The Catholic Biblical Association of America has reportedly elected Dr. Amy-Jill Levine as their president for the period of 2026–2027 term, making her the first ever Jewish president to be in the organization’s history.
Dr. Amy-Jill Levine is a prominent New Testament scholar and a professor emerita at the Vanderbilt University. Report state, she has been involved with the Catholic Biblical Association for about a decades and has contributed massively to the biblical scholarship and Jewish-Christian dialogue.
Therefore, her election has attracted attention from within the country following her open statement to religious beliefs and approach to interpreting the Scripture.
Levine who openly identifies as a Jewish has publicly explained that she does not worship Jesus as Lord and Savior. She followed up by also described her approach to the Bible by saying, “I’m not a literalist.”
Her approach to the Gospels highlight historical and critical scholarship. She has further made known that the Gospel accounts should not necessarily be treated as transcripts providing an exact record of everything Jesus said or did. (This means that we should not follow every step of Jesus Christ).
The CBA has defended her election, pointing to her extensive academic credentials and long-standing contribution to biblical scholarship and Catholic-Jewish relations.
Levine has long maintained significant connections with the Catholic academic institutions. In the year-2019, she became the first among all the Jewish scholars to teach the New Testament at the Pontifical Biblical Institute in Rome. She has also met with Pope Francis on different occasions.
The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has formally supported the CBA’s decision, according to the association’s September 2026 newsletter, which reported that the bishops’ conference sent a congratulatory letter following Levine’s election.
Levine’s appointment has constantly prompted renewed discussion about the biblical interpretation and the relationship between Jewish and the Christian scholarship, and how academic approaches to Scripture interact with the traditional Christian beliefs.
The CBA, further stated that, its decision reflects Levine’s scholarly contributions and her long involvement and relationships with the organization.
