Dr. Elizabeth Bloch-Smith has excavated at sites around the Mediterranean Sea since 1973, primarily in Israel but also in Cyprus, Tunisia, and Turkey, including at Tel Dor from 2000-2013. She earned a B.A. and B.H.L. in Ancient Studies and Bible, respectively, from Columbia University and the Jewish Theological Seminary, and an M.A. and Ph.D. in Syro-Palestinian Archaeology from the University of Chicago. Reconstructing ancient Near Eastern religion from physical, textual, and epigraphic evidence is the focus of her research interests and publications. She currently teaches at Princeton Theological Seminary and serves as field director at Tell Keisan, Israel.
Princeton Seminar Series
Princeton Theological Seminary’s Seminar Series invites participants to deepen their engagement with theology, ethics, Scripture, literature, and the intersection of faith and health through four-week, discussion-based online seminars. Led by esteemed Princeton Theological Seminary faculty and rooted in their research and writing, each seminar explores theological texts, concepts, and contemporary questions in a dynamic and accessible format that cultivates thoughtful learning, meaningful conversation, and genuine community.
Date & Time
- Tuesday, Sep 22, 2026 - Monday, May 17, 2027
- All Day
Location
- Virtual/Zoom
Fall 2026
Paul’s Letter to the Romans
Tuesdays | 9/22 – 10/13 | 12 pm – 2 pm | Taught by Dr. Matt Novenson
Discover the lasting impact of Saint Paul’s Letter to the people of Rome, and discover what the writings of this ancient apostle can tell us in the modern day.
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Preaching in Advent with the Gospel of Luke
Thursdays | 10/01 – 10/22 | 12 pm – 2 pm | Taught by Dr. Eric Barreto
Join Dr. Eric Barreto in proclaiming hope, expectation, and good news in the Advent season by reading the story of Salvation through the lens of the Gospel of Luke.
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For Such a Time as This: Theological Grounding for Our Current Moment
Wednesdays | 10/21 – 11/11 | 7 pm – 9 pm | Taught by Dr. Hanna Reichel
Join Dr. Hanna Reichel in a course on Theological grounding for faithful reflection, discernment, and action in our current moment.
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Meet our Fall Facilitators
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Dr. Matthew Novenson
Matthew Novenson is the Helen H. P. Manson Professor of New Testament at Princeton Theological Seminary. He is also an honorary fellow in the Faculty of Divinity at the University of Edinburgh, where previously he held the Chair of Biblical Criticism and Biblical Antiquities. His monographs include Christ among the Messiahs (Oxford University Press, 2012), The Grammar of Messianism (Oxford University Press, 2017), Paul, Then and Now (Eerdmans, 2022), and Paul and Judaism at the End of History (Cambridge University Press, 2024). His edited volumes include Monotheism and Christology in Greco-Roman Antiquity (Brill, 2020) and The Oxford Handbook of Pauline Studies (Oxford University Press, 2022). He is founder and co-editor of the book series Edinburgh Studies in Religion in Antiquity (Edinburgh University Press) and associate editor of the journal New Testament Studies.
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Dr. Eric D. Barreto
Dr. Eric D. Barreto
Eric D. Barreto, MDiv ’04, is the Frederick and Margaret L. Weyerhaeuser Associate Professor of New Testament. He earned a BA in religion from Oklahoma Baptist University, an MDiv from Princeton Seminary, and a PhD in New Testament from Emory University. Prior to coming to Princeton Seminary, he served as associate professor of New Testament at Luther Seminary, and also taught as an adjunct professor at the Candler School of Theology and McAfee School of Theology.
As a Baptist minister, Barreto has pursued scholarship for the sake of the church, and he regularly writes for and teaches in faith communities around the country. He has also been a leader in the Hispanic Theological Initiative, a consortium comprised of some of the top seminaries, theological schools, and religion departments in the country. He is a member of the Society of Biblical Literature and the Society for New Testament Studies.
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Dr. Hanna Reichel
Dr. Hanna Reichel
Hanna Reichel is Charles Hodge Professor of Systematic Theology at Princeton Theological Seminary and holds a research fellowship at the University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa. An internationally renowned scholar and widely sought speaker, Reichel has previously taught at Heidelberg University and Halle-Wittenberg University in Germany and the Protestant Theological University in Utrecht.
