Misquoting Jesus with Bart Ehrman
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211 afleveringen, van nieuw naar oud
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The U.S. as the "New Jerusalem?" Revelation's Influence on Immigration
26 november 2024 · 34 min
As you can probably tell from my incredibly strong accent, I (Megan) am an immigrant to the United States. As such, the US immigration system has been a rather large feature in my adult life…but I've never before considered the relationship between American immigration and the Bible, or more specifically, the book of Revelation. Lees meer
It's never really occurred to me that such a relationship even exists. In contrast, my guest today has written an entire - and absolutely fascinating - book on the subject, and we're going to be diving right into it!
We'll be exploring how Revelation has been used throughout US history to categorize, demonize, and vilify immigrants, while also painting the US as the New Jerusalem, sanctuary for God's chosen, which must be defended at all costs.
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Does John of Patmos accept the Gospel of Jesus?
19 november 2024 · 30 min
The book of Revelation is by far the most violent book of the New Testament. Lees meer
The blood-soaked narrative calls for the death and destruction of non-believers and even of many Christians. Some Christians over the reveled in the horrific torments and the rivers of blood described in the book; but what would the historical Jesus have thought of it?
Would the Savior who instructed his followers to love their neighbors, to give up all their worldly possessions for those in need, and to care deeply for strangers and outcasts? have been on board with the wholesale slaughter of those who don't fit the mold? Let's find out!
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The Incredible Gospel of Judas (Iscariot)
12 november 2024 · 48 min
How would you respond if I told you that, actually, Judas was the only disciple who understood what Jesus was doing on earth? Or that I said that Jesus is unrelated to the God who created the world? Or that the God who created the world is not the same as the one who created humans? Lees meer
From a modern Christian point of view, those are blasphemous statements - some more so than others, yet they are all paraphrasing an early Christian Gnostic text, known as the Gospel of Judas. Join us today on Misquoting Jesus to find out more about this surprising, esoteric gospel, and to learn the secrets of the world according to the Gnostics.
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Did Paul Actually Write the Pauline Epistles?
5 november 2024 · 45 min
Writings attributed to the apostle Paul make up a large swathe of the New Testament, and have been of fundamental importance in the development of Christian theology. Lees meer
However, there are some serious questions over whether Paul actually wrote everything attributed to him. What texts do scholars think are not as…legitimate as they could be, and what texts do experts think were actually written by the man himself?
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Does Acts Portray Paul the Way Paul Portrays Paul?
29 oktober 2024 · 38 min
The Apostle Paul is a central figure in early Christianity, and features strongly in the New Testament in his own letters, and as a character in the Acts of the Apostles. But is the Paul of Acts the same man as the Paul of the Epistles? Lees meer
Does the writer of Acts change Paul's character and teachings, and why?
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Celebrating Two Years of Misquoting Jesus: Your Questions, Bart's Answers
23 oktober 2024 · 49 min
A Second-Anniversary LIVE Q&A! Listeners ask their questions, and Bart tries to answer them. Rapid fire for an hour!
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Why Should We Think Luke and Acts Have the Same Author?
15 oktober 2024 · 41 min
The Gospel of Luke and the Acts of the Apostles are widely understood to be a two-volume set, written by a single author. Lees meer
Given that we've spoken before on Misquoting Jesus about how difficult it is to identify authors of ancient texts, why are scholars so sure that these two texts share the same author?
Who was that author, and why write two books when they could have written one?!
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Pontius Pilate in a Different Light: A Little Known Apocryphal Gospel
8 oktober 2024 · 47 min
Pontius Pilate is a relatively minor figure in the gospels of the New Testament, but one who plays a vital role as the Roman official in charge of Jesus' sentencing. Lees meer
Given that he's the face of Rome in the New Testament Gospels, he's presented in a surprisingly positive light! The same is true for his appearances in some other early Christian writings. To try and get to the bottom of exactly why the official representative of the big, bad Roman empire is presented as such a sympathetic figure, we're going to be taking a look at one of these non-canonical texts in a bit more detail.
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What Are the Synoptic Gospels?
