There is a video clip of a Mandaean baptism in Iran on YouTube: This is only one of several video clips related to the Mandaeans and their current plight. Read more

Evangelical fundamentalists are the ones who usually pose the question in these terms, “Is Jesus the only way?” and then they will say “Let’s see what the Bible says” and then read John 14:6, “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father but through me.” There are two problems with this approach. First, the assumption is that one simply has to find the right verse and read it, and one will have “the... Read more

Does anyone know of a recording of the Syriac New Testament in audiobook format, either on CD or as mp3s? If so, let me know! Read more

I thought I’d share a couple or things from the service I attended yesterday. First, there was a clip of poet Amena Brown reciting her poem “To Worship You“. I am sure that many regular visitors to this blog may not think of God in the same way she does, but since we talk a lot about metaphor here, I have to say, this woman is using powerful metaphors in a powerful way. Let me know what you think! The... Read more

A review I wrote of Birger Pearson’s Ancient Gnosticism: Traditions and Literature (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2007) has just appeared in the Review of Biblical Literature. Read more

Review of Kenneth E. Bailey, Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes: Cultural Studies in the Gospels (Downers Grove: IVP Academic, 2008). ISBN 978-0-8308-2568-4. 443 pp. In his latest book, Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes, Kenneth Bailey provides further discussion of various parts of the New Testament Gospels, from the perspective that has been his own unique contribution over the past three decades or so. To my knowledge, there is no comparable New Testament scholar who is a native speaker of English... Read more

I was “blessed” to receive the following scam e-mail not once but twice. To all those who have received it and think it may be legitimate, it is not. It is an attempt to get your personal information. Don’t fall for it! The message text follows. Note the hilarious (and presumably unintentional) part about “undermining your religion”! – – – – Messaggio Chiesa Cattolica Italiana (http://www.chiesacattolica.it/), that is the Catholic Church Italy, would like to inform you that you have... Read more

I’ve posted a couple of times now on the speculations that are making the rounds by e-mail and on the web about Barack Obama being the antichrist. Clearly many of the Christians making such allegations have not thought things through. The Book of Revelation depicts the Beast as in cahoots with and activated by Satan and the powers of darkness. So if Barack Obama is in fact a Christian, as he claims and as he seems to be, then by... Read more

The sure sign that summer is here can be seen out many windows right now: fireflies, or “lightning bugs” as we used to call them. Their luminescence is one of the mysteries of biology, not to mention evolution more specifically. And thus the firefly nicely illustrates the problems created by the “God of the gaps” approach – i.e. appealing to God as the explanation for all the things we cannot currently explain. Not only do gaps in our knowledge and... Read more

(Third question for John Hobbins) If you knew back in 2005 what you know now, would you have begun blogging? What are the most positive and negative aspects of your own experience of blogging as a Christian, a pastor and an academic? ANSWER: Actually, I’ve only been blogging regularly for 12 or 13 months now. Before that, no one read my blog, and I rarely posted. The good ‘ol days. What I like about blogging is that it is a... Read more