History is contested. Though far from a novel statement, we often need to be reminded that the past is not as clean and easy as our history textbooks make it out to be. This is especially true in matters of religious history and conflict, where seemingly everyone wants to contribute their two cents to hotContinue reading “Book Review: Perceptions of Islam in the Christendoms (Khan)”
Tag Archives: Historical Jesus
Book Review: 40 Questions about the Historical Jesus (Pate)
Whatever you may think about him or his followers, Jesus of Nazareth continues to capture the attention of billions across the planet. From church-going Christians and New Atheists to the media and academics, Jesus remains a pretty popular guy, at least in terms of the time spent discussing this first century Palestinian Jew and hisContinue reading “Book Review: 40 Questions about the Historical Jesus (Pate)”
Were the Gospel Writers Eyewitnesses? Mark
This post is part of an ongoing series examining whether or not the writers of the canonical gospels were eyewitnesses to the life of Jesus. We begin our examination of the question “Were the Gospel writers eyewitnesses?” with consideration of may have been the earliest written record of Jesus’ life, that narrative referred to asContinue reading “Were the Gospel Writers Eyewitnesses? Mark”
Jesus and Crossan (Part II)
This is the second part of a two post-series looking at John D. Crossan’s view of the Historical Jesus as outlined in Jesus: A Revolutionary Biography. Key for understanding Crossan’s perspective on the historical Jesus is his understanding of Jesus as a Mediterranean Jewish Peasant.[13] In Crossan’s view, this understanding points to Jesus as aContinue reading “Jesus and Crossan (Part II)”
Jesus and Crossan (Part I)
Around Easter, various theories about the life, death, and (non) resurrection of Jesus tend to find their way onto various media outlets. Sometimes these theories are outlandish and little more than attempts at attention; other times claims about Jesus come from more respectable sources. In today’s and tomorrow’s posts, I examine one of the moreContinue reading “Jesus and Crossan (Part I)”
Book Review: Encountering the New Testament (Elwell and Yarbrough)
First impressions matter. Whether at a job interview, social function, or classroom, the initial picture people paint tends to color all subsequent interactions with that person. To a large degree, this is true of non-personal interactions as well, with institutions, places, and subject matter. And while a bad first impression can be overcome (often throughContinue reading “Book Review: Encountering the New Testament (Elwell and Yarbrough)”
The Evolution of God
This post is part of an ongoing series examining Conceptions of the Ultimate, the manner in which world religions understand the divine. Today’s article reflects on a portion of Robert Wright’s The Evolution of God, raising several questions concerning the viability of his presentation of Christianity. In the third part of The Evolution of God,Continue reading “The Evolution of God”
Richard Bauckham on The Lost Gospel
Controversy sells. If that’s not an adage about publishing books, it should be. It’s no secret that the controversial statements (or perspectives which can be made to sound controversial) catch the headlines. Look no further than The DaVinci Code or Reza Aslan’s Jesus. Unfortunately, much of culture is predicated on the idea that the biggerContinue reading “Richard Bauckham on The Lost Gospel”
Book Review: Jesus of Nazareth (Ratzinger)
Part of a three book series on the Historical Jesus, Jesus of Nazareth: From the Baptism to the Transfiguration (Image, 2007) begins Joseph Ratzinger’s examination of the life and teaching of the founder of Christianity.† In this book Ratzinger (Pope Benedict XVI) engages the major moments and messages from Jesus’ ministry, combining historical, literary, andContinue reading “Book Review: Jesus of Nazareth (Ratzinger)”
Book Review: The Case for the Real Jesus (Strobel)
In some respects, The Case for the Real Jesus: Student Edition stands as but one Christian apologetics book among a market full of many. The back cover isn’t full of important Christian ‘celebrities’ and theologians saying how great this book is. There was no flashy marketing campaign when this book hit the shelves. It’s notContinue reading “Book Review: The Case for the Real Jesus (Strobel)”
Pursuing Veritas 