I took a trip to Best Buy yesterday to look at netbooks and ebook readers. The Sony ereader they had was not functioning – not a great advertisement for the device. But I was impressed by how much smaller netbooks have become than they were even the last time I looked at them. Browsing online, I came across some that are even smaller than the ones on display at the store. The Sony VAIO for instance. But the smallest there... Read more

Those of us who teach Biblical Studies at some point mention the site of the second Temple. Usually we struggle to find points of comparison – such as “approximately x number of football fields.” I don’t know why it never occurred to me to do what one student did for a presentation yesterday: She took a map of the Butler University campus and drew a dashed line indicating the size of the temple complex. Inspired! Read more

I’m grateful to Richard Beck for highlighting Paul’s own words on an important subject. Paul is famous for his emphasis on faith, and much contemporary Christianity follows his lead on this point. Yet when it comes down to it, Paul says that there is something more important than faith – more important even than the sort of faith Jesus talked about as capable of moving mountains: If I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I... Read more

I’m not entirely certain what the story behind this video is, but one thing is certain: it fits into that category I’m interested in of religion and science fiction: HT Open Parachute Read more

I put the “x2” in the title of this post to indicate that we not only had a double episode for the season premiere, but (at least) two different realities the stories of which are unfolding. The best bits of dialogue in the premiere came from the man in black, having taken the form of John Locke. It was good to hear “officially” that he was in fact pathetic and used by other forces – although as I rewatched part of season... Read more

A verse was mentioned in class today that seems to me to have a direct bearing on the date of Leviticus. Jeremiah 7:22 reads “when I brought your forefathers out of Egypt and spoke to them, I did not give them commands about burnt offerings and sacrifices.” This seems at first glance to provide fairly straightforward evidence that the Levitical code had not been made part of the Pentateuch and attributed to Moses at this time. This would agree with... Read more

Of course, the most exciting fast-approaching important event is the LOST season premiere tonight. But I thought that some readers who are prone to forget other important dates might appreciate a reminder that Valentine’s Day is also drawing near. The photo on the right is of a cupid that lost track of the date. You’ve been warned. Presumably there is no need to explain who shot him… Those looking for a Biblical studies/ancient world gift for the occasion may want to take a look at Steve... Read more

A press release has been posted on Butler University’s web site about my appointment to the Clarence L. Goodwin Chair of New Testament Language and Literature, and so I thought I’d share it. Read more

Biblical Studies Carnival XLX has been posted at Abnormal Interests. Read more

With the premiere of the final season of LOST scheduled for tomorrow night, there are lots of recaps and retrospectives being offered. DocArts has some videos recapping the show’s past narrated by Michael Emerson. And IO9 links to an interactive LOST timeline in the New York Times. The timeline not only helps untangle the twisted time travel plots that had the potential to confuse, but also includes video clips, interviews and photos. Read more