1 oktober 2024 · 38 min
The phrase "synoptic gospels" is thrown around a lot in Biblical scholarship, but what does it mean, and why are they important? Lees meer
Are they as similar as people seem to think, and what do non-academics get wrong about them? Today, Megan is joined by Dr. Mark Goodacre, professor of Religious Studies and expert in all things synoptic, to answer these questions and to investigate some of his favorite differences between these fascinating texts.
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Did Early Christians Believe in Reincarnation?
24 september 2024 · 36 min
Many people in the modern western world view reincarnation as a belief predominately from eastern religions - especially buddhism and hinduism. Lees meer
Believe it or not, reincarnation was also a theological concept for some early Christians! How does what early Christians taught about reincarnation differ from what we understand it to be?
Was it a common idea, or did those who espoused it receive pushback and censorship from their fellow Christians?
Why isn't reincarnation still a widely held view in Christian circles?
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Where Was Christianity on its 100th Birthday?
17 september 2024 · 45 min
Welcome everyone to a very special episode of Misquoting Jesus - our 100th episode! Lees meer
In keeping with our centesimal celebration (hey, it's a word!), we're going to be exploring the world of Christianity 100 years after Jesus' death.
Was Christianity still a small, persecuted offshoot of apocalyptic Judaism, or had it spread far and wide? Was it still an apocalyptic religion, and what theological disagreements had occurred? Megan has the questions, and Bart, as always, has the answers.
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What Does the Bible Say about Abortion?
10 september 2024 · 42 min
The Bible is frequently invoked in the ongoing national debates about abortion, almost always to show that abortion is murder and strictly forbidden. Is that true? Lees meer
This episode is not meant to resolve the issue about whether abortion should ever be considered a legitimate procedure or not.
The focus is on what the Bible actually says. Does it condemn abortion? Does it indicate that the fetus is to be considered a human with human rights, so that abortion constitutes murder? When, according to the Bible, does life begin. The overarching point of the episode is that those who cite the Bible in support of their social and political views should at least read what it says and be clear about what it means.
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How to Detect a Forgery: The Secret Gospel of Mark
3 september 2024 · 44 min
New manuscripts discoveries in Biblical studies are often outed as forgeries, But sometimes -- rarely -- they turn out to be authentic. Lees meer
How do scholars distinguish between fact and fiction, especially when they only have access to photographs or copies? Is it possible for a text to pass all authenticity tests and still be a clever forgery?
Today we're back with Dr. Morton Smith and the Secret Gospel of Mark to discuss he discovered an actual ancient document with unknown information about Jesus, or turned up a forgery of some kind, or possibly even forged it himself.
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Was A Secret Gospel of Mark Discovered?
27 augustus 2024 · 47 min
When a scholar claims to have discovered a new text from early Christianity, it can send shockwaves through the academic community. Lees meer
In the case of the "Secret Gospel of Mark," the shockwaves are still being felt today after over 65 years later. And scholars still can't agree on whether the text in question is authentically ancient, a modern forgery, or something else.
There are huge implications. The traces of this "secret Gospel" allegedly discovered in 1958 by Morton Smith, a professor of ancient history at Columbia University, have been interpreted (by Smith himself) to indicate that Jesus engaged in homosexual rituals with the followers he baptized in the nude. In this week's episode, we're discussing the discovery of this amazing text, what it actually says, and how scholars have interpreted the intriguing passages it contain
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When Is a Christian Not A Christian?
20 augustus 2024 · 42 min
Why do so many Christians claim that other Christians are not really Christians? Is there a definition written in the sky somewhere? Lees meer
Here we talk about the history of the problem, from its very beginning. Among other things we'll discuss why some biblical scholars today refuse to use the word "Christian" for the apostle Paul, the members of his churches, and for followers of Jesus in the first century altogether; and we'll ask whether there is something about "Christianity" in particular that leads to debates about what it actually means; and we'll try to work out if there's any satisfactory answer to the questions: "Is it possible to define the term to everyone's satisfaction?" and "Does it matter?"
