2004 Press Releases

 

Mashtots Readings in Oshakan

 

September 2004

Stone Lectures on the Origins of Evil

Melbourne, 8 September, 2004

The Junior Common Room of Queen's College at Melbourne University was filled with an unprecedent crowd over 100 guests on Wednesday, 8th September. They had come to hear the Sugden Fellow for 2004, Professor Michael Stone, lecture on the topic: "Adam and Enoch: Two Competing Paradigms of Evil".

Michael Stone, a graduate of Melbourne University, holds the degrees of PhD (Harvard, 1965) and DLitt (Melbourne, 1985). He has been in residence at Queen;s College during the current semester as the annual Sugden Fellow. He is Gail Levin de Nur Professor of Religion and Professor of Armenian Studies at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

Among the audience who came to hear Professor Stone lecture, were former Governor General of Australia, Sir Zelman Cowan and Lady Cowan, and former Governor of Victoria Dr. Davis McCaughey as well as numerous scholars, theologians and students from the University community and outside it. Professor Stone was presented to the audience by Professor David Runia, Master of Queen's College.

In his lecture, Stone compared two ways the origin of evil was explained in the Second Temple period. One concentrated on the sin of Adam and Eve. It explained the origins of evil to be in the disobedience of God's command, and the eating of the forbidden fruit. This understanding contrasted with the view found in the Dead Sea Scrolls and other apocryphal works from antiquity, in which it came from the intercourse between the Sons of God and the daughters of men (Genesis 6). This led both to the revelation of forbidden knowledge and to the birth of the demons. Stone contrasted this perception, which attributed evil to angelic or demonic actions, with the Adam and Eve story, which saw it to result from an inherited capability of sin, or sin itself.

The lecture was followed by a very lively question and answer session.

For more information see: http://www.queens.unimelb.edu.au/calendar/11news.html

August 2004

Melbourne,  24 August, 2004

World Expert Delivers Lecture on Dead SeaScrolls at the University of Melbourne

Over 300 people filled Theatre A at The University of Melbourne to hear Professor Michael stone of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem deliver a spellbinding presentation, entitled "The Dead Sea Scrolls: Most Recent Discoveries and Their Implications."

The evening was hosted by The University of Melbourne Centre for Jewish History and Culture, The Sir Zelman Cowen Universities Fund and The Australian Friends of the Hebrew University. The evening began with Professor Ziva Shavitsky, Director of The University of Melbourne Centre for Jewish History and Culture, giving a heartfeld introduction to the guest speaker, a world-renowned scholar in the study of Jewish Literature of the Second Temple period and of Armenian Studies, one of the official editors of the Dead Sea Scrolls and founder and first Director of the Orion Centre for the Study of the Dead Sea Scrolls in Jerusalem.

Professor Stone is visiting Melbourne as Sugden Fellow of Queen's College.

Professor Stone spoke about the road to getting the scrolls to their destination and the amazing progress made by Scrolls Scholars over the last 10 years, due in part to new technologies and to a greater understanding of the stunning scrolls, arguably the most important archeological discovery of the 20th century. He elaborated on the Qumran community described in the Scrolls and expounded on their unique customs and beliefs, linking their life to the evolution of early Judaism. He noted how he Dead Sea Scrolls have exerted a pull on the public's imagination ever since a Bedouin shepherd discovered them in 1947 in a cave in the Judean desert, where they had rested in clay jars for 2,000 years.

In his vote of thanks, Dr. Dvir Abramovich described Professor Stone as an intellectual at the peak of his powers, who had enlightened all in attendance with his encyclopedic knowledge and tremendous insights.

August 2004

Armenian Studies Faculty Summer Activities

Dr. Nira Stone and Prof. Michael Stone lectured at the 14th Conference of the Australian Association for Byzantine Studies. On August 14 Nira Stone talked on "Sequential Narrative Illustrations in Armenian Art". Using rich examples drawn from Armenian manuscript illustration, she traced the various ways Armenian artists represented continuous narrative. For many of those present this was their first encounter with Armenian Art, which aroused intense interest.

The next day Professor Michael Stone addressed the Conferenceon "Adam's Naming of the Animals: Naming of Creation?" A lively interest was evinced by the audience in his tracing of these ideas from Agathangelos (5th century) down to Arak'el Siwnec'i (q14th-15th centuries).

On August 18 Michael Stone addressed a full room of faculty and student of the United Faculty of Theology on "Jewish Literature of the Second Temple Period and the New Testament". His stress on the multiform character of ancient Judaism and the need to describe it in its own right raised much interest from the audience.

 

August 2004

Summer at Dumbarton Oaks

Dr. Sergio La Porta spent six weeks as a Summer Fellow in the Byzantine program of Dumbarton Oaks,
Washington, D.C. During his stay, Dr. La Porta continued his research on the Armenian scholia on the
corpus of works attributed to Dionysius the Areopagite which he plans to complete this year. Dr. La Porta presented an overview of his work at a seminar in which other Dumbarton Oaks Fellows and staff as well as members of the faculty of Catholic University participated.

