Rebecca Watson was a Research Associate in ‘The Sea in Scripture’ project, conducting a study of the biblical material on the oceans in order to develop a biblical theology of the sea. The aim is to apply this to how Christians should treat the ocean, the creatures living in it and the resources it contains.
Her theological studies began with a BA from Oxford University, and an MA in Theological Research from Durham, before she returned to Oxford to complete a DPhil examining putative occurrences of the theme of ‘chaos’ in the Psalter. This research was then expanded in a book looking more widely at Old Testament passages thought to reflect a divine battle with a dragon or the sea. Her first post was as a Lecturer in Biblical Studies at what is now the University of Cumbria and Senior Tutor for the ministerial training course for the north west. This was followed (after a career break) with three years working within the Cambridge Theological Federation as a Lecturer and Director of Studies for the Eastern Region Ministry Course (ERMC). She is also an affiliated lecturer of the University of Cambridge.
Rebecca has interests in the Psalter, particularly as read from a psychological perspective, and in the relation between the Bible and the wider ancient Near East, especially as it impacts on the understanding of the sea.
PUBLICATIONS
- Chaos Uncreated: A Reassessment of The Theme of ‘Chaos’ in the Hebrew Bible (BZAW 341; Berlin: Walter de Gruyter, 2005).
- ”I Shall Not Want’? A Psychological Interpretation of Psalm 23′ in New Directions in Biblical Studies: Social Scientific and Cultural Approaches. Eds. David Chalcraft, Rebecca S. Watson and Frauke Uhlenbruch (Sheffield: Sheffield Phoenix, forthcoming).
- ”Therefore we will not fear’? The Psalms of Zion in Psycho-Linguistic Perspective’ in The City in the Hebrew Bible. Eds. Hilary Marlow and James Aitken (Oxford: OUP, subject to confirmation).
