Religion Prof: The Blog of James F. McGrath - Page 5 of 1192 - The Blog of Dr. James F. McGrath, Clarence L. Goodwin Chair in New Testament Language and Literature at Butler University, Indianapolis

New Series: Putting Out an APB on Paul the Apostle

February 14, 2019 By James F. McGrath

As filmmaker Robert Orlando and I began discussing the possibility of a blog series exploring his previous movie, Apostle Paul: A Polite Bribe, extra material connected with the film, and the sequel Apostle Paul: The Final Verdict that will be out later this year, a set of three letters grabbed my attention: APB. In this context, of course, it was a convenient abbreviation for the title of the movie, A Polite Bribe. But outside of that context, it more frequently abbreviates “All Points… Read more

ReligionProf Podcast with Pete Enns

February 13, 2019 By James F. McGrath

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In this week’s podcast, Pete Enns and I talk about his latest book, How the Bible Actually Works. Check out his blog for lots of short posts that will give you a taste of his perspective, his writing style, and his sense of humor, as well as his view of the Bible. I really appreciate the variety of ways that Pete Enns makes the point that going beyond the Bible is biblical, while being a biblicist, claiming that the Bible… Read more

#CFP Playing and Pedagogy: The Theory and Practice of Teaching with Video Games

February 12, 2019 By James F. McGrath

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This call for papers will be of interest to many people I know… Video games and films—both genres increasingly share tropes in their design, aesthetic, and reliance on narrative plots. Video games often use a short film to introduce players to the rules and characters, and action films can rely so much on computer generated imagery that it’s not clear where the computer ends and the “real world” begins. Moreover, films and video games at some times (re)produce status quo… Read more

Fan Fiction and Ancient Scribal Cultures #CFP

February 11, 2019 By James F. McGrath

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This call for papers came to my attention via an email list that I subscribe to, and since it explores the intersection between two areas of interest of mine – ancient literature and contemporary fandom – I wanted to be sure to spread the word to others who share similar interests to my own. Here’s the call for papers, with a link to the website for more information or to submit. At the EABS Annual Meeting in Warsaw, 11-14 August 2019,… Read more

Batman v. Superman (= Lex Luthor v. God)

February 10, 2019 By James F. McGrath

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It was quite a while back that I watched Batman vs. Superman. But I have had a draft blog post saved since then, because there was so much in it that I wanted to comment on. Then I heard that there might be plans for a conference about Batman and theology, and thought it was high time to share my thoughts and impressions. But even then it took me longer than it ought to have. I trust, however, that these… Read more

Perfect Love Casts Out Fear From Outcasts

February 9, 2019 By James F. McGrath

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It was interesting recently to read well-known words from 1 John with the story in John 9 fresh in my mind, as happened to me a while back when I reached the story in John 9 in my Sunday school class. In John 9 (as J. Louis Martyn famously highlighted) we are given a glimpse into the experience of expulsion from a community that the author and earliest readers of the Gospel underwent. The letters are thought to be from… Read more

The Doctrine of Personal Infallibility

February 8, 2019 By James F. McGrath

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This statement by a Facebook friend seemed worth turning into a meme. I did so some time ago, but unfortunately it took me longer than it should have to share the meme on my blog. Here is the quote: I often look at it as the unspoken doctrine of personal infallibility. Many Christians think something like this: “The Bible is True. I believe the Bible. Therefore, everything I believe is true.” This also applies to the morality of actions they… Read more

#CFP Trajectories in the Interpretation of Scripture: Models, Issues and Prospects

February 7, 2019 By James F. McGrath

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Call for Papers Trajectories in the Interpretation of Scripture: Models, Issues and Prospects Conference: 27th-28th June 2019, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand. Proposals: Send a 250 word abstract for a 30 minute paper to Jonathan Robinson, jonathan.r.robinson@gmail.com Deadline for proposals: 30th March 2019 Throughout the history of biblical interpretation sacred texts have been applied to new contexts to provide insight and guidance for contemporary situations. This always transforms the text. Sometimes, this generates a new text, as in the… Read more

ReligionProf Podcast with Martin Doblmeier: Backs Against The Wall – The Howard Thurman Story

February 6, 2019 By James F. McGrath

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This week’s guest on the ReligionProf Podcast is Martin Doblmeier, and in this episode we talk primarily about his latest documentary, Backs Against the Wall: The Howard Thurman Story. Thurman is hopefully familiar to readers of this blog for his role in the civil rights movement and/or as author of books such as Jesus and the Disinherited. The new movie will be on the channel World this coming Friday, February 8th. It will also be coming to PBS stations around the… Read more

New Directions in the Study of Religion, Monsters, and the Monstrous Seminar #CFP #AARSBL2019

February 5, 2019 By James F. McGrath

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The Monsters and Religion group at the American Academy of Religion has announced an ambitious five year period of analysis and discussion that will begin with the meeting in November 2019. I really like the topic for year four, and am hoping someone presents on how we construe religious others as monsters as part of a process of dehumanization that then facilitates public rhetoric, limits on religious freedoms, and even violence. Here’s the announcement from the AAR website: New Directions… Read more