The purpose of the 2026 TorahResource Academic Conference (TRAC) is to nurture and promote positive scholarly discourse concerning the covenant people of God. There has been significant debate on the issue of who is Israel and how Gentiles attach themselves to this people group. This conference will look at various aspects of identity within the covenant people of God.
Join us for an afternoon of academic papers and discussion on topics relating to various lines that have been drawn when it comes to the people of God and Israel. More speakers will be announced as they are confirmed.
The TRAC is a virtual event created to further the One Torah discussion among Torah observant and non-Torah observant Believers.
Speakers will be announced as soon as they are confirmed. Early Registration is now open:
Jason A. Staples (Ph.D., UNC-Chapel Hill) is an Assistant Teaching Professor in the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies at NC State University, where he teaches courses on biblical literature, early Judaism, Christian origins, ethics, globalism, conflict, and various theoretical perspectives in the study of religion and society. He is the author of Paul and the Resurrection of Israel: Jews, Former Gentiles, Israelites (Cambridge University Press, 2024), The Idea of Israel in Second Temple Judaism: A New Theory of People, Exile, and Israelite Identity (Cambridge University Press, 2021) and numerous scholarly articles. He was a 2008 recipient of the U.S. Department of Education’s Jacob K. Javits Fellowship and is a member of the UNC Royster Society of Fellows. His articles have been published in The Journal of Biblical Literature, New Testament Studies, Journal for the Study of the New Testament, Harvard Theological Review, Zeitschrift für die Neutestamentliche Wissenschaft, the Journal of Religion and Film, and more. He was a 2008 recipient of the U.S. Department of Education’s Jacob K. Javits Fellowship and is a member of the UNC Royster Society of Fellows.
Dr. Benjamin Szumskyj has been a teacher for over eighteen years, most of these within Christian schools, ranging from the private sector to those practicing Curriculum and Reengagement in Education (CARE) for students-at-risk and those disengaged from mainstream schooling. He has taught English, Classical Education, Society & Environment (Humanities and Social Sciences), History, Geography, Politics & Law, Mathematics, Christian Education, and Health Education, in addition to implementing recovery programs and securing placements at vocational colleges and work experience for students. Dr. Szumskyj has also been actively involved in writing curriculum and team management in a classroom setting. Dr. Szumskyj has a Ph. D. in Bible Exposition (Liberty University), two Master's Degrees (Divinity, Liberty University; and Biblical Studies, Moody Bible Institute), and three Bachelor’s Degrees (Education, Society & Environment, and Theology), two Graduate Diplomas (Christian Studies and Librarian Technician), and three Graduate Certificates (Biblical Counseling Institute Ohio; Institute of Jewish Studies; Christian Institute on Disability). Dr. Szumskyj was also a certified Biblical Counselor (Association of Certified Biblical Counselors).
Benjamin Frostad is a PhD candidate at McMaster University's Department of Religious Studies, working in the field of New Testament and Early Judaism. His research seeks to understand Paul within his Jewish context, comparing attitudes toward gentile engagement with Israel's God in early Jewish texts and Paul's letters. Ben also holds an MA in Biblical Languages and Exegesis from Briercrest Seminary.
Caleb Hegg is the Executive Director of TorahResource. Caleb received a two year certificate from TorahResource Institute and then went on to take classes in the M.Div program at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. Caleb has worked under his father at TorahResource in one capacity or another since 2006 and has travelled with Tim to lecture at many different conferences. He is the author of Acts: Igniting the Abrahamic Promise (2022), and Instruction for Community, Family, & Personal Living: A Commentary on Colossians & Philemon (2021). His focus of study is in Meals in the Greco-Roman era with an emphasis on the Lord’s Supper. Caleb has been the co-host of Messiah Matters since its creation in 2012.
