Monica Mitri
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monicamitri.bsky.social
Monica Mitri
@monicamitri.bsky.social
Egyptian, Coptic, PhD candidate in religion at USC. Dabbled in theology, business & literature. Love books and tea. https://usc.academia.edu/MonicaMitri
Pinned
New to these blue skies. I'm a PhD candidate at USC working on medieval Copto-Arabic literature, the medieval Islamicate world & other fun stuff like moving mountains and stabbing icons. Books and tea are my favorite things. Nice to "meet" you!
Why write when I can make pour-over coffee?
January 16, 2026 at 7:01 PM
Ending 2025 to the sounds of a heavy downpour, the warmth of good friendships & the memories of wonderful books I got to read this year.
May 2026 treat us kindly.
January 1, 2026 at 8:50 AM
Reposted by Monica Mitri
Brent Nongbri on "Augustine in the Cairo Genizah":
Augustine in the Cairo Genizah
Thinking about the letters of Augustine reminds me of one of the more interesting manuscripts I encountered this year. Among the many remarkable manuscripts in the Cairo Genizah is Cambridge Univer…
brentnongbri.com
December 22, 2025 at 7:52 PM
Current read (from #aarsbl25 haul). Been a long time since I enjoyed a non-fiction book so much.
December 13, 2025 at 7:46 PM
Reposted by Monica Mitri
“Between you and God, stands the poor person.
His hand is stretched out in the middle, through it you give and receive.
Through it you can buy, the kingdom that is greater than all….
To the poor he has entrusted his wealth, the treasury of divinity.”

Isaac of Antioch, On Almsgiving
December 18, 2024 at 6:32 PM
Job alert: the project “Biblia Arabica: Researching and preserving the Arabic translations of the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament” jointly led by Prof. Dr. Ronny Vollandt and Prof. Dr. Nathan P. Gibson is announcing 2 new PhD positions.
(2) job-portal.lmu.de/jobposting/5...
Research Fellow (PhD) (m/f/x)
job-portal.lmu.de
December 12, 2025 at 6:51 PM
Job alert: the project “Biblia Arabica: Researching and preserving the Arabic translations of the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament” jointly led by Prof. Dr. Ronny Vollandt and Prof. Dr. Nathan P. Gibson is announcing 2 new PhD positions.
(1) dynamiken-des-religioesen.uni-frankfurt.de/ausschreibun...
Ausschreibung: 15 Promotionsstellen am LOEWE-Zentrum „DynaRel“
dynamiken-des-religioesen.uni-frankfurt.de
December 12, 2025 at 6:51 PM
Belated but here we are. #AARSBL25 was a blast. Attended wonderful panels, met old friends and made new.
As my first time in Boston, it also marks my discovery of Brattle Bookshop, which means I bought more books from the city than from the conference. Another first!
November 27, 2025 at 10:15 PM
Reposted by Monica Mitri
Join Us for a Groundbreaking Conference on Coptic Christianity!

May 19-21, 2025
Fordham University, Lincoln Center Campus

The Orthodox Christian Studies Center is proud to present its inaugural Coptic Christianity Conference:
April 30, 2025 at 6:19 PM
Just finished the first rough draft of dissertation chapter one. Feeling rather pumped (and very sleepy!)
February 26, 2025 at 5:48 AM
This year I'm on the #aar steering committees of the Middle Eastern Christianity Unit & Religion and Memory Unit. Check out our CfP(s) & consider submitting a proposal!

MECU June: papers.aarweb.org/group/14948
MECU Nov.: papers.aarweb.org/group/14947
R&M Nov.: papers.aarweb.org/group/14993
February 23, 2025 at 6:53 PM
It's a slow but satisfying day of dissertating at home. Almost 900 words in today.
February 17, 2025 at 10:13 PM
Is it just me who can't find the #aar #sbl call for papers, or are they really hidden in some obscure nook of the website?
January 30, 2025 at 7:30 PM
Reposted by Monica Mitri
“But when it comes to making judgments about the characteristics of past societies, especially those located outside North America and Western Europe, their ability to do so is much more limited.”
AI struggles to understand human history and fails miserably when tested
The study, which is the first of its kind, evaluates the historical knowledge of leading AI models such as ChatGPT-4, Llama, and Gemini.
www.earth.com
January 24, 2025 at 7:24 AM
Reposted by Monica Mitri
The intellectual always has a choice either to side with the weaker, the less well represented, the forgotten or ignored, or to side with the more powerful.

—Edward Said
January 21, 2025 at 6:41 PM
Writing at USC's philosophy library is always a lovely experience.
January 18, 2025 at 3:08 AM
Reposted by Monica Mitri
LA fires are a good reminder that the only difference between me and any refugee is luck.
January 8, 2025 at 3:23 PM
Thread for if you have to evacuate 👇🏼
SoCal friends, I’m so sorry you’re dealing with this. A few things I wish I’d known as we evacuated ahead of a wildfire (that took our home in 2021) 🧵
January 9, 2025 at 7:17 AM
Reposted by Monica Mitri
The LA Times has a good list of places offering discounted or free food and coffee to displaced families and/or first responders. Check it out and double check to be sure what deals are where. (added this to my running resources list) www.latimes.com/food/list/lo...
L.A. restaurants offering shelter, discounts and food to fire evacuees and first responders
These L.A. restaurants and coffee shops are staying open to shelter evacuees, offering discounts and, in some cases, free food to evacuees and first responders to the numerous ongoing fires in Souther...
www.latimes.com
January 8, 2025 at 9:13 PM
Choose 20 books that have stayed with you or influenced you. one book per day for 20 days, in no particular order. no explanations, no reviews, just covers. 💙📚 day 15
January 8, 2025 at 9:40 PM
Never done a reading challenge before; I buy & read bks all the time for work & fun. But this year will be read-from-my-bookshelf & read-for-my-dissertation year.
It's Jan 7 & I'm already restless - stopped reading 2 books midway & picked up a 3rd. BUT all from my bookshelf. Maybe I'll make it?
January 7, 2025 at 10:02 PM
Choose 20 books that have stayed with you or influenced you. one book per day for 20 days, in no particular order. no explanations, no reviews, just covers. 💙📚 day 14
January 7, 2025 at 6:05 PM
Choose 20 books that have stayed with you or influenced you. one book per day for 20 days, in no particular order. no explanations, no reviews, just covers. 💙📚 day 13
January 6, 2025 at 6:45 PM