Who is Thomas B. Slater?

Thomas B. Slater is the guest speaker for Episode 24 of the Covenant Bible Study on the book of Revelation. Here are some quick facts about him:

1. He is professor of New Testament Language & Literature in the James & Carolyn McAfee School of Theology at Mercer University. 
2. He received his B.A. in journalism from Arkansas Tech University, his Master of Theology and Doctor of Ministry degrees from Perkins School of Theology at Southern Methodist University, and his Ph.D. in Biblical Studies from King's College London at the University of London.
3.  He has written a commentary on the book of Ephesians and a book called Christ in Community: A Socio-Historical Study of the Christology of Revelation. 
4. He has been a pastor or an associate pastor of ten congregations in the United States and in the United Kingdom and is an ordained minister in full connection in the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church.
5. He is the first African American to receive a Ph.D in biblical studies in the United Kingdom.

Who is Daniel L. Smith-Christopher?

Daniel L. Smith-Christopher is the guest speaker for Episode 23 of the Covenant Bible Study on the book of Daniel. Here are some quick facts about him:

1. He is professor of Theological Studies and director of Peace Studies at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles. 
2. He received his B.A. from George Fox University, his M.Div. from Associated Mennonite Biblical Seminaries, and his D.Phil. from Oxford University in England. 
3. He is the author of several books, including Jonah, Jesus, and Other Good Coyotes: Speaking Peace to Power in the Bible, A Biblical Theology of Exile (Overtures to Biblical Theology) and Introduction to the Old Testament: Our Invitation to Faith and Justice.
4. He recently began teaching on the role of Scripture in African-American Gospel and Blues musical and lyrical traditions, and he has consulted on many television and multimedia projects in these areas. 
5. Fortress Press Publishing in Minneapolis named him Undergraduate Theology Teacher of the Year in 2006.
   
   

Who is Melody D. Knowles?

Melody D. Knowles is the guest speaker for episode 22 of the Covenant Study on 1&2 Chronicles, Ezra, and Nehemiah. Here are some quick facts about her:

1. She received a B.A. from Trinity Western University, Langley, BC, Canada in 1991, an M.Div. from Princeton Theological Seminary in 1994, and a Ph.D. from Princeton Theological Seminary in 2001.
2. She is the Vice President of Academic Affairs and Associate Professor of Old Testament at Virginia Theological Seminary. 
3. She was previously Associate Professor of Hebrew Scriptures at McCormick Theological Seminary in Chicago.
4. She has been involved in archaeological excavations at various sites in Israel, and worked to make McCormick’s rich archaeological collection a visible and well-used educational resource for students.  
5. Her published works include Centrality Practiced: Jerusalem in the Religious Practice of Yehud and the Diaspora in the Persian Period (2006), and Contesting Texts: Jews and Christians in Conversation About the Bible (2007). She was the lead translator of the books of Ezra and Nehemiah for the Common English Bible (CEB), and wrote the notes for the books of 1 and 2 Chronicles in the study edition of the CEB.

Who is Patricia K. Tull?

Patricia K. Tull is the guest speaker for Episode 21 of the Covenant Bible Study on the book of Isaiah. Here are a few fast facts about her:

1. She is a retired professor of Old Testament at Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary where she taught required courses in Hebrew, Hebrew exegesis, and the introduction to the Hebrew Bible for Master of Divinity and Master of Arts (Religion) students. She also offered elective courses such as Biblical Interpretation after the Holocaust, Interpreting the Exile, Preaching Biblical Narratives, Teaching the Bible: Wisdom Literature, Scripture’s Memories, Portraits of God, and Exegesis of Psalms, 1-2 Samuel, and Isaiah.
2. She earned her degrees at the University of Texas in Austin (B.S. Ed.); Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary (M.Div.); and Emory University (Ph.D.).
3.  She is passionate about developing interfaith relations among Christians, Jews, and Muslims in the United States and abroad.
4. She is the author of several books including, most recently, Inhabiting Eden: Christians, the Bible, and the Ecological Crisis (2013).  
5. She keeps a blog at: https://inhabitingeden.blogspot.com/ where you can learn more about her and read her thoughts on Christians and Ecology.