This is the first post of two from Dan Belnap. We greatly appreciate his contribution. One of the most fascinating scenes in the scriptures is that detailing the actors and exchanges found in the Garden of Eden. From their creation to their expulsion the actions and conversations experienced by Adam and Eve, these events continue to provide those of us living millennia later insights and knowledge concerning who we are and how God sees us. Of particular interest, is the... Read more
Dan is a colleague and is the sort of person who, when asked if they would like to publish an article on a blog, responds by saying, “Sure, I have five already written.” I love that. Here he is, in his own words: My name is Dan Belnap. I am currently a graduate student at the University of Chicago working on my degree in Northwest Semitics. I teach at BYU part time in Ancient Scripture. I am married, happily, with... Read more
Ben Spackman is well-known about the bloggernacle and he has kindly consented to write an article for us. He can also be found at Millenial Star. Thanks again, Ben. Names have meaning. As a result of their archaic or foreign origin, today’s English names are often simply a nice fashionable collection of sounds devoid of any inherent meaning to an English speaker. Many of our names thus have meaning that we’re unaware of. Thomas, for example, is anglicised Aramaic (via... Read more
Although the majority of our information about the historical Jesus comes from the Gospels, these sources cannot be used without care. They do not agree among themselves on matters important to the historian, large or small. How, then, shall we make our decisions? (more…) Read more
As a political philosopher, I often feel lost in the deeper and more detailed discussions about scripture, doctrine, and the ancient world. However, the pre-existence, particularly the concept of a council in heaven is of direct interest to me and my own political theory. Let me explain: (more…) Read more
The expression “for Christ’s sake” occurs four times in the Authorized Version of the New Testament. Three instances occur in the authentic Pauline letters (Rom 15:30-31, 1 Cor 4:10, and 2 Cor 12:10), while one is in Eph 4:32. Very similar expressions such as “for Jesus’ sake,” or “for his name’s sake,” or “for the gospel’s sake” may also be found. For the moment, let’s look at the expression in Romans: (more…) Read more
Or, Trying to Bring FPR Down Off Its High Horse 😉 So, my wife and I are having a discussion about stuff I’ve read on the blogs and I mention the predestination / foreordination issue. I had posited earlier that in my view of how things are, as long as you personally don’t know what your final destination is, you still have free agency to make choices. However, what happens when you are told? Consider Peter, told by Jesus “this... Read more
One way to approach the hard historical and theological questions about the reality and significance of Jesus is through a construct called the “historical Jesus.” Since there are few other sources, most of our information comes from the Gospels. How do the they stack up? (more…) Read more
Ol’ Sam was a little amazed to note that the lesson for this week included no biblical passages on the preexistence of Jesus. Sounds like a natural opportunity to complement the existing lesson, so here we go… (more…) Read more
From Yahoo News — Original title “Did Jesus Exist? Italian Court to Decide” Forget the U.S. debate over intelligent design versus evolution. An Italian court is tackling Jesus — and whether the Roman Catholic Church may be breaking the law by teaching that he existed 2,000 years ago. (more…) Read more
Faith-Promoting Rumor
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In