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Dr Tom de Bruin

@tdbiii.bsky.social
878 followers 98 following 252 posts

(he/they) non-binary New Testament & Early Christianity scholar, author, sci-fi fan. Assistant Prof Radboud University | Editor of JIBS

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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
Boo
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Ongelofelijk.
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
Don’t you mean WHAT IS YOUR PRIVATE MALFUNCTION?
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Matthijs den Dulk @matthijsdendulk.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
If you happen to be (or are looking for an excuse to be) in Bologna, I'm doing a book presentation/seminar on 29 September at the Fondazione per le scienze religiose. Open to all.
announcement for book presentation of ethnic stereotypes and the letters of paul by matthijs den dulk on 29 september 2026 in Bologna
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 22/08/2026
It’s good to see that even post-apartheid Stellenbosch sticks to its long, fine tradition of very bad takes.
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 16/08/2026
Why is brother of Jesus behind James not in parentheses?
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Siobhán Jolley @siobhanjolley.bsky.social · 14/08/2026
I love this book.
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 14/08/2026
Wow. Another stellar review of my fan fiction and the Bible book. This time by @siobhanjolley.bsky.social in the Journal for the Study of the New Testament. The book is out in paperback, so it’s not too expensive anymore. And like usual happy to help people access it, send me a dm!
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 30/07/2026
So chuffed with Acacia Chan’s generous review of my “Fanfiction meets the Bible” book for the Review of Biblical Literature — www.sblcentral.org/home/bookDet... (paywall, screenshots attached). Ignore the price, it’s now out in paperback for $36. Also happy to help people access it, send me a dm.
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 29/07/2026
Eh.
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 06/07/2026
If you don’t have access and want to read it. Send me a message and I’ll help you out.
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Taede A. Smedes @tasmedes.bsky.social · 03/07/2026
c.org/KgGRQLGFxX
c.org
Sign the Petition
Stop Redundancies at the University of Exeter
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 24/06/2026
This is dangerous because (a) it extends contemporary homophobia into the past and works to justify contemporary homophobia; and (b) because bad actors can use this research to draw even more homophobic conclusions – their research gets weaponised, just like the clobber texts are weaponised.
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 24/06/2026
Taking interpreters of an ancient Christian text as an example, I show how they read passages about Sodom – passages that have nothing to do with homo-eroticism – and draw homophobic conclusions. This is ironic as these specific interpreters wish to combat homophobia with their research.
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 24/06/2026
I've been working on this for 18 months, so super excited that it is now *finally* out in the world! It's open access, so free for anyone to read! The article tackles the way that contemporary readers *import* homophobia into ancient texts. doi.org/10.1163/1568...
doi.org
Looking for Homophobia, a Metacritique: Contemporary Interpreters’ Views on Sodom in the Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs
Abstract Many contemporary scholars, when interpreting early Christian texts about Sodom’s sin, refer to ‘homosexual practice’ or ‘homosexual activity.’ In this paper I present a meta-critique of cont...
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 12/06/2026
Exciting news just before the weekend. Proofs!!!
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 22/04/2026
I mean they couldn’t pay me €500 to watch a day’s golf.
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Siobhán Jolley @siobhanjolley.bsky.social · 03/04/2026
Reception folks! Theory heads! Submit your abstracts to @tdbiii.bsky.social and me by 13th April.
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Christopher Wiggins @cwnewser.bsky.social · 21/03/2026
NEWS: This librarian in Rutherford County, Tennessee, is a hero without a cape. www.advocate.com/politics/sta...
advocate.com
‘I will not comply’: Tennessee librarian refuses to move LGBTQ+ books
Rutherford County library director Juanne James’s stand against a vote to relocate more than 190 titles draws national support as the board weighs firing her.
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 17/03/2026
I couldn't publish all I wanted to say on this topic in NovT (this article went through 3 (!!) rounds of peer review and I ended up cutting more than 3k words), so look for a longer piece later this year in Biblical Interpretation, where I unpick more issues with this type of scholarship.
