Erin Culp, a senior religious studies/ English major and Elon College
Fellow, is the 2006 winner of the Albert Clark Award. The award is
given to the outstanding essay in theology or religious studies as
determined by a panel of judges from Theta Alpha Kappa, the National
Religious Studies Honor Association. Her essay, “Is Lilith ‘Fair’?
:Contemporary Reinterpretations of a Historical Myth,” will be
published in the Journal of Theta Alpha Kappa, likely in the Spring
2008 issue.
This paper was the culmination of Culp’s Fellows research with Lynn
Huber, assistant professor of religious studies. Culp will present a
version of the paper later this month at the Southeastern Regional
Commission for the Study of Religion in Nashville, Tenn. In this
paper, Culp explores the origins of the Lilith myth, from her depiction
as a she-demon in Ancient Near-Eastern literature to the Israelite
legend of Lilith as Adam’s first wife, as a way of engaging
contemporary feminist appropriations of Lilith as a symbol of the
empowerment of women.