Craig Evans wrote a piece for The Bible and Interpretation about the Secret Gospel of Mark, explaining why he is very suspicious and considers it likely that it was in fact fabricated by Morton Smith. Mike Kok, Rod of Alexandria and Tom Verenna also shared views on the subject. There are questions that it is crucial to keep distinct when discussing the topic of the Secret Gospel of Mark. One is whether Morton Smith forged it. Another is whether someone... Read more
Many longtime readers will know that my blog was one that was subjected to spam attacks from Dennis Markuze, otherwise known as “DM.” His spam attacks on atheist blogs were far worse. The good news is that Montreal police are finally taking the matter seriously. His spam comments regularly included death threats. Today, via Twitter, they announced that a suspect has been arrested. There is little doubt that it is Markuze himself that was arrested. The blog Skeptical Software Tools... Read more
Doug Chaplin informed us that his blog Clayboy is closing down and he is moving elsewhere. He started things up on his new blog, journeys in a stranger land, by offering this punny reworking of a classic cautionary tale: The modern day Mycenaean cyber-warriors devised a cunning plan to get into Troy. They sent the Trojans an email with a website address linked from the words “You’ll love this great plan to get rid of the Greeks”. When King Priam... Read more
It has been almost a month since the last installment of my review of Earl Doherty’s book, Jesus: Neither God Nor Man, although I have blogged about mythicism and even interacted with Doherty himself in the intervening period. Chapter 10 begins part four of the book, “A World of Myths and Savior Gods,” and the chapter itself bears the title “Who Crucified Jesus?” Doherty summarizes the interpretation of New Testament letters he has offered thus far (albeit actual detailed discussion... Read more
When I traveled to Latvia with students, one delight was discovering that country’s rich musical heritage. Here is a piece I listened to today by one of my favorite Latvian composers, Jānis Ivanovs. Just ignore the image of a scary, three-headed panda breathing rainbows and enjoy the music! Read more
Mike Bird’s caricature/critique of Liberal Christianity and my response to it are getting some discussion around the blogosphere (as well as on Reddit). See in particular Mason’s discussion of both posts and his question about whether liberalism and progressivism are the same. Those who find my exchange with Mike interesting will probably also be interested in Scott McLemee’s piece on Evangelical and Ecumenical Christians in Inside Higher Ed. And also related are two bits of news in the aftermath of... Read more
Thanks to Stephen Cook for pointing out this video, which is just a sample of a 3D IMAX movie that is scheduled for release in 2013. Even, or perhaps especially, having just been to many of these places very recently, I can say that this video provides a unique perspective from above. The view is spectacular. If you have any interest in the Holy Land for whatever reason, or just an appreciation for geography and architecture, you will surely enjoy... Read more
It is only recently that I have discovered how useful and interesting some of the popular sites for sharing web links can be. StumbleUpon is one which has had a button representing it on my blog posts for some time. But I didn’t pay that much attention, until I noticed that an initial foray into using it resulted in more than 2,500 people liking the post “Best Exam Answer Ever.” And so I will be using StumbleUpon more regularly, both... Read more
I received my copy of Sense of Wonder: A Century of Science Fiction yesterday. I really do have a sense of wonder as I ponder what it has managed to do, bringing together actual science fiction stories and critical essays on a range of topics and issues from a range of perspectives, in a massive volume that is almost a thousand pages in length, with really small print and really narrow margins in a significantly oversized book. What the editor,... Read more
Mike Bird offered a caricature of Liberal Christianity which it would be wrong to dismiss out of hand. The trends and pitfalls that he highlights on the liberal end of the spectrum are real dangers. The churches which were so flexible and so in tune with the social norms of their time that they had only support to offer to Hitler are a reminder that a Christianity or any religion that loses its ability to critique society has lost something... Read more
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