Downtown Talk Examines Holy Land Wars

Two religious studies professors will reflect on domestic violence and wars of conquest in the Bible and in the contemporary Middle East in a lecture, “Violence in the Holy Land Then and Now,” on Thursday, April 7, at 5:30 p.m. at University Club, 1332 Santa Barbara St. The Westmont Downtown lecture, sponsored by the Westmont Foundation, is free and open to the public. No tickets are required; the limited seating is available on a first-come, first-served basis. For more information, please call (805) 565-6051.

Bruce Fisk and Caryn Reeder, both of the religious studies department, will draw on their work and experiences in the Holy Land. Fisk has visited the Middle East dozens of times, exploring the area and doing research. He has authored several books, including “A Hitchhiker’s Guide to Jesus: Reading the Gospels on the Ground” and “First Corinthians.” He has led six student programs in the region in the last 10 years.

Reeder lived in Jerusalem from 1999-2001 and led a student program in the Middle East in 2012. She spent a year as a Fulbright Scholar in the West Bank in 2013-2014, teaching at a Palestinian university and conducting research. Her work examined women, children and war in biblical and classical antiquity. She has authored a book, “The Enemy in the Household: Family Violence in Deuteronomy and Beyond,” and several journal articles and book chapters.

Fisk earned his doctorate in New Testament at Duke University and joined the Westmont faculty 17 years ago. He has also taught at Fuller Theological Seminary, Briercrest College and Seminary, Duke Divinity School and Trinity Evangelical Divinity School.

Reeder, a graduate of Augustana College, earned master’s degrees at both Wheaton College and the University of Cambridge. She earned a doctorate in New Testament at Cambridge and began teaching at Westmont in 2007.