Kelley Coblentz Bautch
Professor of Religious Studies, St. Edward’s University
Frankel Fellow, University of Michigan
What will you be researching while a fellow at the Frankel Institute and how does it relate to your work overall?
My project “Recovering Diverse Voices in 1 Maccabees” is an examination of the late second century/early first century BCE book with attention to gender and empire. The study contributes to a commentary on 1 Maccabees for the Wisdom Series, which has a focus on gender and justice issues. My analysis is meant to elucidate how 1 Maccabees depicts both masculinity and femininity and to be attentive to what the book reveals about power dynamics and the privileged as well as the disempowered.
This project fits well the 2021-2022 theme of the Frankel Center: “Second Temple Judaism--The Challenge of Diversity.” 1 Maccabees is a text that straddles (for distinctive religious communities) the artificial categories of “canonical” and “non-canonical.” Further my study draws on traditional methodologies associated with historical and literary studies and on contemporary methodologies associated with both gender and postcolonial analysis. Thus, diversity is at the center of my research. But the content of this book also contributes to a discussion on diversity. The political intrigue and unrest described in the book reveal different factions within Second Temple Judaism (e.g. those comfortable with assimilation, those willing to be martyred for following Torah, those who choose to fight).
But what is especially intriguing for me are the early Jewish voices of the historical period 1 Maccabees purports to describe and the historical period in which it was actually written that have been lost to us. For example, my study attends to women who were associated with the life and times of the first generations of Maccabees (though they are not mentioned in 1 Maccabees), representations of gender (largely subsumed by depictions of masculinity in the text), and the social history of Jewish women in the mid-to-late second century BCE to early-to-mid first century BCE.
What is the most common misconception about this area of research?
The virtual absence of named women in 1 Maccabees has led some scholars to assume(mistakenly) that the women of the illustrious Maccabee family were not involved in the events of their day. From later historiography, it appears rather that Hasmonean women were prominent in dynastic discussions and were politically active.
What has been your greatest success in academic/teaching, research, etc.?
It has been an honor to be recognized as an excellent educator and advisor at both my home institution and nationally. I also am extraordinarily grateful for the opportunity to advance my scholarship as a Frankel Fellow, especially as I attend to this exciting work on 1 Maccabees. Much of my scholarship concerns early Enoch literature and so I am grateful for the occasion to explore 1 Maccabees and to contribute to the recovery of lost voices. I have also benefited from residencies in Jerusalem and Rome.
But one area that I might associate with success is at an administrative (or service) level, in making opportunities available for others. For example, with Frankel Fellows Rodney Caruthers, Shayna Sheinfeld, and Gabriele Boccacini, I organized a conference (“Second Temple Judaism: AGlobal Enterprise”) held this January in association with the Frankel Center; this virtual meeting will brought together scholars from around the world, and I am happy to have played a role in facilitating the important conversations that will occurred.
What do you hope to gain from this experience? How has your time at the University of Michigan impacted your research so far?
During my Fellowship I hope to complete a draft of my commentary on 1 Maccabees. I am especially grateful for the resources available through the University of Michigan’s fantastic Hatcher Library as well as for weekly meetings of and conversations among the Fellows. We share work in progress and receive invaluable feedback from one another. Visits to the Papyrology collection and Kelsey Museum have also been real highlights. The University of Michigan and Frankel Center in particular offer an unparalleled context for study of Judaism and for our ongoing discussions about Diversity in Second Temple Judaism.
Register for Recovering Stories of the Maccabean Matriarchs | Jlive with the Frankel Center and JCC of Metro Detroit on April 6, 2022 at 7pm to learn more about Kelley Coblentz Bautch's work.
