I’ve previously discussed some of the theological issues connected with the recognition that the Bible did not come down from heaven as a pre-packaged collection. But they say a picture is worth a thousand words, and so here are some images to illustrate the point. Please feel free to use, share and circulate them if you are so inclined. Read more

The claim has been circulating that Jesus referred to Barack Obama and singled him out as the antichrist, when he said he saw “Satan fall as lightning (baraq) from heaven” (Luke 10:18). Obviously this misunderstands Jesus’ meaning. His point was not that Satan descends from heaven as Barack Obama (which would involve using different words). The point was simply that he could think of no more meteoric fall with which to compare Satan’s than Barack Obama’s own lightning-fast (pun intended)... Read more

Yesterday in Sunday school my pastor told a story that I really appreciated. He said there was a pastor who went to the leadership board of his church to hand in his resignation. He told them he had all sorts of doubts, and felt that he had lost his faith, and thus was convinced he should tender his resignation. The board refused to accept his resignation. “Preach your doubts,” they told him. “We can come back and revisit this in... Read more

Or should that be The Golden Rule on The Only True God? Either way, Mike Koke has posted a review of The Only True God on his blog The Golden Rule, which includes a chapter-by-chapter summary. Read more

Presumably anyone who has watched Tom & Jerry will be familiar with the Cat Concerto. Well, now thanks to a surprisingly talented real-life feline, and an even more talented and creative Lithuanian composer, we give you: Catcerto! HT Ephemeral Thoughts Read more

In a clip from an Australian TV show (which I warn you has some bad language, but it was necessary to make the point), some Australians intent on understanding American religious life take to the streets of Texas to seek help in applying some neglected commandments. HT Friendly Atheist Of course, Americans need help understanding Australians too… Read more

Jim West hosts the most recent Biblical Studies Carnival. It is full of humor, but perhaps the funniest moment is when, in what is precisely a post about other things people posted earlier, he (presumably ironically) complains about my rehashing old posts during a period earlier in the month when I was unable to post new entries very often. Boy, Jim West cracks me up… Read more

Technically this monthly ranking is called the Biblioblog Top 50, but if you pay a visit, you’ll see why I decided to tweak it. It is great to see that blogging scholars are such a vibrant force, not merely in the blogosphere but also in the academy. The number of bloggers who will also be presenters at the upcoming Society of Biblical Literature conference (recently described by one scholar as ‘the “San Diego Comic-Con” of the world of Biblical Scholarship’)... Read more

Actually, the mysterious “three words” from the Gospel of Thomas have been the subject of much discussion in recent days on the Gospel of Thomas list-serv. But if you came here looking for information on those words, I hope you will not be disappointed by what must seem to you like a bit of bait-and-switch blogging. Instead, I offer three unspeakable blogs, the addresses of which may in fact (according to one hypothesis formulated within the last few seconds) have... Read more