Late last month, when the Forum for Theological Exploration announced their selection of 16 scholars to receive support for their PhD or ThD program in religion, theological studies, or biblical studies, Wycliffe PhD student Michelle Yu was named among the chosen. As a recipient of the Fellowship for Latino/a, Asian, and First Nations Doctoral Students, Michelle will be awarded a living stipend up to $25,000 to help further her studies beyond the coursework stage.
Michelle is in the PhD conjoint program in Old Testament. Her research focuses on reading the book of Esther through the lens of trauma. Specifically, she is interested in drawing insights from the understanding of complex trauma and strategies of counter trauma to help to shed light on the characterizations of Esther, Mordecai, and the Jews in the biblical book. Previously, she was awarded the Toronto School of Theology's Graduate Centre for Theological Studies Award, which funded her travel to Vancouver to present her paper, "The Need for a New Paradigm: Re-reading Isaiah 40-48 as Trauma Recovery," at the Canadian Society of Biblical Studies.