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 17/03/2026
Though the text is worried about men fornicating with women, they managed to read it as condemning ‘homosexuality’. This is a) incorrect and b) highly problematic as it reads contemporary issues in Christian fundamentalism into the 2nd century, justifying the current discourse of hate and exclusion.
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 17/03/2026
Basically, I am correcting some significant mistakes in another person’s article. There were many minor issues (dating, misquoting, not reading recent scholarship), but the largest was that they wrangled the meaning of an ancient Christian text (Testament of Benjamin) to fit a homophobic mould.
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 17/03/2026
Exciting news! I just had an article published calling out a homophobic article Novum Testamentum published last year. It’s open access and free to read thanks to my employer. Get it here doi.org/10.1163/1568.... A thread on what it’s about below:
Screenshot of article “The Kingdom and Sodom in the Testament of Benjamin: A Response to JM Na’s “Echoes of the Kingdom” (2025)” by Tom de Bruin.

Abstract reads: This article responds to JM Na’s recent “Echoes of the Kingdom” published in this journal. It argues that the parallels Na highlights between 1 Cor 6 and T. Benj. 9.1 are untenable. This article examines the themes of the kingdom of the Lord and the fornication of Sodom in T. Benj., arguing for a different reading. The kingdom of the Lord refers to the ancient Israelite kingdom—not Paul’s eschatological kingdom. Examining the literary and historical context of T. Benj., this article argues that the fornication of Sodom most likely refers to heteroerotic sexual excess driven by the pursuit of pleasure—not homosexuality or homoeroticism.
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 16/03/2026
You guys. It finally happened.
Email inviting me to join the illuminati.
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 06/03/2026
Good luck! I hope you find the time!
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 06/03/2026
Maybe you could just post your article as a long thread? Then we can all have access to your cutting-edge semiconductor research?
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 05/03/2026
Unsubscribe.
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 02/03/2026
Leidt dat tot een veroordeling, dan bekijken we de situatie, maar wat iemand op X plaatst behoort wat ons betreft tot de privésfeer en de vrijheid van meningsuiting.” Nu toch van mening veranderd. Ik vermoed dat ze zich hebben verkeken op de negatieve reacties die zouden komen op deze aanstelling.
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 02/03/2026
Neu zeker niet. Maar dit is allemaal niet echt nieuw, daarom was er ook die conflict in Nijmegen. Een paar dagen geleden zei de VUB “Als uitspraken strijdig zijn met de Belgische wetgeving is het aan justitie om op te treden, en niet aan ons als universiteit.
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 02/03/2026
Snap ik. De VUB wist natuurlijk ook met wie ze te maken hadden, dus kan me niet voorstellen dat dit een grote verassing moet zijn geweest. En er zijn wel meer ongenuanceerde academici. Nou ja.
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 02/03/2026
Toch zie ik niet dat hij aanzet tot geweld. Dit is zeker een controversiële mening maar van haatzaaien en aanzetten tot geweld (zoals VUB beweert) lijkt me in deze tweets geen sprake. In de Engelssprekende wereld is het verdedigen van een impopulaire meningen, dé kernwaarde van academische vrijheid.
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Matthijs den Dulk @matthijsdendulk.bsky.social · 22/02/2026
Available now in Open Access — free to browse and download. I’m thrilled that this book is finally seeing the light of day. It’s been quite the journey. Many thanks to all the friends and colleagues who helped me along the way!
cambridge.org
Ethnic Stereotypes and the Letters of Paul
Cambridge Core - Biblical Studies - New Testament - Ethnic Stereotypes and the Letters of Paul
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Michael Kochenash @mkochenash.bsky.social · 19/01/2026
If you are mobile and want to do research related to this theme, this is a great opportunity. Matthijs is a great person to work with (as are the other biblical studies people on faculty there!), Radboud is a great place to work, and Nijmegen is a great place to live, even if only temporarily.
