I have begun to do a series of interviews with various Youtube channels from hosts who have long ago requested such. I have cleared some of my other immediate writing projects before moving on into July-August. During this window of time I have done interviews with Jacob Berman and Derek…
The current issue of Biblical Archaeology Review has a lead feature article titled “New Testament Religious Figures Confirmed” by Lawrence Mykytiuk, as part of his fascinating series on whose identity in the Hebrew Bible and New Testament can be confirmed by extra-biblical sources–whether literary or archaeological. What Mykytiuk has done is…
In 1965 I well remember the publication of British biblical scholar Hugh J. Schonfield’s controversial and best-selling book, The Passover Plot. I like millions of others read it avidly and followed the controversies closely. I remember traveling on a flight just after it came out and seeing half a dozen people…
My favorite Blog dealing with biblical matters, other than my own (!), is “Scribes of the Kingdom” run by Alex Finkelstein, whom I have met only on line through email letting him know how much I appreciate his work. He is one of the most thoughtful students of early Christianity…
Once again “Holy Week” has arrived. Today is Palm Sunday, with Easter one week away. It is also the first day of Passover–or more properly speaking, the “days of unleavened bread” that also last seven days (see Exodus 12:14-20). So one might say this week is “doubly holy,” in that…
The question of who killed Jesus has been the subject of countless academic books and articles over the past 100 years. Scholars are largely agreed that despite several passages in the New Testament that appear to collectively blame “the Jews,” the historical fact is that Jesus died by Roman crucifixion,…
What a way to start off my Blog for 2021–I am honored, humbled, and flattered… Popular Archaeology Magazine is pleased to announce the publication of the 10-year Anniversary Issue, featuring the top 10 stories of the magazine’s first 10 years. These stories exemplify the excitement and adventure of archaeological exploration…
First a bit of personal background. I began my study of New Testament (Koiné) Greek at the tender age of 17 as a young college freshman at what was then called Abilene Christian College (today Abilene Christian University), one of the flagship schools of the Churches of Christ. My family,…
So once again Holy Week has arrived–the “final days of Jesus” with the Last Supper, Passover, and Easter falling in a back-to-back cluster this weekend, just like they did in the time of Jesus. Just about everything about this week is controversial. Did Jesus eat his last Supper on a…
Most of us who work in what we academics call “Christian Origins” hold to the “Two Source” theory of Synoptic Gospel origins. That is, Mark was the earliest narrative gospels, Matthew and Luke both used Mark as their core source, but they had access to another source that we call…