SIMON PARKER -- R.I.P. Sad news indeed. This just in from Jack Sasson's Agade list:

I got this dreadful news from Kathe Darr
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With great sadness I am writing to inform you of the death of Dr. Simon B. Parker Saturday evening shortly after 7:00 p.m. Simon suffered a brain hemorrhage last weekend. He died peacefully with his family surrounding him.

Simon's home address is 47 Woodland Road, Newton, MA, 02466. His wife'sname is Sonia; their sons are Jonathan and Jeremy. Jonathan and his wife, Ann, have two children, Julian and Asher.

The family requests that instead of flowers, contributions be sent to a scholarship in Simon's honor. Money can be sent to Mr. Steve Morin, Office of Development and Alumni Relations, Boston University School of Theology, 745 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, MA, 02215.

Funeral arrangements will be posted as soon as are completed

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I will relay any future information on funeral arrangement. Let me notice here that
Simon Parker taught at School of Theology at Boston University where he was a Professor of Hebrew Bible and the Harrell F. Beck Scholar of Hebrew Scripture. I am reproducing from his website this brief notice about him and his. Please go there for a full listing of his publications.

"Professor Parker concentrates on the interpretation of biblical literature in its ancient literary, religious, and social context and on its significance for the church in the present day. His earlier research focused on Israel’s inheritance from earlier Canaanite culture (as represented especially in Ugaritic literature) and its transformation of that tradition. More recently his primary research interest has been the construction of the social and religious life of ancient Judeans out of Hebrew inscriptions in relation to other archaeological sources and biblical literature. He is the author of The Pre-Biblical Narrative Tradition (Scholars Press, 1988) and Stories in Scripture and Inscriptions (Oxford University Press, 1997) and has edited and contributed translations to Ugaritic Narrative Poetry (Scholars Press, 1997). For eight years he served as the general editor of the Society of BiblicalLiterature’s translation series, Writings from the Ancient World, editing seven volumes. He has published numerous articles in books and scholarly journals, as well as a few for a broader readership in church publications. Notable recent articles include: “ Official Attitudes toward Prophecy at Mari and in Israel,” Vetus Testamentum 43 (1993) 50-68; “The Beginning of the Reign of God: Psalm 82 as Myth and Liturgy,” Revue Biblique 102 (1995) 532-59; “Did the Authors of the Books of Kings Make Use of Royal Inscriptions?” Vetus Testamentum 50 (2000) 357-78; “Graves, Caves, and Refugees: An Essay in Microhistory,” Journal for the Study of the Old Testament 27 (2003) 259-88.".