BA
Max Benster is a first-year MPhil student and Ertegun Scholar at Oriel College, under the supervision of Professor Hindy Najman. Max has just completed a BA in Theology—also at Oriel. For his finals, he was awarded the Denyer & Johnson Prize for best performance in the Theology examinations, and the Senior Pusey & Ellerton Prize for the best performance in Biblical Hebrew. His undergraduate thesis focused on celestial writing, specifically the motif of erasure from heavenly books.
In the course of the MPhil, he wants to continue thinking about the significance of writing in ancient Judaism, as well as pursuing broader interests in aspects of Second Temple Judaism.
Research interests: writing, hermeneutics, Dead Sea Scrolls, archaeology.