Martin Abegg

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Martin G. Abegg Jr. (born 1950) is a Dead Sea Scrolls scholar, researcher, and professor. Abegg is responsible for reconstructing the full text of the Dead Sea Scrolls from the Dead Sea Scrolls concordance, a project that broke the lengthy publication monopoly held on the scrolls. [1] [2] He went on to co-direct the Dead Sea Scrolls Institute at Trinity Western University from 1995 to 2015. [1] Here, Abegg held the Ben Zion Wacholder Professorship. [3] Because Abegg is an influential Dead Sea Scrolls scholar, he has been honoured with a collection of essays written by his peers and students. [4]

Contents

Apart from his career, Abegg's interests include hiking, playing the guitar, and good books and music. He met his wife Susan while hiking in Washington's Olympic Mountains in 1974, they married in 1975, and a decade of farm life and summers mountaineering before deciding to start a family; they had two daughters Steph and Jenny. Abegg currently resides in Chilliwack, British Columbia with his wife, Susan, and two cats Gram and Emmylou. [5]

Early life

Martin Abegg is the son of Barbara and Martin (Jerry) Abegg. [5] He was born in Peoria, Illinois. [5] His mother was a housewife and part-time PE instructor while his father was a college professor, professional engineer and President of Bradley University. [5] In the late 1960s, Abegg performed with his brother Bob in a popular rock band in Peoria, which was signed by Audio Fidelity Records before breaking up. In the early 1970s, the two Abegg brothers continued to perform, finding a niche in the Christian rock music scene. [6]

Education

Abegg graduated from Bradley University in 1972 with a bachelor of science in Geology. [5] After teaching Sunday school inspired him to take language classes, he received a M.Div. degree from Northwest Baptist Seminary in 1983. [5] Later, in 1984, Abegg went on to perform graduate work at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. [5]

Career

Abegg spent two years teaching Hebrew at the Northwest Baptist Seminary. [5] He also spent one year as a pastor. [5] Abegg taught for three years at Grace Theological Seminary in Winona Lake, Indiana. [5] After this, he moved to British Columbia, where he became a professor of Dead Sea Scrolls Studies at Trinity Western University in Langley. [5] Here, he became co-director of the Dead Sea Scrolls Institute alongside Peter Flint. [5]

Dead Sea Scrolls

Abegg first became acquainted with the Dead Sea Scrolls during his graduate work at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. [5] In 1987 he returned to the states, and completed his dissertation at the Hebrew Union College in Cincinnati on the War Scroll from Qumran Cave 1. [5] During his time at the Hebrew Union College, Abegg began to collaborate with Professor Ben Zion Wacholder. [5] John Strugnell, chief editor of the scrolls, had sent Wacholder a copy of the secret concordance of the Dead Sea Scrolls the editors were using at the time. [1] Using this concordance, Abegg created a computerized database for the Dead Sea Scrolls texts. [7] Abegg decided to publish this material while he was completing his dissertation. [8] Though this made Dead Sea Scrolls studies more convenient, Abegg was met with fury. Many influential scholars had been kept away from the materials while the editorial team worked on their first edition of scroll translation. [8] Those who had the privilege of working with the scrolls were angry that their work had been undermined. [8] However, Abegg's publication broke a forty-year monopoly on the scrolls, allowing scholars of all kinds access to examine the artifacts. [1] Furthermore, Abegg's work on the concordance gave him the opportunity to create computer research tools in association with Accordance Bible Software for Dead Sea Scrolls research. [9] Essentially, Abegg's work accelerated Dead Sea Scrolls research.

Publications

Related Research Articles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Strugnell</span> Dead Sea scrolls scholar

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Habakkuk Commentary</span>

The Habakkuk Commentary or Pesher Habakkuk, labelled 1QpHab, was among the original seven Dead Sea Scrolls discovered in 1947 and published in 1951. Due to its early discovery and rapid publication, as well as its relatively pristine preservation, 1QpHab is one of the most frequently researched and analyzed scrolls of the several hundred now known.

The Rule of the Congregation (1QSa) is an appendix to one of the first seven Dead Sea Scrolls discovered in caves near the Qumran site in 1946. Three related sectarian documents were discovered in Qumran Cave 1: The Community Rule (1QS), The Rule of the Congregation (1QSa), and The Rule of the Blessing (1QSb). The Rule of the Congregation and the Rule of the Blessing were at first overlooked by researchers and considered a continuation of the much longer Community Rule.

