Milestone: Michael Homan (1966–2022)

Michael Homan, Professor and head of the Department of Theology at Xavier University of Louisiana, passed away on September 17, 2022. He was 56 years old.

With interests ranging from the Bible and archaeology to punk rock, Homan was beloved by many for his colorful personality. Originally from Omaha, Nebraska, he earned his Ph.D. in ancient Near Eastern history from the University of California, San Diego, in 2000. Homan joined the theology faculty at Xavier that same year and taught courses on the Hebrew Bible and the ancient Near East, as well a popular course on New Orleans cemeteries. When he wasn’t teaching, Homan was deeply involved in his New Orleans community, playing guitar in the punk band Half Pagan and participating in the Seeds of Decline sub-krewe of the Krewe du Vieux during Mardi Gras.

Homan participated in numerous archaeological projects, including excavations and surveys at Wadi Faynan in southern Jordan, the Tel Zeitah excavation in southern Israel, and the Marj Rabba Project in the lower Galilee.

Throughout his career, Homan also worked to make biblical scholarship accessible to the interested public. He co-authored, with Jeffrey Geoghegan, The Bible for Dummies (2002) and wrote a number of popular articles and reviews for BAR and its longtime sister publication Bible Review.^a