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Matthew R. Crawford @mcrawford.bsky.social · 18/01/2026
In case you haven't yet heard about it, there is an interesting new project on 'Ethnicity and (In)Equality in Early Christianity' being led by Matthijs den Dulk (Radboud University). Currently hiring for a 3-year postdoc. Application deadline is 8 March. www.eiec.info/home
eiec.info
EIEC
Image: Jesus and the dog-headed men, Kiev Psalter, 1397
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Matthijs den Dulk @matthijsdendulk.bsky.social · 16/01/2026
Please share widely! 3-year Postdoc in Early Christian Studies. Deadline: 8 March. Let me know if you have any questions or want to nominate a colleague.
ru.nl
Postdoc Position: Early Christian Studies | Radboud University
Do you want to work as a Postdoctoral Researcher: Early Christian Studies at the Faculty of Philosophy, Theology and Religious Studies? Check our vacancy!
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 18/01/2026
Come to Nijmegen and be my colleague! 3-year postdoc on ethnicity and (in)equality in early Christianity, supervised by @matthijsdendulk.bsky.social. All I can say is we are a great group of people and Nijmegen is a pretty good place to live.
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 12/01/2026
My grandfather randomly died at 63. No symptoms. Turned out to be HCT.
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Siobhán Jolley @siobhanjolley.bsky.social · 18/12/2025
Psyched that the CfP for Maryanne Saunders’ NG colloquium, exploring expansive ideas about familial ties as represented in art, is now live! www.nationalgallery.org.uk/research/sem... Abstracts up to 300 words with a short bio due by Monday 26 January 2026. Please share widely!
(Re)alignment: rethinking familial ties in the visual arts
Call for proposals for Colloquium 28 May 2026
Expanding our understanding of family, community and what binds us together requires us to look beyond conventional definitions and documented histories.
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 25/11/2025
Wow.
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 25/11/2025
Yeah!
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 25/11/2025
🤣 Well enough. Seems like a lot of people weren’t here. Global politics and all that I guess.
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 25/11/2025
Hard same. Also, one day I will meet you irl at an sbl!
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 25/11/2025
You might want to check out my book, it does exactly that. Well, it looks at their texts and communites as fan texts and fan communities bur thats oretty close. www.bloomsbury.com/us/fan-ficti...
bloomsbury.com
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 25/11/2025
Finally.
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 24/11/2025
Excited to see my book pal’s book next to mine in the book hall! @siobhanjolley.bsky.social’s book is cooler because it has pictures!
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 23/11/2025
Had loads of fun at my first paper on The Chosen today. One more tomorrow at 9am, on The Chosen fanfic (slashfic) that imagine sexual relationships between the disciples. Thanks to @siobhanjolley.bsky.social for the HQ action pic! #aarsbl2025 #sblaar25
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 22/11/2025
Very much looking forward to the book review panel of my book at 4pm today! It’s S22-336 if anyone’s interested. With superstars @drmjcwarren.bsky.social @brownsmith.bsky.social and Acacia Chan. #aarsbl25 #sblaar25
Photo of my book Fan Fiction and Early Christian Writings
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Matthijs den Dulk @matthijsdendulk.bsky.social · 21/11/2025
Early Christian Epistolarity is out now! Get your copy (or, you know, get your library to order it) at brill.com/display/titl.... It was an honor to work on this project with Judith Lieu @greggiven.bsky.social @angelastandh.bsky.social @cavanconcannon.bsky.social, Harry Maier (1/2)
Cover of the book 'early christian epistolarity' by Judith Lieu and Matthijs den Dulk
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Dr Tom de Bruin @tdbiii.bsky.social · 23/10/2025
More like public cis 🤣
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Dr. Chance Bonar @chancebonar.bsky.social · 15/10/2025
God, Slavery, and Early Christianity is out in the real world with @universitypress.cambridge.org! I have some extra, so retweet this by the end of Oct. 19 if you’re interested in receiving a copy! Book info here: www.cambridge.org/core/books/g...
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