Mowinckel Lecture 2025: YHWH - a biography of his early years

Without the Bible, our knowledge of YHWH would be quite limited. He is absent as a deity in sources from the 3rd and 2nd millennia BCE and appears only sporadically in the 1st millennium BCE. It has long been recognized that the literary history and religious history diverge significantly when tracing the origins of the religion of Israel and Judah. By moving away from the mythical narratives of the burning bush at Sinai, the Exodus, and the conquest of the land, a new perspective on YHWH’s biography emerges. Initially, YHWH was the god of the early kings in Israel and only later came to Jerusalem. Even there, he was more closely associated with the monarchy than with the people. It was the literary elites who shaped him into the deity we recognize today—a god who comes from outside and chooses Jerusalem as his dwelling place. To reach this understanding, one must clear away a considerable amount of mythical overgrowth. This lecture will outline the key points necessary to trace the early development of the belief in YHWH.

The lecture will be given by Prof. Dr. Christian Frevel, Professor of Old Testament Studies, Department of Catholic Theology, Ruhr University Bochum, Germany.

You can find more information about this event on the Faculty of Theology's web page: https://www.tf.uio.no/english/research/memorial-lectures/events/2025/mowinckel-lecture.html

Please note that the Mowinckel Seminar 2025 also takes place on October 31, 2025, from 1:00 PM-3:00 PM. You can read more about the seminar on the Faculty of Theology's web page: https://www.tf.uio.no/english/research/memorial-lectures/events/2025/mowinckel-seminar.html

You may also like the following events from UiO - Det teologiske fakultet:

• Next month, 30th October, 09:00 am, Jervell- og alumniseminar 2025 in Oslo

Also check out other Workshops in Oslo, Arts events in Oslo, Literary Art events in Oslo.