Via Hemant Mehta. I’ve shared in the past a nativity scene with the migrants removed. This new one explains how that one came about. Fred Clark blogged about parallels between ICE and those who caught slaves in an earlier period in American history. In a post at the start of the “Christmas shopping season” (that marks the real “war on Christmas” if there is such a thing at all) Vance Morgan wrote: What sorts of things should Christians really be upset by... Read more
This week’s podcast features Douglas Estes, a New Testament scholar like myself who also engages with Christianity, culture, and technology. His latest book is Braving the Future, and some of you may have seen the article in Christianity Today about it. This is going to be a two-parter – there’s too much interesting stuff to talk about at the intersection of Christian faith and future (as well as present) tech to fit in just one podcast episode! I found it striking to... Read more
Pete Enns writes: Belligerence in theological discussions is a reaction to a deep fear—typically unperceived as such—that one’s narrative is under threat. Before someone goes off in the wrong direction, I am not saying Christians can’t disagree or even get angry. I’m talking about a life of faith marked by a theme of belligerence—hostility and aggressiveness toward others who think differently. You know who you are. And if you don’t, the people around you will let you know (if you listen). People... Read more
Episode 8 of Jodie Whittaker‘s first season as the Doctor, “The Witchfinders,” revisits many familiar tropes from Doctor Who’s old and recent episodes, while introducing a new element into the mix: King James. Yes, none other than King James I, the one for whom the Bible translation is named. Indeed, the influence of his translation on the phenomenon of witch hunts is explicitly acknowledged. The Doctor says early on that they mustn’t interfere with the fundamental fabric of history. Yaz... Read more
These past days I have been attending Starbase Indy for the first time, and presenting twice on the program together with my colleague Ankur Gupta. Both talks were at the intersection of science fiction, ethics, law, and computer programming. In the first presentation we looked at the challenges of programming driverless cars through the lens of the Kobayashi Maru scenario from Star Trek. The second presentation looked at what makes us human, the challenges of making artificial persons such as... Read more
The American Academy of Religion and Society of Biblical Literature Annual Meeting was in Denver this year. The last time it was in Denver was in 2001, 17 years earlier. As I mentioned on Facebook while I was there, that was when I interviewed for the job I now have at Butler University. This year at AAR/SBL as I had conversations about book ideas, present papers, and did other things related to the diverse areas I work in – New Testament, Mandaeism,... Read more
Episode 7 of the first season with Jodie Whittaker as the Doctor is called “Kerblam!” We learn why very early in the episode, as the Doctor receives a teleport delivery via robot. Kerblam, we are told, is the biggest retailer in the galaxy. The Doctor had apparently ordered a fez some time ago and forgotten about it. If that were true and there were no other factors, we would think that the company was very late in delivery. But on the... Read more
I enjoyed talking with students in my historical Jesus class about miracles. I think there is a lot that distracts from having meaningful engagement on the subject – ideas about “natural laws” and what rational people can or cannot believe. More often than not, even the very effort to define what is meant by a miracle helps to bring about more substantive and deeper conversation. Does it require divine action? Does it have to be unusual? Does it have to involve... Read more
Matt Brake and I geek out about pop culture in this episode of the ReligionProf Podcast. Matt is the series editor for the new book series that Lexington and Fortress have launched, focused on the intersection of theology and popular culture. Last week on the podcast the focus was religious studies and Star Wars. This time it’s theology and popular culture. But the two (theology and religious studies, I mean) are not always as far apart as might first appear.... Read more
I agree with Ross MacKenzie – it was indeed really striking to hear Adam and Eve invoked in this explanation of the history of the European Union’s Common Economic Market and of the rationale for how it approaches competition. But even more noteworthy is the comparison Margrethe Vestager makes between a regulated free market and the democratic political process. We pay so much attention to the competition between candidates, the advertising through which they sell their product to us in the... Read more
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