I should say up front that this blog post is not about the Doctor Who episode “The Invisible Enemy.” It’s a good one to watch at the moment, as ever, and you should read my blog post about it. But this is about the “invisible enemy” that has been appearing in political rhetoric recently, as well as another invisible enemy that we may be neglecting. In a blog post Adam Kotsko wrote a while back, two ideas that have been... Read more
Loren Rosson writes about the classic rock song “Baba O’Reilly” by The Who: [The 1970s] was a confused decade, but a groovy one that saw a lot of transgressive creativity, especially in music. “Baba O’Riley” is much about that burgeoning artistry. But it’s also about something else, something more esoteric: Townshend’s infatuations with two particular figures. The first is Meher Baba, an Indian spiritual master who claimed that he was an Avatar, or an incarnation of God. Baba had his... Read more
A recent article about Ken Dark’s archaeological work in Nazareth, now published in his book Roman-Period and Byzantine Nazareth and its Hinterland, says: The new archaeological investigation – the largest ever carried out into Roman period Nazareth – has revealed that Jesus’s hometown is likely to have been considerably bigger than previously thought. It probably had a population of up to 1,000 (rather than just being a small-to-medium sized village of 100-500, as previously thought). And again: The newly emerging... Read more
There’s so much that one can say about Altered Carbon at the intersection of religion. I recognize that I haven’t blogged about earlier seasons, in which the notion is explored that ‘Meths’ like Rei and Bancroft (who can afford to change their sleeve – i.e. their body – while their personality is backed up, transfers, and lives forever) are “living gods.” As actor James Purefoy put it in an interview related to season 1, “I loved the duality of being so... Read more
Randal Rauser commented on Twitter about the following meme image, saying ‘There’s nothing “arrogant,” “vain,” or “self-absorbed” about believing that you’ve been granted a blessing and being thankful for it. If you want to see arrogance in action, just look at this tweet.’ Here’s the conversation that ensued between me and him in response: James F. McGrath @ReligionProf I disagree. I think the Book of Job and much else in scripture as well as experience highlights the theological problem... Read more
Another great question came up in a discussion on this blog, and I once again want to share my long comment as a blog post so that it reaches a wider audience. Here’s what I wrote: It is a great question how laypeople can tell what the academic consensus is. I think there are a number of considerations. There are those who just want to know what the consensus is if there is one. There are some who will inform... Read more
CALL FOR PAPERS The Cold War and the End Times: Apocalyptic and Millenarian Themes in Politics, Society and Culture, 1946-1989. Virtual Symposium: 4th June 2020 Deadline for Submissions: 12th May 2020 In the 1970s Ronald Reagan is reported to have told Sen. James Mills that “everything is in place for the battle of Armageddon and the Second Coming of Christ” and that “Ezekiel says that fire and brimstone will be rained upon the enemies of God’s people. That must mean that... Read more
I thought I’d share a part of the recording from my Sunday school class meeting via Zoom. Have a listen, and then if you’re interested in joining us for a future meeting, let me know. Earlier in our gathering (which is mostly conversational in character and isn’t typified on the whole by me talking at great length) someone read a bit from one of the letters attributed to Paul, and that made me think of something I hadn’t before: in... Read more
I was excited beyond belief to learn that a long-lost manuscript was located by scholars in the Bibliotheca Alexandrina Antiquities Museum. The manuscript in question is the only partial copy we have of any part of the ancient text known as the Gospel of Peter. Hugh Houghton and Mina Monier have reported on this discovery and much more in an article, “Greek Manuscripts in Alexandria,” that appeared this month in The Journal of Theological Studies. Here’s the relevant part of the... Read more
There is a good piece in The Paris Review about the role of pop music breaking out of a gender binary. Recognizing names mentioned in the article, I was struck by the fact that the focus is on black, queer, female blues artists who were also involved in and shaped by religious communities and produced religious as well as secular music. Sister Rosetta Tharpe has been described elsewhere as the “patron saint of rock music” and the title and its religious... Read more
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