OTSEM (''Old Testament Studies: Epistemologies and Methods'') is a research network of several Northern European universities. Originally Nordic-German in nature, it now includes British universities as well, which gives it a Nordic-German-Anglo profile. The organization focuses on research into the
Hebrew Bible
The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach" ''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''. Hebrew: ''Tān ...
and promotes the development of young scholars in particular, especially through annual seminars and special lectures. Though encompassing theological faculties and using the term
Old Testament
The Old Testament (often abbreviated OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew writings by the Israelites. The ...
, OTSEM is non-confessional, with members from Christian (both Protestant and Catholic), Jewish, Muslim, and secular backgrounds.
Institutions
Currently, OTSEM consists of sixteen institutions from eight different countries:
* ''Denmark'':
University of Copenhagen
The University of Copenhagen ( da, Københavns Universitet, KU) is a prestigious public university, public research university in Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark. Founded in 1479, the University of Copenhagen is the second-oldest university in ...
,
Aarhus University
Aarhus University ( da, Aarhus Universitet, abbreviated AU) is a public research university with its main campus located in Aarhus, Denmark. It is the second largest and second oldest university in Denmark. The university is part of the Coimbra Gr ...
* ''Estonia'': University of Tartu (affiliated through Helsinki)
* ''Finland'':
University of Helsinki
The University of Helsinki ( fi, Helsingin yliopisto, sv, Helsingfors universitet, abbreviated UH) is a public research university located in Helsinki, Finland since 1829, but founded in the city of Turku (in Swedish ''Åbo'') in 1640 as the ...
,
Åbo Akademi University
Åbo Akademi University ( sv, Åbo Akademi , ) is the only exclusively Swedish language multi-faculty university in Finland (or anywhere outside Sweden). It is located mainly in Turku (Åbo is the Swedish name of the city) but has also activiti ...
* ''Germany'':
University of Göttingen
The University of Göttingen, officially the Georg August University of Göttingen, (german: Georg-August-Universität Göttingen, known informally as Georgia Augusta) is a public research university in the city of Göttingen, Germany. Founded ...
,
University of Hamburg
The University of Hamburg (german: link=no, Universität Hamburg, also referred to as UHH) is a public research university in Hamburg, Germany. It was founded on 28 March 1919 by combining the previous General Lecture System ('' Allgemeines Vor ...
* ''Iceland'':
University of Iceland
The University of Iceland ( is, Háskóli Íslands ) is a public research university in Reykjavík, Iceland and the country's oldest and largest institution of higher education. Founded in 1911, it has grown steadily from a small civil servants' s ...
* ''Great Britain'':
University of Oxford
, mottoeng = The Lord is my light
, established =
, endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019)
, budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20)
, chancellor ...
,
King's College London
King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of King George IV and the Duke of Wellington. In 1836, King's ...
,
University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...
* ''Norway'':
University of Oslo
The University of Oslo ( no, Universitetet i Oslo; la, Universitas Osloensis) is a public research university located in Oslo, Norway. It is the highest ranked and oldest university in Norway. It is consistently ranked among the top universit ...
,
MF Norwegian School of Theology
MF Norwegian School of Theology, Religion and Society ( no, MF vitenskapelig høyskole for teologi, religion og samfunn), formerly the Free Faculty of Theology ( no, Det teologiske menighetsfakultet) and MF Norwegian School of Theology, is an accr ...
,
VID Specialized University
The VID Specialized University ( no, VID vitenskapelige høgskole) is a Norwegian accredited, private, non-profit university-level higher education and research institution. VID Specialized University has 6,000 students and 600 employees, makin ...
* ''Sweden'':
Uppsala University
Uppsala University ( sv, Uppsala universitet) is a public university, public research university in Uppsala, Sweden. Founded in 1477, it is the List of universities in Sweden, oldest university in Sweden and the Nordic countries still in opera ...
,
Lund University
, motto = Ad utrumque
, mottoeng = Prepared for both
, established =
, type = Public research university
, budget = SEK 9 billion John Barton
*Fredrik Lindström
*
Reinhard Gregor Kratz Reinhard Gregor Kratz (* July 25, 1957, in Offenbach am Main) is a German biblical scholar, historian of ancient Judaism, and Protestant theologian. He currently serves as professor of Old Testament, or Hebrew Bible, in the Faculty of Theology at t ...
*
Nathan MacDonald
A British biblical scholar, Nathan MacDonald (born 1975) currently serves as Reader in the Interpretation of the Old Testament at Cambridge University as well as Fellow and College Lecturer in theology at St John's College, Cambridge. Much of his ...
*
Martti Nissinen
Martti Heikki Nissinen (born April 22, 1959 in Kuopio) is a Finnish theologian, serving since 2007 as Professor of Old Testament studies in the Faculty of Theology at the University of Helsinki. He is known as an expert of the prophetic phenomeno ...
*
Hermann Spieckermann
Hermann Spieckermann (born October 28, 1950 in Dortmund) is a German biblical scholar, historian of ancient Near Eastern religion, and Protestant theologian. He currently holds a chair for Old Testament, or Hebrew Bible, in the Faculty of Theolog ...
*
Hugh G. M. Williamson
Hugh Godfrey Maturin Williamson (born 15 July 1947) is a theologian and academic. He was Regius Professor of Hebrew (Oxford), Regius Professor of Hebrew at the University of Oxford from 1992 to 2014, a position he now holds as Emeritus.
Career
...