will be provided following the lecture.