false 84458 0 0
He has a Doctor of Philosophy in Hebrew Bible and Near Eastern Studies from Harvard University (1991), a Master of Theological Studies from Harvard Divinity School (1985), and a Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology from the University of Arizona in 1982.

Avalos arrived at Iowa State University in the Fall of 1993 after completing a postdoctoral fellowship (1991-93) in the departments of Anthropology and Religious Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. In 1996 Avalos was named Professor of the Year at Iowa State University, where he was also named a Master Teacher for 2003-04. Other awards include The Early Achievement in Research and Creative Activity Award (College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, 1996), and the Outstanding Professor Award (College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, 1996).

Since his arrival at Iowa State, Avalos has become an internationally-recognized critic of Intelligent Design creationism, and he is often linked with Dr. Guillermo Gonzalez, the advocate of Intelligent Design who was denied tenure at Iowa State University in 2007. Avalos co-authored a statement against Intelligent Design in 2005, which was eventually signed by over 130 faculty members at Iowa State University. That faculty statement became a model for other statements at the University of Northern Iowa and at the University of Iowa. Gonzalez and Avalos are both featured in the movie Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed (2008).
]]> male Nogales, Sonora 1958/10/08 1561732 1591025362 9781591025368 0 <![CDATA[The End of Biblical Studies]]> http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1185244649m/1561732.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1185244649s/1561732.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1561732.The_End_of_Biblical_Studies 3.38 8 Dividing his study into two parts, Avalos first examines the principal subdisciplines of biblical studies (textual criticism, archaeology, historical criticism, literary criticism, biblical theology, and translations) in order to show how these fields are still influenced by religiously motivated agendas despite claims to independence from religious premises. In the second part, he focuses on the infrastructure that supports academic biblical studies to maintain the value of the profession and the Bible. This infrastructure includes academia (public and private universities and colleges), churches, the media-publishing complex, and professional organizations such as the Society of Biblical Literature. In a controversial conclusion, Avalos argues that our world is best served by leaving the Bible as a relic of an ancient civilization instead of the "living" document most religionist scholars believe it should be. He urges his colleagues to concentrate on educating the broader society to recognize the irrelevance and even violent effects of the Bible in modern life.

]]> 84458 3.46 13 2 2007 145926 1591022843 9781591022848 1 <![CDATA[Fighting Words: The Origins Of Religious Violence]]> http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172176906m/145926.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172176906s/145926.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/145926.Fighting_Words_The_Origins_Of_Religious_Violence 5.00 2 In this intriguing, original study of religious violence, Prof. Hector Avalos offers a new theory for the role of religion in violent conflicts. Starting with the premise that most violence is the result of real or perceived scarce resources, Avalos persuasively argues that religion creates new scarcities on the basis of unverifiable or illusory criteria. Through a careful analysis of the fundamental texts of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, Dr. Avalos explains how four "scarce" resources have figured repeatedly in creating religious violence: sacred space (churches, temples, holy cities); the creation of holy scriptures (exclusive revelations); group privilege (chosen people, the predestined select few); and salvation (only some are saved). Thus, Avalos shows, religious violence is often the most unnecessary violence of all since the scarce resources over which religious conflicts ensue are not actually scarce or need not be scarce.

Comparing violence in religious and nonreligious contexts, Avalos makes the compelling argument that if we condemn violence caused by scarce resources as morally objectionable, then we must consider even more objectionable violence provoked by alleged scarcities that cannot be proven to exist.

Moreover, he shows how many modern academic biblical scholars and scholars of religion maintain the value of sacred texts despite their violence.

This serious philosophical examination of the roots of religious violence adds much to our understanding of a perennial source of widespread human suffering.

]]> 84458 3.46 13 2 2005 145942 1565633377 9781565633377 1 <![CDATA[Health Care and the Rise of Christianity]]> http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172176929m/145942.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172176929s/145942.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/145942.Health_Care_and_the_Rise_of_Christianity 2.67 3 Health Care and the Rise of Christianity Avalos helpfully turns our attention to the care of bodies as fundamental to the growth and expansion of early Christianity. Response to basic issues—such as cost, access to care, and perceived efficacy—helped to fashion an early Christian system of health care that was distinct from contemporary approaches. Avalos raises eminently relevant questions about the role of ideas and practices of health care in the attractiveness of new religious movements, both historically and today."
—Nancy L. Eiesland, Candler School of Theology, Emory University

"Professor Avalos brings his considerable expertise in medical anthropology to the study of health care systems in the ancient cultures out of which Christianity arose. His analysis of the role played by health care in the advent of Christianity is carefully constructed through cross-cultural and interdisciplinary methodologies, and presented in a readable format which makes his results easily accessible to the specialist and layperson alike. This book is a must for anyone interested in the topic, or concerned about the ethical and long term implications of a modern health system care in crisis."
—Carole R. Fontaine, Andover Newton Theological School

]]> 84458 3.46 13 2 1999 2762976 0687330459 9780687330454 0 <![CDATA[Strangers in Our Own Land: Religion In Contemporary U.S. Latina/O Literature]]> http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-111x148.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-60x80.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2762976.Strangers_in_Our_Own_Land_Religion_In_Contemporary_U_S_Latina_O_Literature 0.0 0 84458 3.46 13 2 2006 1612543 0788500988 9780788500985 0 <![CDATA[Illness and Health Care in the Ancient Near East: The Role of the Temple in Greece, Mesopotamia, and Israel (Harvard Semitic Monographs)]]> http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-111x148.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-60x80.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1612543.Illness_and_Health_Care_in_the_Ancient_Near_East_The_Role_of_the_Temple_in_Greece_Mesopotamia_and_Israel 0.0 0 84458 3.46 13 2 1995 1612542 1591020433 9781591020431 0 <![CDATA[Se Puede Saber Si Dios Existe?]]> http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1185878062m/1612542.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1185878062s/1612542.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1612542.Se_Puede_Saber_Si_Dios_Existe_ 0.0 0 This primer on biblical criticism and key problems in religion and philosophy is intended as an introduction to these complex subjects for Spanish-speaking laypersons with little or no prior scientific training in the area. Professor Avalos critically reviews the classic arguments for the existence of God, alleged miracles and faith-healing, the belief that the Bible is the inerrant word of God, problems of good and evil the the Bible, creation stories, biblical prophecy, the resurrection of Jesus and many other topics.

]]> 84458 3.46 13 2 2003 480332 0391042408 9780391042407 0 <![CDATA[Introduction to the U.S. Latina and Latino Religious Experience]]> http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1175110639m/480332.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1175110639s/480332.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/480332.Introduction_to_the_U_S_Latina_and_Latino_Religious_Experience 0.0 0 84458 3.46 13 2 2005