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Jesus in the Writings of the First-century Jewish historian Josephus
13 augustus 2024 · 33 min
The Antiquities of the Jews, written by the Jewish historian Flavius Josephus in 93 CE, is our most important resource for knowing about the history of Israel around the time of Jesus and his earliest followers. Lees meer
This twenty-volume work contains two brief references to Jesus himself, and are in fact the only two mentions of Jesus in any non-Christian writing of the entire first century. But there are many questions surrounding these statements.
Are they authentic to Josephus? Were they added to his writings by later Christian scribes? Could the be authentic in part but altered by scribes. If they are authentic do they strengthen the case for the historicity of Jesus, or are they merely records of hearsay? Do they provide us with any valuable informatioin about Jesus that we otherwise would never know?
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Was Jesus a Copycat? The Role of John the Baptist in the Ministry of Jesus.
6 augustus 2024 · 40 min
Jesus is usually credited with starting the Christian movement, but were his ideas orignally his? It appears that John the Baptist preached a similar message and that Jesus was originally a follower of his. So who started Christianity? Lees meer
In this episode we consider what we can know about John, why he engaged in his ministry, and what influence he had on his follower Jesus. If John started the movement, why isn't there a religion in his name?
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How to Weaponize the Bible.
30 juli 2024 · 45 min
Anyone familiar with American politics and the empty rhetoric used to promote divisive views is never much surprised when politicians appeals to the Bible to support their own social agendas. Depending on who you listen to, the bible is both pro life and pro choice, pro and anti immigrant, pro and anti homosexuality…the list goes on. Lees meer
On today's episode, we explore how people use and, oh so frequently misuse, ancient texts of Scripture to promote their agenda, and consider the question of whether it might help to read the Bible before claiming to know what it says.
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Featuring Megan Lewis! And all that entails.
23 juli 2024 · 47 min
On this week's Misquoting Jesus, we're turning the metaphorical table and Bart is interviewing Megan! Lees meer
Everyone watching is familiar with Dr. Bart Ehrman, renowned New Testament scholar and New York Times bestselling author…but who on earth is Megan? How did she make her way from the study of ancient Mesopotamia to host a New Testament and Early Christianity podcast?
If she's an academic, why doesn't she work in a university somewhere? Where does she get all of her glasses? Stay tuned for all of that, and so much more!
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But Could Peter Write Anything?
16 juli 2024 · 37 min
1 and 2 Peter, other letters allegedly by him, a Gospel, three apocalypses. But Really? Could Peter even write? Lees meer
Today we take it for granted that an important and influential person can write. Not so for the ancient world. Would a fisherman from rural Galilee have been able to write well enough to compose whole texts?
Elegantly phrased, not in his language? Could he have learned to write in later life? If in fact Peter couldn't write, then who composed the works attributed to him?
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Do We Believe in the Separation of Church and State?
9 juli 2024 · 44 min
For a country that was apparently founded on the separation of church and state, US politics seems to be deeply enmeshed with Christianity. Lees meer
Now, Louisiana classrooms are required by state law to display the ten commandments…which definitely seems to be blurring the lines between church and state!
Today we're talking about what the separation of church and state actually means, whether it's a concept ancient Christians would have recognized, and whether a religious foundation necessitates that a modern society be guided by religion.
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"What Did the Prophet Isaiah Say About Jesus? "
2 juli 2024 · 45 min
Was the prophet Isaiah pointing to the coming of the messiah, seven centuries before Jesus? Since the beginning of Christianity, his followers have claimed that he did; and some passages of the ancient prophet certainly seem to be advanced notices of what would happen in Jesus's life and death. Lees meer
If these are not predictions of Jesus, how can they be understood? If they do reflect his story, how can that be explained?
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Paul and Jesus at Odds
25 juni 2024 · 40 min
Were Jesus and Paul were on different pages when it came to the most important issue for them both, how a person can be saved? Lees meer
In this episode, Bart and Megan explore Gospels and the letters of Paul to see where these two pivotal figures share many similar views and yet appear to stand completely at odds on the major question. If they did, then is Christianity the religion Jesus proclaimed or the religion Paul proclaimed about Jesus?
