Dr Mark Finney
BA, PhD
School of History, Philosophy and Digital Humanities
Lecturer in Religion
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+44 114 222 0512
Full contact details
School of History, Philosophy and Digital Humanities
Jessop West
1 Upper Hanover Street
Sheffield
S3 7RA
- Profile
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My major research interests are conflict and violence in the sacred texts and traditions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, and the contemporary aspects of religion and conflict in the Middle East (e.g., the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, Zionism, Christian Zionism, and the influence of the Christian Right in US foreign policy).
I am a member of the Sheffield Centre for Interdisciplinary Biblical Studies (SCIBS).
- Research interests
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- Afterlife
- Early Christianity in its Greco-Roman Environment
- Judaism
- Islam
- Religion & Art
- Religion, Conflict & Violence
- Religion, Politics, & the Modern Middle East
- Social-scientific approaches to interpreting ancient religious texts
Current research projects / collaborations:
- Member of the Sheffield Institute for Interdisciplinary Biblical Studies
- Religion and Violence in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam: Ancient and Modern Perspectives
- Resurrection and Life after Death in Second Temple Judaism and early Christian traditions
- Publications
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Books
Journal articles
- Servile Supplicium: Shame and the Deuteronomic Curse—Crucifixion in Its Cultural Context. Biblical Theology Bulletin: Journal of Bible and Culture, 43(3), 124-134.
- Abraham, the Nations, and the Hagarites: Jewish, Christian, and Islamic Perspectives on Kinship with Abraham. Edited by MARTIN GOODMAN, GEORGE H. VAN KOOTEN, JACQUES T. A. G. M. VAN RUITEN.. The Journal of Theological Studies, 63(1), 203-205.
- Honour, Head-coverings & Headship: 1 Corinthians 11.2-16 in its Social Context. Journal for the Study of the New Testament, 1(33).
- Christ Crucified and the Inversion of Roman Imperial Ideology in 1 Corinthians. Biblical Theology Bulletin: Journal of Bible and Culture, 35(1), 20-33.
Chapters
- View this article in WRRO
- View this article in WRRO
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- View this article in WRRO
Book reviews
- Book review: Nationalizing Judaism: Zionism as a theological ideology, by David Ohana, Lanham, Boulder, New York, London, Lexington Books, 2017, 217 pp., £68 (hardback), ISBN 9781498543606. Journal of Modern Jewish Studies, 20(1), 125-126.
- JEWISH ART IN ANTIQUITY - S. Pearce (ed.) The Image and its Prohibition in Jewish Antiquity. (Journal of Jewish Studies Supplement 2.) Pp. x + 273, b/w & colour ills. Oxford: Journal of Jewish Studies, 2013. Paper, £55, US$90. ISBN: 978-0-9575228-0-0.. The Classical Review, 65(2), 535-537. View this article in WRRO
Dictionary/encyclopaedia entries
- Research group
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Areas of supervision for potential PhD students:
- Afterlife
- Judaism and Christianity in their Greco-Roman contexts
- Religion and Violence
- Religion, Politics, and the modern Middle East
- Social-scientific approaches to Biblical Interpretation
Research Supervision
- Current Students
- Completed Students
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- Young Gil Lee (second supervisor)- From Fertility to Manipulation: Female Characterizations and the Birth Narratives in the Hebrew Bible
- Rosa Wu - The Veil in Biblical and Classical Antiquity: A Sociocultural and Exegetical Study of 1 Corinthians 11:2-16
- Mohammed Alruwaili - Commanding Right and Forbidding Wrong (CRFW): A Critical Evaluation of the use of Ibn Taymiyyah in the Ideology of ISIS
- Teaching activities
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Undergraduate:
- HST202 - Historians and History
- HST2042 -The Arab-Israeli Conflict
- REL118 - An Introduction to Islam
- REL127 - Language Skills (Greek)
- REL210 - Understanding Islam
- REL359 - Biblical Texts
- REL382 - Religion in an Age of Terror
Postgraduate:
- HST6802 - Research Presentation
- REL6000 - Research Methods
- Professional activities and memberships
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- Member of the Sheffield Interdisciplinary Institute for Biblical Studies
- Society of Biblical Literature
- British New Testament Society
- Book reviewer: Journal for the Study of the New Testament; Journal of Theological Studies; Palestine Exploration Quarterly; Classical Review
Administrative roles:
Programme Director and Team Leader for Religion & Theology
- Public engagement
I am frequently asked for interviews on BBC Radio Sheffield related to my expertise in the area of religion, conflict and violence. This especially involves issues related to the Middle East (Iraq, Gaza etc).