The Society of Biblical Literature

NASHVILLE, Tenn. The annual meeting of The Society of Biblical Literature, held in conjunction with The Biblical Archaeology Society (publishers of Biblical Archaeology Review magazine), saw the first ‘unveiling’ of Dr. Martin’s research and latest book on the location of Herod’s Temple to the community of Bible scholars throughout the world who are members. Most of the scholars are members.

In the Biblical Archaeology Society’s series of lectures, Dr. James Tabor, professor of Christian Origins in the Department of Religious Studies at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, presented over an hour’s worth of historical materia1 in a lecture entitled, "Locating the Herodian Temple: Old and New Theories in the Light of the Ancient Literary Evidence." Dr. Tabor explained briefly the three other most prominent theories on the location of Herod’s Temple (all of them placing the Temple within the Haram esh-Sharif), but he devoted the majority of his lecture, complete with slides and graphics, to Dr. Martin’s recent research and book "The Temples that Jerusalem Forgot."

Presented to a packed lecture hall in Nashville's new downtown Hilton Hotel, the lecture series moderator commented following the lecture that this particular topic had generated more interest and questions from the audience than any of the other topics presented in the Biblical Archaeology Society's lecture series.

Additionally, at the Society of Biblical Literature convention and book fair held also in Nashville at the huge Opryland Hotel Convention Center in the last part of November, Dr. Ernest Martin hosted the Associates for Scriptural Knowledge booth for the four day convention. Other staff members of ASK were David Sielaff and Bob Ellsworth. Dr. Martin fielded questions from the many interested parties that stopped by the booth, and personally autographed numerous copies of the Temple books.

A new four minute, computer animated graphic representation of Herod's Temple as it would have looked in Jesus’ time played continually on Dr. Martin’s laptop computer, and proved to be a real ‘traffic stopper’ for the nearly 8,000 attendees at the show.