Eric Huntsman

COORDINATOR, ANCIENT NEAR EASTERN STUDIES
PROFESSOR OF ANCIENT SCRIPTURE

 Offices: 2015 HRCB (Kennedy Center); 365-F JSB
Phone: 801-422-3359
Email: eric_huntsman@byu.edu
Twitter: @EricDHuntsman

Latter-Day Profile Interview, Aug 24, 2014

  • Eric Huntsman Interview (link)
  • Professional Background

    Received B.A. in Classical Greek and Latin from Brigham Young University, August 1990; M.A. Ancient History, University of Pennsylvania, May 1992; and Ph.D. Ancient History, University of Pennsylvania, Dec 1997. Joined the faculty at BYU full-time in 1994 as an Instructor of Classics, becoming an Assistant Professor of Classics and Ancient History in 1997. Transferred to the College of Religious Education, becoming an Assistant Professor of Ancient Scripture in 2003 and an Associate Professor in 2008. He was appointed as the coordinator of the Ancient Near Eastern Studies program in August 2012 after spending a year teaching at the BYU Jerusalem Center.

  • Curriculm Vitae September 2018
  • Education, Experience, and Awards

    I. Education

    Ph.D. in Ancient History and Classics, University of Pennsylvania December 1997, dissertation: “The Family and Property of Livia Drusilla.”
    M.A. in Ancient History, University of Pennsylvania May 1992, thesis: “Fourth Century Marriage, Motherhood, and Power: The Role of Women in the Macedonian Court.”
    B.A. in Classical Greek and Latin, Brigham Young University August 1990, summa cum laude and highest honors

    II. Academic Employment History

    Adjunct Research Fellow, Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship. Full-time faculty, Associate Professor of Ancient Scripture, Affiliated Faculty, Classics and Ancient History: Fall 2008–present.
    Specialties: New Testament Studies, especially Johannine Literature, Pauline Epistles, and Luke-Acts; Early Christianity and the Roman World; historical context of the Bible.
    Full-time faculty, Assistant Professor of Ancient Scripture, Affiliated Faculty, Classics and Ancient History: Fall 2003–2008
    Full-time faculty, Assistant Professor of Classics and Ancient History: Winter 1998–Summer 2003.
    Specialties: Greek and Roman history, Greek and Latin language and grammar, historical authors, women in antiquity.
    Full-time faculty, Instructor: Fall 1994–Fall 1997.
    Part-time faculty, Brigham Young University: Summers of 1991–94.
    Student Instructor, Brigham Young University: Winter and Fall 1989, Spring and Summer 1990.

    III. Awards and Honors

    Honors Professor of the Year, 2011
    Susan and Harvey Black Outstanding Publication Award in Ancient Scripture, March 2010.
    Alcuin Fellow, Brigham Young University, 2009–2011 (awarded August 2008)
    University of Pennsylvania: William Penn Fellow; senior writing fellow.
    Brigham Young University: National Merit, Karl G. Maeser, and Hinckley scholar; Eta Sigma Phi (secretary-treasurer, vice president, president); Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi.

    Personal Background

    Born in Albuquerque, New Mexico, but raised in upstate New York, western Pennsylvania, and Tennessee. Married N. Elaine Scott in 1993. They have two children, Rachel (1997) and Samuel (2003).

    Received B.A. in Classical Greek and Latin from Brigham Young University, August 1990; M.A. Ancient History, University of Pennsylvania, May 1992; and Ph.D. Ancient History, University of Pennsylvania, Dec 1997. Joined the faculty at BYU full-time in 1994 as an Instructor of Classics, becoming an Assistant Professor of Classics and Ancient History in 1997. Transferred to the College of Religious Education, becoming an Assistant Professor of Ancient Scripture in 2003 and an Associate Professor in 2008. He was appointed as the coordinator of the Ancient Near Eastern Studies program in August 2012 after spending a year teaching at the BYU Jerusalem Center.

    Together with colleagues Richard Holzafpel and Thomas Wayment, he has co-authored Jesus Christ and the World of the New Testament: An Illustrated Reference for Latter-day Saints (Deseret Book, 2006).

    In early 2011 he published a book-length study of the Passion Narratives with Deseret Book entitled God So Loved the World: The Final Days of the Savior’s Life, which was followed by a Christmas companion volume on the Infancy Narratives entitled Good Tidings of Great Joy: An Advent Celebration of the Savior’s Birth released later that year. A third volume on the miracle stories in the gospels entitled The Miracles of Jesus is scheduled for release with Deseret Book in August 2014.

    He served in the Thailand Bangkok Mission (1985-86). Second counselor in the bishopric of the Philadelphia Third Ward (1991-94) and Provo Park Ward (1995-1996). Bishop of the North Park First Ward in Provo (1996-2002). Has served as an ordinance worker in the Provo Temple since 2002, and is currently a member of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.