It is a historical fact that Arius popularized his theology by setting it to music. What may or may not be true is what a colleague told me today, namely that Arius’ most famous ditty was set to the tune of “Head and Shoulders, Knees and Toes.” The lyrics were as follows: “There was once when he was not (he was not) He was made and not begot (not begot) So hang this sign on the weeping willow tree: There was... Read more

When it comes to certain kinds of diversity, there is no limit. The church of which I am a member, Crooked Creek Baptist Church, has been racially integrated since it was founded. When it comes to other kinds of diversity, it seems that it may be a challenge to have any kind of integration at all. Can people who prefer to worship with hymns, those who like something in the genre of rock, and those who prefer country ever worship together?... Read more

The NCSE has shared another slew of resources on evolution and creationism by Eugenie Scott: There’s a chapter from the second edition of her book Evolution vs. Creationism, entitled “Science: Truth without Certainty.” There are also a large number of videos, including “What’s The Fuss About Intelligent Design?“ and an appearance on “Skepchick” (here’s a link to Part IX). Read more

I saw this on a colleague’s door today, and thought it deserved to be shared with a wider audience. It has been around a long time, but will still be new to some: Then Jesus took his disciples up on the mountain and gathered them ’round him. And he taught them, saying, “Blessed are the poor in spirit.Blessed are the meek.Blessed are the merciful.Blessed are you who thirst for justice.Blessed are you who are persecuted.Blessed are you who suffer. When... Read more

Otagosh shared this video of a funny song which transforms a traditional carol into “The Twelve Doctrines of Christmas.” The irony (presumably intentional) is that it starts with the doctrine of perspecuity – the teaching that Scripture is clear – and yet goes on to list doctrines about which Christians who agree in affirming the authority and clarity of Scripture disagree on. This is too good to save until Christmas… Of course, in recent discussion of earliest Christianity, this is... Read more

Blogger seems to be working again, and so I’m able to mention a few more posts that have appeared around the biblioblogosphere which continue to explore the theme of earliest Christian diversity. Mike Koke has two posts on diversity and Christian origins and the theological implications of diversity. April DeConick’s summer writing projects also relate to this topic. Michael Bird made an appeal for a better diagram. Ari labelled some of the pictures I posted, as well as introducing a... Read more

Several commenters as well as other bloggers have pointed out that the diagram of early Christian diversity which I shared (created by Darrell Pursiful) does not do justice to the complexity of intersections and overlaps in early Christianity. And so I thought I would try to find an image or diagram that does better justice to the situation. And so I have two questions for blog readers. First, which of the images below do you think does best justice to... Read more

As the discussion of diversity in earliest Christianity continues to spread through the biblioblogosphere, Darrell Pursiful has posted a diagram of how he (inspired by Raymond Brown) sees the diversity in the New Testament: Go to his blog, Dr. Platypus, for recommendations for further reading and to download a pdf version of the diagram. Read more

I am grateful to the Jewish Publication Society for sending me a gratis review copy of Judy Klitsner’s book Subversive Sequels in the Bible: How Biblical Stories Mine and Undermine Each Other (Philadelphia: JPS, 2009). The book’s introduction gives a good sense of the author’s approach: “As if aware of its own problematics, the Bible contains a liverly interaction between its passages that allows for a widening of perspective and a sense of dynamic development throughout the canon. As we... Read more

Michael Bird (also mentioned by Ari) discusses the book The Heresy of Orthodoxy: How Contemporary Culture’s Fascination with Diversity Has Reshaped Our Understanding of Early Christianity by Andreas J. Kostenberger and Michael Kruger. D. A. Carson’s endorsement of the volume is charming and worth quoting: “In the beginning was Diversity. And the Diversity was with God, and the Diversity was God. Without Diversity was nothing made that has been made. And it came to pass that nasty old ‘orthodoxy’ people... Read more