In the latest episode of Duke University Chapel’s Sounds of Faith podcast, Dr. Ellen Davis, Amos Ragan Kearns Distinguished Professor of Bible and Practical Theology at the Divinity School and  Dr. Allison Hamm discuss their significant scholarly and artistic achievement of translating and then pointing the entire biblical Psalter.

During an all-day prayer service on January 17, 2025, in Duke Divinity School’s Goodson Chapel, ministers and musicians from Duke Chapel joined students, faculty, and staff in chanting all 150 of the Bible’s Psalms. The service was notable not only for its length and monastic quality but also for the Psalm texts being used. All of them were original translations by Dr. Davis. She was joined in the project by Chapel Music Director Zebulon Highben and former student Dr. Hamm, to prepare the translations for musical settings by adding “pointing” marks to the texts.
 

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Ellen Davis in front of stained glass window

Psalms and the Arts

Encountering God in Grief and Gratitude

This five-week self-paced online course invites you to learn from experts in biblical interpretation and the arts to deepen your personal and communal engagement with the Psalms and the arts. In this course with instructor Dr. Ellen Davis, Amos Ragan Kearns Distinguished Professor of Bible and Practical Theology, you will meditate on psalms and artworks, engage with the Psalms theologically, explore artful interpretations of the Psalms, and examine the role of the Psalms in the life of the church.

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