In association with the Anglo-Israel Archaeological Society and the London School of Jewish Studies. 

The Dead Sea Scrolls are of immense significance for the history of the text and interpretation of the Hebrew Bible. This illustrated lecture led by Professor Lawrence Schiffman (New York University) and chaired by Professor Joan Taylor (King's College London), will discuss the character of the various text-types in evidence in the Qumran biblical manuscripts and their significance for the history of the biblical text. The lecture will explore the various forms of biblical exegesis, rewritten Bible, Pesher and legal interpretation, and their contribution to the history of Judaism and Christianity."

Lawrence H. Schiffman is the Judge Abraham Lieberman Professor of Hebrew and Judaic Studies at New York University and Director of the Global Network for Advanced Research in Jewish Studies. He has served as the Chair of the Skirball Department of Hebrew and Judaic Studies at New York University and Ethel and Irvin A. Edelman Professor of Hebrew and Judaic Studies. Between 2011 and 2014, he served as Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education and Professor of Judaic Studies at Yeshiva University. His publications include Who Was a Jew? Rabbinic Perspectives on the Jewish-Christian Schism (1985); From Text to Tradition: A History of Second Temple and Rabbinic Judaism (1991); and Reclaiming the Dead Sea Scrolls (1995); The Courtyards of the House of the Lord: Studies on the Temple Scroll (2008); Qumran and Jerusalem: Studies in the Dead Sea Scrolls and the History of Judaism (2010) and more than 200 articles on the Dead Sea Scrolls and Rabbinic Judaism. In 2006 he was the recipient of the National Foundation for Jewish Culture Scholarship Award. He coedited the Encyclopaedia of the Dead Sea Scrolls (Oxford, 2000) and the award-winning Outside the Bible: Ancient Jewish Writings Related to Scripture (2013).

Attendance is free; registration required.