Note to the reader: During the “Covid Summer of 2019” I spent about a month digging through old files from my University of Chicago days–back when I was writing my dissertation at the University of Chicago under Jonathan Z. Smith. I found so many treasures, including these handwritten notes I…
My newly published book Paul’s Ascent to Paradise (revised from my 1986 dissertation) is beginning to draw some good comments and reactions. Here is a comment by Roy Kay that captures a key element of that book–how Paul claims authority based on his extraordinary mystical experiences–in his battles with his apostolic…
For the next few weeks I plan to post many of my previously published articles that have fallen off the radar of many of my readers. Some, but not nearly all, are available as PDFs on this Blog site under “Publications and Papers,” in the dropdown menu above labeled “Academic.”…
I will be speaking live tomorrow morning (Oct 24, 2020) at 11:30 EST/10:30 CST on the topic: “Who or What is a Prophet Like Moses” Many of you are familiar with the passage in Deuteronomy 18:15 where Moses speaks in the first person: “YHVH your God will raise up for…
This is a kind of “last call” as registration ends tonight, Wednesday, October 21st, at midnight. I hope many of my blog readers will join us this weekend for the 23rd Annual Bible and Archaeology Fest sponsored by the Biblical Archaeology Society. It is truly a Who’s Who of engaging speakers…
With the end of the Fall biblical Holidays (Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, and Sukkoth) last week millions of Jews and Hebrew oriented non-Jews, including many Christians, began a new cycle of Torah readings this past weekend. The reading for October 17th, this past Sabbath, was Genesis 1:1-6:8. I guess one…
There is a most intriguing stained glass window in the Kilmore church (“Church of Mary”) in the village of Dervaig on the Scottish Isle of Mull. The scene shows a Jesus figure in a most intimate pose with a woman named Mary who appears to be pregnant. Under the figures…
Over the years I have written quite a bit about Mary Magdalene and her possible relationship to Mary of Bethany, sister of Martha and their brother Lazarus–who has a prominent role in the gospel of John (11:1-44; 12:1-8), is also mentioned once in Luke 10:38-42, but nowhere else in the…
Last night on the Jewish calendar marked the beginning of one of the lessor known festivals in the biblical calendar by our general secular/Christian society. Many non-Jews have heard of Passover, Pentecost (Shavuot), Rosh HaShanah, and Yom Kippur, but the larger culture knows little about Sukkoth–sometimes called the “feast of…
As many of you know I have a new translation of The Book of Genesis now available in print and Kindle editions via Amazon. I have also begun a weekly series working through the book of Genesis, bit by bit, with hosts Jono Vandor and Ross Nichols on the Truth2U.org…
