Current Shohet Scholars
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The International Catacomb Society Announces 2025 Shohet Scholars Grant Recipients
BOSTON, MA – May 15 th 2025 – The International Catacomb Society (ICS) is pleased to announce
the 2025 recipients of the Shohet Scholars Grant for Research on the Ancient Mediterranean. This
competitive grant supports original research that advances the understanding of Jewish, Christian,
and other religious communities in the ancient Mediterranean world.
This year, ICS recognizes four outstanding scholars whose projects demonstrate excellence in
historical inquiry, archaeological research, and interdisciplinary approaches to the ancient world:
- Mary Jane Cuyler, Independent Researcher
“The Cult of the Bona Dea at Ostia and Portus"
The grant will support an investigation of evidence for the largely overlooked cult of the Roman goddess known as Bona Dea, including archeological remains, inscriptions, and archival records from past excavations in Ostia and Portus.
- Caroline Johnson Hodge, Professor, College of the Holy Cross
“With Offerings for the Dead’: Space, Ritual, and Power in Early Christianity”
The grant will support work cataloging burial sites in Rome related to the Christian cult of the dead.
- Chance Bonar, Postdoctoral Fellow, Tufts University
“Religiosity and Slave Revolts in the Ancient Mediterranean”
The grant will support research on how religious practices and expressions both fueled and
suppressed ancient slave revolts.
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- Mark Ellison, Associate Professor, Brigham Young University
“The Vision and Purification of Isaiah in Christian Liturgical Art”
- Mark Ellison, Associate Professor, Brigham Young University
The grant will support on-the-ground documentation of early Christian liturgical art that depicts the Vision of Isaiah.
The ICS warmly congratulates the 2025 Shohet Scholars and looks forward to the contributions their work will make to the field.
About the International Catacomb Society
Founded in 1980, the International Catacomb Society is a non-profit organization dedicated to the documentation, study, and preservation of ancient Jewish, Christian, and other religious sites in Rome and across the Mediterranean basin.