Q. On p. 97ff. you make much of the fact that women were able to be ‘bread-winners’ on their own in early Judaism, and that stereotypes about Jesus liberating women from the oppressive patriarchy of early Judaism go too far. Leaving stereotypes out for the moment, it does seem to be true that Jesus attracted women of all sorts to be his followers and helpers and they seem to have been more loyal to him even unto being present at... Read more

Q. As you note, in the Markan anointing story, the word myridzo rather than some form of the word christos is used in reference to the woman anointing Jesus, even though the anointing is on the head, like a kingly anointing. Why do you think Mark doesn’t make more out of Jesus being the anointed one of God in this story, especially since it is in Passion Week, which could also be called unveiling the Messianic secret week? A. Mark... Read more

Q. One of the first lessons we learn as scholars is not to conflate or amalgamate different persons and different stories into one. Thus Mary Magdalene is not Mary of Bethany is not the sinner woman of Luke 7. In your otherwise helpful discussion of the anointing of Jesus by women and the following of Jesus by women, in the video the impression is given that for some reason you seem to conflate the story in Luke 7, set during... Read more

Q. One of the most poignant and telling sections of your study is your reflections on the widow who gave two lepta into the temple treasury. Jesus offers her as an example of whole-hearted giving of self to God (‘she gave her whole life’). I liked the way you saw this as foreshadowing what Jesus was about to do. Somehow in Christian tradition, stories like this have been used to romanticize poverty, as if it was a means of becoming... Read more

Q. I like how you contrast the Jerusalem Temple with a modern church. It was not a quiet place, especially not when sacrifices were being offered. And the Temple was even a place where Jesus felt it appropriate to express anger. I agree with you that there is a place for righteous anger, but that one can go too far in which case the verse ‘being angry but sin not’ applies. Righteous anger is not the same as irrational rage... Read more

Q. The Temple scene is the one place where Jesus uses physical force as an expression of his righteous anger. But anger about what— graft and corruption, usurping the Gentile’s place of prayer, turning the Temple into a marketplace? Was it actually a cleansing, or was it a prophetic sign act? It seems to me that it must have been the latter, since it was done on a small scale it would appear. But a prophetic sign of what, a... Read more

Q. You chose to focus mainly on the Matthean account of the beginning of Passion Week. Why that account mainly? You highlight as well the tensions during Festival times for the rulers, including both the Jewish authorities and the Roman governor, due to the huge crowds present. Why do you think Jesus chose Passover, rather than Sukkot as the time to make his grand entry into the city? Is it because this was the biggest of the festivals, or perhaps... Read more

Q. When I try to help students and churchgoers understand the value and importance of the differences in the four Passion narratives, I tell them these are four interpretive portraits of what happened, not snapshots. They are more like Monet’s four paintings of Rouen cathedral in differing light, than they are like four mugshots of the same guy. In other words, the differences are largely intentional, as each Evangelist pursues his portrait with slightly different angles and emphases etc. If... Read more

Q. I find your analogy, in the Introduction between Lent and the 10 days of awe between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur interesting. I suspect most Christians would say that we are certainly called to ask forgiveness for ways we have wronged others, and saying one is sorry is not enough. Reconciliation is indeed a central calling in both Judaism and Christianity. But Christians would also say that they cannot atone for past sins, or misdeeds, or mistakes. They would... Read more

Q. One of the things I appreciate most about this study is it makes the Gospel stories an opportunity to question our own lives, commitments, actions, and ask what is worth living for, or dying for. What prompted you to take this more risky personal approach, and what questions did these stories lead you to ask of yourself, of your own life? When I have reflected during Lent on these sorts of things…. Sometimes poetry is the result. Here’s one... Read more