For Finnish, click here: CSTT:n Tohtorikoulutettaville Palkinnot Paavalin Retoriikkaa ja Joosuan Kirjan Tekstihistoriaa Käsittelevistä Esitelmistä.

The European Association of Biblical Studies gave out its yearly prizes to the best student papers held in its annual meeting in Cordoba, Spain (12.–15.7.). This year, the prizes in both categories went to doctoral students in the Centre of Excellence in Changes in Sacred Texts and Traditions (CSTT). According to the organizers, a record number of papers attended the competition. 

Ville Mäkipelto’s paper ”The Intersection of Textual and Literary Criticism in the Accounts of Joshua’s Death” won in the category Old Testament/Hebrew Bible. In his paper, Mäkipelto examined the variant textual traditions dealing with the death and burial of Joshua. He argued that the earliest extant version can be found in the Greek Septuagint translation of the Book of Joshua. According to Mäkipelto, this version has often been ignored in the study of the textual history of the Hebrew book of Joshua. Especially the methods of literary and redaction criticism needs to integrate this documented evidence closer into their models. Mäkipelto works in team three of CSTT. The abstract of the paper can be read here.

Katja Kujanpää’s paper ”From Textual Criticism to Modern Quotation Theory: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on the Rhetorical Functions of Quotations In Paul’s Argumentation” won in the category New Testament. In her paper, Kujanpää applied her interdisciplinary method combining traditional textual criticism and modern literary theory in analyzing Paul’s quotations of the Old Testament. The paper sheds light on the diverse functions of these quotations in Paul’s rhetoric. Kujanpää works in team two of CSTT. The abstract of the paper can be read here.

Papers attending the competition were reviewed by two scholars known for their expertise in the fields in question. These judges reviewed the papers according to three criteria: thematic originality, academic quality, and presentability. The prizes were given out in the opening ceremony of the conference. In her talk, Jorunn Økland, the coordinator of the competition emphasized that none of the reviewers were from Finland.

Read more about the competition and its rules from the EABS website.