I mentioned a few posts about Bart Ehrman’s recent book yesterday, and there are already a couple more. Larry Hurtado offered some amendments to his post, in light of feedback from Bart Ehrman himself. And Ken Schenck blogged about chapter 3 and whether Jesus thought he was God. In it he writes: I think we can safely assume that, in his public persona, Jesus did not go around telling everyone he was the Messiah, let alone God. But one must... Read more
The latest Biblical Studies Carnival has been posted on Jeff Carter’s blog. It includes an impressive range of posts ranging from Genesis to the Talmud, and includes a number of posts from the recent discussions of Christology in general, and Bart Ehrman’s recent book in particular. I’ve been meaning to mention some of the more recent posts on that topic here, including Larry Hurtado’s blog review, Ken Schenck’s post on chapter 2 of Ehrman, and Chris Tilling’s response to Andrew... Read more
Jim Linville shared the above cartoon on Facebook. There have been lots of variations on it. All of them either play into, or poke fun at, the very common idea that God is like human beings, essentially supporting one team and holding a grudge against others. That way of depicting God ought to be regarded as blasphemous by anyone who has given it even a moment’s thought – not to mention those who’ve grasped the emphasis in some biblical texts... Read more
The above cartoon by David Hayward depicts people who long to come together, but the Bible shackles them and holds them back. I don’t think this is what happens in most cases. We recently saw a Southern Baptist pastor, Danny Cortez, change his mind about gays and lesbians (see also Matthew Vines’ book on the topic). While some Christians have spent much of their time slandering others, some within the same traditions have collaborated with those their fellow-religionists have slandered.... Read more
Hemant Mehta shared the above image. I obviously agree with the sentiment. No one should think that this stance is an atheist one. Certainly, many atheists are committed to being rational. But if you have talked to an atheist who is an anti-vaxxer or a Jesus-mythicist, then you realize the two are not synonymous. Likewise there is a long and rich history of liberal religion that was at the forefront of pioneering the changing of beliefs when facts and evidence... Read more
In remarkable news, Pope Francis and the Orthodox Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople are planning an ecumenical synod in Nicaea for 2025! The Patriarch said: “[Pope Francis and I have] agreed to leave as a legacy to ourselves and our successors a gathering in Nicaea in 2025, to celebrate together, after 17 centuries, the first truly ecumenical synod, where the Creed was first promulgated.” The Council of Nicaea, held in 325, brought together over 300 bishops and approved the formula of... Read more
A list has been drawn up of the 100 most frequently edited Wikipedia articles (HT Jezebel). The article about Jesus is #5 on the list: There are lots of observations that need to be made about this. One is that Jesus continues to be edited. That process has been going on as long as there has been literature about Jesus, and so this is nothing new. Indeed, a second observation that follows quickly along after the first is that Jesus... Read more
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