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ACU Senior Lecturer receives prestigious international research award

ACU senior lecturer in Biblical Studies and Ancient Languages, Dr Michael P Theophilos has been awarded the 2019 Paul J Achtemeier Award for New Testament Studies.

Dr Theophilos received the prestigious international award for the submission of a research paper entitled “ΒΑΣΙΛΕΥΣ ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΝ King of Kings (Rev 17:14; 19:16) in Light of the Numismatic Record”.

The Achtemeier Award is a competitive, international research award, which judges submissions on the basis of a persuasive thesis that engages the New Testament, demonstrates quality of scholarship, significance to the field, clarity of expression, and is highly original and creative.

The Society of Biblical Literature Scholarship created the Paul J Achtemeier Award for New Testament Scholarship in 2009 to stimulate the finest and most penetrating work in New Testament studies.

The winner is invited by the Society of Biblical Literature to give a special presentation of the research paper with an expert panel discussion during a dedicated session at its annual meeting, this year in San Diego.

Dr Theophilos, senior lecturer in the Faculty of Theology and Philosophy and a member of ACU’s Institute for Religion and Critical Inquiry, said he was excited and honoured to receive the award and for the opportunity to present his research findings in person at the oldest and largest learned academic society devoted to the critical investigation of the Bible.

His research paper has subsequently been accepted for publication in the discipline’s peak international research outlet, due for release in October. The article argues that ancient Greek inscriptions on relevant coinage confirm that the title King of Kings was a clear allusion to the tradition of the Parthian kings, Rome’s historic enemy.

The title in Revelation is applied to Jesus Christ, presented triumphantly conquering Rome in the image of Rome’s feared Parthian enemy. Included in Dr Theophilos’s analysis is an extensive tabulation of relevant numismatic evidence and high-resolution images.