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Eugene CharlesUlrich is an American Dead Sea scrolls scholar and the John A. O'Brien Professor emeritus of Hebrew Scripture and Theology in the Department of Theology at the University of Notre Dame. He is chief editor of the biblical texts of the Dead Sea scrolls and one of the three general editors of the Scrolls International Publication Project. Ulrich has worked under two editors in chief on the scrolls project, namely John Strugnell and Emanuel Tov.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lincoln Hurst</span>

Lincoln Douglas Hurst, also known as "Lincoln Hurst", "L. D. Hurst", or "Lincoln D. Hurst", was an American scholar of the Bible, religious history and film. He was Emeritus Professor at the University of California, Davis (1983–2006), and adjunct professor at Fuller Theological Seminary, Pasadena, California (1987–2008).

The Isaiah Scroll, designated 1QIsaa and also known as the Great Isaiah Scroll, is one of the seven Dead Sea Scrolls that were first discovered by Bedouin shepherds in 1946 from Qumran Cave 1. The scroll is written in Hebrew and contains the entire Book of Isaiah from beginning to end, apart from a few small damaged portions. It is the oldest complete copy of the Book of Isaiah, being approximately 1000 years older than the oldest Hebrew manuscripts known before the scrolls' discovery. 1QIsaa is also notable in being the only scroll from the Qumran Caves to be preserved almost in its entirety.

James E. Bowley is Chair and Professor of Religious Studies at Millsaps College. He received his Ph.D. in Hebrew Studies from Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion (1992). Bowley is a noted editor of the Dead Sea Scrolls concordance project, along with Martin Abegg, Jr., Edward Cook. In addition to the Dead Sea Scrolls, Bowley's research and publishing focus on the Jewish literature of the Greco-Roman World and the cultural interactions among Jews, Greeks, and later Christians, and the use of written and oral traditions in Jewish, Christian, and Islamic communities. Bowley has also written a column for The Clarion-Ledger on religious issues of the day, and is a frequent speaker for community and scholarly events.

Loren T. Stuckenbruck is an historian of early Christianity and Second Temple Judaism, currently professor of New Testament at the University of Munich, in Germany. His work has exerted a significant impact on the field.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael E. Stone</span>

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The Great Psalms Scroll, also referred to as 11Q5, is the most substantial and well preserved manuscript of Psalms of the thirty-seven discovered among the Dead Sea Scrolls in the Qumran caves. It is one of six Psalms manuscripts discovered in Cave 11.

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Eileen Marie Schuller is a professor at the Faculty of Social Sciences at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario. Schuller is an official editor of the Dead Sea Scrolls. She teaches undergraduate and graduate studies in the Biblical field. Over a span of 30 years, her involvement in the publication of the Dead Sea Scrolls has led to numerous contributions in authenticating the discoveries found in the caves near the Ancient Qumran settlement.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Cast of Characters". Biblical Archaeology Society. 2012-04-16.
  2. ↑ "BAS Publishes Dead Sea Scrolls | The BAS Library". members.bib-arch.org. 2015-08-24. Retrieved 2015-12-04.
  3. ↑ "Dead Sea Scrolls Institute | Trinity Western University". www.twu.ca. Retrieved 2015-12-04.
  4. ↑ The War Scroll, Violence, War and Peace in the Dead Sea Scrolls and Related Literature. Brill. 2015. ISBN   9789004301634 . Retrieved 2015-12-04.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 "Martin Abegg - Trinity Western University". twu.ca. Archived from the original on 2013-12-08. Retrieved 2015-11-12.
  6. ↑ "IUMA: Marty and Bob Abegg". Internet Archive. Retrieved 27 October 2021.
  7. ↑ "Interview with Martin G. Abegg on Electronic Dead Sea Scrolls". Brian W. Davidson. 2013-09-20.
  8. 1 2 3 Kalman, Jason (2012). Hebrew Union College and the Dead Sea scrolls. Cincinnati. ISBN   978-0-87820-120-4. OCLC   915570958.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  9. ↑ "Dead Sea Scrolls Resources in Accordance". Accordance Bible Software. Retrieved 2015-12-04.
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