Pushing sacred boundaries : celebrating the career and contributions of Jodi Magness

Abstract

It is a pleasure for us to present this collection of essays in honor of Jodi Magness—a cherished scholar and teacher whose work over the last forty years has illuminated our understanding of archaeology, early Judaism, and the broader ancient Mediterranean world in ways that will help shape these fields of study for generations to come. By any standard, Jodi’s contributions in these areas have not only been groundbreaking through the new insights and perspectives they have offered to an already formidable body of scholarship, but they have inspired new generations of researchers to refine their approaches to the discipline and have helped a non-specialist public to view the ancient past with an ever-increasing fascination. Although it would be impossible to measure the full impact she has had in these wide-reaching venues, this Festschrift is an opportunity to celebrate Jodi’s distinguished career by bringing together a series of articles produced by friends, students, and colleagues who wish to acknowledge her many contributions as a world-class academic, and who wish to recognize their valued association with her in both personal and professional settings.