Expert on the history of Jesus speaking at University of Michigan

October 27, 2003
Contact:
  • umichnews@umich.edu

EVENT ANNOUNCEMENT

DATE: Lecture by Paula Fredriksen at 7 p.m. Oct. 27, and she will again be available for interviews Oct. 28.

EVENT: The Michigan Lectures on Judaism and Christianity in the Roman World series at the University of Michigan

Just as a new Mel Gibson film on the life of Jesus prompts a national debate on his life, Paula Fredriksen, professor of ancient Christianity at Boston University and a specialist in Hellenistic Judaism and Christian origins, will speak at the University of Michigan Oct. 27 on conflicting stories about the death of Jesus in the New Testament and her own reconstruction of these events.

Fredriksen, who has been widely quoted by national media about Gibson’s film, will speak on "Jesus of Nazareth, the Temple Tantrum, and the Dog that Did Not Bark: Current Reconstructions of the Death of Jesus." She will outline recent narratives of the death of Jesus, using as her point of orientation the fact that Jesus was crucified (that is, publicly executed by Rome as a political offender) but his followers were not (hence, Pilate knew that Jesus was not truly a threat).

PLACE: Mendelssohn Theatre, 911 North University in Ann Arbor. The event is free and open to the public.

SPONSOR: The Michigan Lectures on Judaism and Christianity in the Roman World series at U-M, the Institute of Secular Humanistic Judaism and the Michigan Center for Early Christian Studies sponsor the series.

615-1287 or eaj@umich.edu

WEB LINKS: Frankel Center

EDITORS: Paula Fredriksen will be available for interviews prior to her lecture on Oct. 27, and 9 a.m.-noon Oct. 28. Please contact Professor Yaron Eliav at (734) 647-4638 or yzeliav@umich.edu to schedule an interview.

jserwach@umich.edu or Beth Johnson, (734) 615-1287 eaj@umich.edu