Several posts around the blogosphere have converged on a single point, and I have wanted for some time to share some links and chime in myself. I think it first started for me with the convergence of two posts on the same day in my feed reader. The first was on the blog Brick by Brick, and bore the title “Credo: ‘He Was Raised on the Third Day.’” There, David Williams challenged the “Chicken Little” language of many Christians, who... Read more
Here’s a great song that was never a single. It is from the first Mike & the Mechanics album, and performed by them, but the song was actually composed by the members of Genesis: You can find the lyrics online, and there are other versions of the song, including a live recording, that you can find around the internet. Want more, here’s a live performance of another great song, “Beggar on a Beach of Gold”: The late Paul Young is... Read more
There seems to be quite a bit of buzz about mythicism in the blogosphere. Today’s round-up starts with another post by Joseph Hoffmann on the topic, which begins with the following statement: The train crash that is modern mythicism is built on the train crash that was earlier mythicism. The chance of the crash happening twice in just the same way? About 50%. If that doesn’t lead you to click through and read more, the chances are about 50% that... Read more
I thought I knew what it meant when someone tied balloons to their mailbox in the United States. A birthday party, or some other celebration, right? Or just possibly a yard sale. And so when I saw balloons on my neighbor’s mailbox, that’s what I presumed it would be. But then I got closer and read the sign attached to the balloons, and here’s what it says: Read more
Thanks to Nick Norelli for highlighting that a number of UK doctoral dissertations – including my own – are available for download from the British Library database EThOS, which stands for Electronic Theses Online Service. There are also a couple of theses related to the Mandaeans, one of which served as the basis for the author’s book, the other of which has yet to be digitized or published, but will be of great interest once it is. Read more
First place in this post has to go to the recent post on this topic on the blog Unreasonable Faith. Here’s a lengthy quote that is insightful and will surely lead those interested in this topic to click through and read more: At one point in the interview, Price suggests that one letter mentioning Jesus would be enough to destroy the Christ myth theory. I like Price, but this seems to betray a lack of self-awareness. He is on record... Read more
I am known as a technophile. Colleagues and friends contact me with technical problems. I’m a relatively early adopter, too. I was early into the blogosphere, and have tried to do pioneering things with integrating the internet into pedagogy and with the potential for interactive digital textbooks. But having admitted something to someone recently, it seemed that the time had perhaps come to simply let my dark secret out into the public eye. I am a Biblical studies academic who... Read more
Last night I watched the movie The Incredible Hulk. I really enjoyed the cameos – Bill Bixby, Lou Ferrigno, Stan Lee, and a snippet of music from the classic TV series. But the movie also explores some religious terrain in interesting ways. One is in the reference to the strength that the gamma poisoning gives Bruce Banner and the serum gives Emil Blonsky as “like a god.” The very reference to what Blonsky turns into – “Abomination” – itself has... Read more
A Facebook friend shared this, and it seemed worth passing along. Reflecting on possible alien religious beliefs, and how they might or might not resemble those of human beings, is a great thought experiment. So what do you think? Is the scenario in the cartoon possible, in your view? Would you be happy, or disappointed, or react like the human in the cartoon? Read more
The news is breaking that Ray Bradbury passed away this morning. It is poignant that Bradbury had a short article published in The New Yorker just days before his death today, June 6th, 2012, at the age of 91, which bore the title “Take Me Home.” The article is about the inspiration for one of my favorite Bradbury stories, “The Fire Balloons,” which appeared in some editions of The Illustrated Man and of The Martian Chronicles. It explores the intersection of religion... Read more
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In