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Did Jesus Really Go to Hell?
18 juni 2024 · 46 min
If Jesus was dead for three days -- where did he go? The standard view for almost all of Christian history was that he went to the realm of the dead to save the lost souls who died before his crucifixion made salvation possible. But did he save only a few or ... everyone? Lees meer
In this episode, Bart and Megan dive into the ancient doctrine called the "Harrowing of Hell," which is still believed by millions today. But what are we to make of idea that Jesus' salvation was universal? Literally everyone gets saved?
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Christian Monks in a Desert Full of Sound
11 juni 2024 · 37 min
Most of us think of early Christian monks moving into the desert to escape the chaos and noise of civilization to lead the quiet contemplative life. Lees meer
In a fascinating study by Kim Haines-Eitzen we learn that in fact the desert was and is unexpectedly filled with sound. Based on her high-tech own recordings in some of the major deserts of the world, Haines-Eitzen, professor of Early Christianity at Cornell, considers the importance of sound and the possibilities of silence, not just for the ancients but for those of us seeking quiet in our own lives.
Here she explains to Bart her findings, based on her new book (which includes access to her stunning recordings), The Sonorous Desert: What Deep Listening Taught Early Christian Monks -- and What It Can Teach Us.
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Why the Doctrine of Inerrancy Contradicts the Gospels
4 juni 2024 · 46 min
Many modern Christians view the Bible as the inspired, inerrant word of God. Is that what its own authors thought? Did the author of Matthew, for example, think the Gospel of Mark was infallible? If so, why did he change it? Lees meer
In this episode we look at the views of the Gospel writers about the inerrancy of other Gospels -- even those also found in the New Testament.
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Were Early Christians Known to Be Moral Reprobates?
28 mei 2024 · 38 min
Many modern Christians think Christians are inherently more moral than non-believers. Non-Christians, as a rule, don't think so. What about in the ancient world? Lees meer
Why is it that the most widely attested view among ancient pagans was the opposite, that Christians were dangerously immoral reprobates? Why weren't they seen as stalwart proponents of family values?
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Did Jesus Have to Suffer? Trying to Make Sense of a Troubling View
21 mei 2024 · 43 min
Did Jesus himself think or talk about his imminent sufferings—did he predict his own brutal end, or have those parts been creatively interpreted by later authors to fit a theological agenda? Lees meer
This episode offers a chance to uncover the layers of historical, religious, and philosophical complexities surrounding these ancient texts.
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Is the "Good Book" Really So Good?
14 mei 2024 · 47 min
In this episode Bart interviews Jill Hicks-Keeton about her sure-to-be controversial book, recently released: The Good Book: How White Evangelicals Save the Bible to Save Themselves. Lees meer
We are all familiar with the disturbing parts of the Bible, with it's divinely sanctioned violence from the destruction of Jericho in the Old Testament to the destruction of the world in the New, from the passages that justify slavery to the patriarchal views of ancient Israel and the writings in the name of Paul. How have evangelicals tried to salvage these disturbing passages in order to make them not just tame but "good" for readers today?
Listen to this interview and hear Prof. Hicks-Keeton explain.
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Was Jesus Buried on the Day of His Crucifixion
7 mei 2024 · 50 min
All the Gospels agree that on the day Jesus was crucified, Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body and took it from the cross to bury in a tomb. Lees meer
What almost no one realizes is that this would have been unprecedented, so far as we know, in the Roman world, where part of the humiliation of crucifixion was for the corpse to be left on the cross to decompose and be ravaged by scavenging birds for days before being disposed of.
Did the Romans make an exception for Jesus? Is that plausible? Or is the story of his burial by Joseph a later legend? This is obviously an issue of enormous significance. If Jesus was not buried that afternoon, how could he have emerged from the tomb "on the third day"?
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What Did Judas Betray?
30 april 2024 · 48 min
The Gospels agree that Judas Iscariot betrayed Jesus, even if they don't agree on why he did it. But is their view about *what* he did plausible? That he told the authorities where they could find Jesus without any crowds around? Lees meer
There are, in fact, reasons for thinking that Judas did something far more sinister, that he revealed a key teaching of Jesus gave to his closest followers but he did not proclaim in public.
