Search Engine Terms: January

One thing that WordPress does for bloggers is that it tells us what phrases people entered in and clicked through that led them to my blog. Sometimes this is quite predictable (“Nijay Gupta”) and other times not so much. In any case, I thought it would be fun and funny to respond once in a while to a series of search engine searches (partly because you sometimes never find the answers to your googlesearch questions). Here goes:

1. “Nijay Gupta” -that’s me!

2. “nijay kelly” – I had, long ago, dreamed of being the next R. Kelly. Alas, I abandoned the project when I realized I could not fly.

3. “kirby chair aberdeen” – I have heard it has been extremely difficult to find a suitable NT chair at Aberdeen. As far as I know (since SBL), the search continues. I think someone like Joel Green would do well there, but I think it would be hard to steal him away from Fuller.

4. “nt wright chris wright” – no relation. Although Tom Wright once told me that if he is NT Wright, then Chris is “OT” Wright. ahhh…scholar jokes.

5. “publishing the thesis” – I suggest Cambridge; perhaps Brill. Try to find one that does typesetting for you, unless you have an extra 100-200 hours to burn.

6. “write an abstract in sbl” – I assume this is for the conference – most important tip – it has to be interesting! Also, proofread it.

7. “how much do seminary professors make” – I don’t think you want to know. Just remind yourself, its better than flipping burgers. Unless you’re flipping them at Redmill. Mmmm…Redmill….

8. “completing a phd in 2 years” – Are these literal years or “weeks of years”? Why don’t you see if University of Pheonix has a suitable program. Well, in any case, go to the UK and put in the extra third year.

9. “best new testament phd” – go to a place with scholars you admire and respect, where you will have colleagues that will complement and sharpen you, pay attention to library holdings, and try not to go somewhere where you will need to take out over $100,000 in loans. (subliminal message: Durham, Durham, Durham, Durham….)

10. “how would one write their own old testament theology” – see Pseudo-Philo, though he is more focused on “history.”

11. “how to change my mind” – Base it on a new archaeological discovery and not on your previously being wrong. That is how we Biblical scholars do it.

12. “what is mirror reading” – Jeopardy answer: the excuse we use when we make Paul say what we want him to say

Hope that answers all of your questions!