A Lanier Center for Archaeology Lecture

Date: Wednesday, February 26, 2025

Time: 5:00 PM

Location: Ezell 241, Lipscomb University

Who wrote the Bible? Its books have no bylines. Tradition long identified Moses as the author of the Pentateuch, with Ezra as editor. Ancient readers also suggested that David wrote the psalms and Solomon wrote Proverbs and Qohelet. Although the Hebrew Bible rarely speaks of its authors, people have been fascinated by the question of its authorship since ancient times. Dr. William Schniedewind offers a bold new answer: the Bible was not written by a single author, or by a series of single authors, but by communities of scribes. The Bible does not name its authors because authorship itself was an idea enshrined in a later era by the ancient Greeks. In the pre-Hellenistic world of ancient Near Eastern literature, books were produced, preserved, and passed on by scribal communities. Schniedewind draws on ancient inscriptions, archaeology, and anthropology, as well as a close reading of the biblical text itself, to trace the communal origin of biblical literature. 

Directions

GPS Address
The best address to use with your GPS is 3906 Belmont Blvd, Nashville, TN 37204. This will get you the closest to the building in which our conference is being held (#2 in the yellow circle), as well as the best options for parking.

Driving North on Belmont Blvd
If you come in driving north on Belmont Blvd, you will turn onto Belmont Blvd from Shackleford Rd. After you turn onto Belmont Blvd, you will take the second possible right onto campus, where you will find parking available to your left, right, and straight ahead.

Driving South on Belmont Blvd
If you come driving in south on Belmont Blvd, after you pass Glen Echo Rd, you will take the third possible left onto campus. You will find parking available to your left, right, and straight ahead.

Parking

The conference is being held in the Ezell Building, which is #2 in the yellow circle on the map. You may enter this building through several doors, including through the Shinn Event Center (#1 on the map). 

The map shows the different areas of parking available all around the conference location, though please note that the day of the conference is also a regular school day for the university and so parking can be sparse if you arrive after 8 AM. 

If the lots to the left and right of the recommended entrance to campus (see the directions above) are full, please continue straight ahead to the Arena West Parking Garage (#48/P2 in the yellow circle on the map) as this will be your best bet for close parking.