Reichel’s areas of interest span Christian doctrine and political theology, with special interests in Christology, theological anthropology, eschatology, the doctrine of God, theological method and critical epistemologies. Reichel’s first book, Theologie als Bekenntnis: Karl Barths kontextuelle Lektüre des Heidelberger Katechismus reframes Barth as a contextual theologian through his repeated engagements with this Reformed confession over the course of his life. The book received the Lautenschläger Award for Theological Promise and the Ernst Wolf Award. Reichel’s second book, After Method: Queer Grace, Conceptual Design, and the Possibility of Theology has been widely celebrated for building bridges between Queer-liberationist and Reformed-Systematic sensibilities, as well as constructively introducing design theory into conversations about theological method. Reichel’s newest book, For Such a Time as This: An Emergency Devotional is directed at a wider audience, offering a timely resource for ordinary Christians seeking to live faithfully in extraordinary times of societal upheaval and political fragility.
Spring 2027
Bible and Archaeology: Ancient Israelites and Their God, From Home to the Jerusalem Temple
Tuesdays | 02/02 – 02/23 | 7 pm – 9 pm | Taught by Dr. Elizabeth Bloch-Smith
Join Dr. Elizabeth Bloch-Smith in Exploring ancient Israelite life, worship, and sacred space from the household to the Jerusalem Temple.
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Faith in an Exhausted World
Thursdays | 02/18 – 03/11 | 12 pm – 2 pm | Taught by Dr. Nate Stucky
Join Dr. Nate Stucky in finding theological depth, spiritual resilience, and renewed hope amid weariness.
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For the First-Time Lay Preacher: Help! I Want to Preach but I Don’t Know How
Tuesdays | 04/13 – 05/04 | 7 pm – 9 pm | Taught by Dr. Nancy Gross
Join Dr. Nancy Gross in a course on Practical guidance for preparing and proclaiming your first sermon with confidence.
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Reading Kierkegaard’s Sickness unto Death: Faithful Selfhood in Tumultous Times
Mondays | 04/26 – 05/17 | 7 pm – 9 pm | Taught by Dr. Heather Ohaneson
Join Dr. Heather Ohaneson in a course exploring faithful selfhood, despair, and hope in tumultuous times through Kierkegaard’s work “Sickness unto Death.”
Registration Coming Soon!
Meet our Spring Facilitators
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Dr. Elizabeth Bloch-Smith
Dr. Elizabeth Bloch-Smith
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Dr. Nate Stucky
Dr. Nate Stucky
Nathan Stucky serves as Director of the Farminary Project at Princeton Theological Seminary. He grew up on a farm in Kansas where his love for Christian faith and agriculture first took root. After earning a BA in Music from Bethel College (KS), Stucky spent six years doing ecumenical youth ministry on the eastern shore of Maryland, and two years farming back in Kansas. After farming, Stucky earned an MDiv and a PhD (Practical Theology, Christian Education and Formation) from Princeton Theological Seminary. His scholarship explores questions of land, ecology, theology, agriculture, justice, joy, and Sabbath as they relate to theological education. He is the author of Wrestling with Rest: Inviting Youth to Discover the Gift of Sabbath. Ordained in the Mennonite Church (USA), Stucky engages Farminary work as integral to his calling to teaching ministry. He lives in Princeton, New Jersey, with his spouse and three children.
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Nancy Lammers Gross
Nancy Lammers Gross
Nancy Lammers Gross, MDiv, PhD, is the Director of the Joe R. Engle Institute for Preaching and the Arthur Sarell Rudd Professor of Speech Communication in Ministry at Princeton Theological Seminary. She earned both her MDiv and PhD from Princeton Seminary. A member of the Academy of Homiletics, her areas of teaching interest include speech communication with special interest in assisting women to claim their voices, preaching, especially preaching from the Apostle Paul, and worship. An ordained Presbyterian minister, she has served churches in California and New Jersey, holding membership in the Presbytery of the Coastlands.
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Heather C. Ohaneson
Heather C. Ohaneson
Rev. Ohaneson (Ph.D., Columbia University; M.Div., PTS) is a full-time pastor and seasoned educator in philosophy, theology, and the Great Books tradition. She brings nearly 20 years of college-level teaching experience and a passion for public-facing theology to this seminar.