July 2004

Professor Stone Explores Evil

Michael E. Stone, Gail Levin de Nur Professor of Comparative Religion and Founding Director of the Orion Centre for the Study of the Dead Sea Scrolls at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, addressed a function at the Hakoah Club on the topic 'The Understanding of Evil in Second Temple Judaism'. The address took place to a full hall on 18 July, 2004.

Professor Stone explored two ways in which the origins of evil and the righteousness of God were understood.

According to the Fourth Book of Ezra, written shortly after the destruction of the Second Temple, the potentiality of evil was created in Adam and inherited by his descendants. This potentiality, originating from God the Creator, led to sin and its punishment.

According to another view, present in works written or cultivated by the Essenes, evil originated from the forbidden relations between the "sons of God" and human women (Gen. 6). From these relations both forbidden knowledge and demons originated. Stone investigated the interplay between these two views and the world-views they engendered.

During his stay in Sydney, Professor Stone will also be addressing two Seminars at Mandelbaum House.

March 2004

COMMEMORATING THE GENOCIDE

Hebrew University Armenian Studies Program
to Mark Genocide with Readings and Commemoration

JERUSALEM, Israel -- The Hebrew University Armenian Studies Program will host a touching event on 28 April 2004 in commemoration of the Armenian Genocide. His Beatitude Torkom II, His Excellency Mr. Tsolag Momjian, Head of the Institute of Asian and African Studies Professor Reuven Amitai, and Armenian Studies Program Director Professor Michael E. Stone will be in attendance. Dr. Sergio La Porta, lecturer in Armenian Studies at the Hebrew University, will preside over the memorial's symposium.

The evening, which will take place at the HU Givat Ram Faculty Club library hall at 18:30, will commence with powerful biblical readings in Hebrew and Armenian, followed by heartfelt words of greeting from His Beatitude Torkom II, Mr. Momjian, Professor Amitai and Professor Stone. These comments will be followed be a unique addition to this year's program: the performance of two songs from West Armenian popular tradition by Fr. Kousan Aljanian.

The second half of the event will be highlighted by two dynamic lectures. Professor Robert Hewen, visiting Lady Davis Professor of Armenian Studies. His words will be followed by an engaging lecture on the formation of the Holocaust memorial in Israel, by Professor Dalia Ofer of the Institute of Contemporary Jewry, accompanied by a response to her speech by Mr. Momjian. The evening will conclude with further intriguing remarks by other Armenian scholars, in addition to a mesmerizing recitation of Vahan Tekeyan's poem, "Prayer on the Threshold of Tomorrow" by Dr. La Porta.

Those who wish to attend are advised to arrive early due to security concerns.

Schedule of Service

Formore information contact the Armenian Studies office
Phone: 972-2-588-3651 or
Email: JerusalemArmenian@h2.hum.huji.ac.il

Visiting Professor Robert Hewsen Lectures on Karabagh at the Hebew University

JERUSALEM, Israel -- The Hebrew University's lecture room was filled with a large audience from the University, Armenian and general communities on 17 March, 2004. They had come to hear Visiting Professor of Armenian Studies Robert Hewsen lecture on "Karabagh: Present Situation and Future Prospects". The lecture was honoured by the attendance of His Beatitude Torkom II, Armenian Patriarch of Jerusalem, His Grace Bishop Aris Shirvanian and members of the Brotherhood of St. James.

Michael E. Stone, Professor of Armenian Studies, presented Professor Hewsen, who holds one of the University's prestigious Lady Davis Visiting Professorships. Faculty and students were fascinated to hear Hewsen's presentation, which outlined the background of the present situation of the region, which has declared itself the independent Republic of Mountainous Karabagh. Hewsen traced the history of the region from the nineteenth century, through the Soviet period and down to the present. In considering the future, he noted the importance of oil as a factor in the region, as well as the large Azeri population in northern Iran. Armenia, he opined, would never accept a resolution of the conflict which involved ceding traditional Armenian territories.

Interested participants posed questions to Professor Hewsen at the end of his lecture, and discussions continued in the lecture room on an informal basis for long after the formal presentation.

Professor Robert Hewsen holds the degree of Ph.D. from Georgetown University, having studied under the late Cyril Toumanoff. He has recently published Armenia: A Historical Atlas, a major and authoritative work; the first of its kind. His present research includes a study of the Christianization of Armenia, a subject on which he is offering a course in the Armenian Studies program this semester.

The next planned event will be Evening of Commemoration of the Armenian Genocide, on April 28. For further information write to JerusalemArmenian@h2.hum.huji.ac.il

January 2004

Festschrift presentation to
Prof. Michael E. Stone

JERUSALEM, Israel -- During the Orion Center/Center for the Study of Christianity International Symposium, Text, Thought and Practice in Qumran and Early Christianity held January 11-13, 2004

During the Symposium there was a presentation to Prof. Michael E. Stone of the Festschrift, Things Revealed: Studies in Honor of Michael E. Stone, on January 11, 2004, at the gala Symposium Dinner. Presenting the volume: editors Esther G. Chazon, Orion Center Director, David Satran of the Hebrew University, and Ruth Clements Chief of Publications for the Orion Center.

See a more detailed coverage of the Symposium at:
http://orion.mscc.huji.ac.il/symposiums/9th/images/gallery.shtml