Did Judas reveal a secret teaching that led to Jesus' crucifixion?
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The Disturbing Views of God and Suffering in the Book of Job
23 april 2024 · 47 min
Many people have a rough idea about the story of Job, the incredibly wealthy and righteous man whom God allows "the Satan" (who is not the Devil, btw) to deprive of all he has (including killing his ten children) and plague with horrible pain, in order to see if he will stay righteous. Lees meer
Most readers don't realize, however, that the vast majority of the book comes from a different author who has a completely different view of why people suffer.
In this episode we talk about what both authors have to say and discuss honestly and forthrightly whether either view of suffering is at all convincing; in addition, we talk about why the views of God in this book can be so disturbing.
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Do We Have a Soul?
16 april 2024 · 51 min
Most people think that everyone has a soul that is resident in the body. The vast majority of Christians believe the soul lives on after the body dies. But ironically the vast majority of people -- even devoted readers of the Bible -- have never noticed what the biblical writers actually say about it. Lees meer
In this episode we look at views of the soul found in the Hebrew Bible, the teachings of Jesus, and the rest of the New Testament. Is it the standard Christian view? Do the biblical writers think the soul can live on without the body? If not, what would salvation and eternal life be? Tune in to find out!
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Did Slaves Give Us the New Testament?
9 april 2024 · 48 min
This week Bart will be interviewing New Testament scholar and public intellectual Candida Moss, on her new book, God's Ghostwriters: Enslaved Christians and the Making of the Bible. Lees meer
In the book, Dr. Moss (Professor in the Department of Theology and Religion at the University of Birmingham) maintains that parts of the Bible may have been written by slaves (Mark, possibly); or co-authored by them (enslaved secretaries of Paul?); or copied by them (in our surviving manuscripts).
No one has broached the topic of "How We Got the Bible" from this perspective before, and the episode provides a lively discussion of numerous issues of real significance.
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Newly Discovered PROOF: Jesus Was an Illusionist
2 april 2024 · 42 min
In an absolutely shocking turn of events, Bart has learned of a first-century Gospel that will overturn everything scholars think they know about Jesus, showing that he was a charlatan exposed by the Roman government for duping the Jewish crowds by sophisticated works of magic. Lees meer
The Gospel, set to be published this week by the NY Times, details how Jesus deliberately faked his famous miracles in an effort to seek fame and fortune. How did he go from magician-for-hire to Son of God, and was the crucifixion a tragic illusion gone wrong?
Join us this week on Misquoting Jesus to find out more.
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Was Peter a Rock or Shifting Sand? Jesus' Closest Disciple in History and Legend.
26 maart 2024 · 44 min
Jesus' closest disciple was Simon, whom henicknamed "Peter" -- that is "The Rock." But in the Gospels and the writings of Paul, Peter is fickle, clumsy, and unreliable, less like a rock than shifting sand. Lees meer
After the New Testament we have numerous writings both about and allegedly by him. In looking over all these records, what can we say about the one on whom Jesus allegedly "built his church"? Is it possible to separate out the history from the legend? The fact from the fiction? And why didn't the Gospel writers do a bit more to improve his reputation?
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Did Jesus Think He Was the Messiah?
19 maart 2024 · 45 min
Jesus' followers have always called him the "messiah," from the earliest days of the religion -- so much so that "Christ" (the Greek word for Messiah) became his second name. But most Jews, both then and now, rejected the claim, pointing out that Jesus in fact was nothing like the messiah. Lees meer
Do they have a point? If so, why did Jesus' early followers call him that? Did they begin thinking so during his lifetime? Is it what Jesus himself claimed? How would we know?
Tune in to the episode and find out!
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Do Fundamentalists (actually) Follow Jesus?
12 maart 2024 · 47 min
Every Christian fundamentalist on the planet, of course, claims that they follow Jesus. Avidly. But do they? Lees meer
Why do so many seem to overlook or ignore many of Jesus' key teachings? Surely they know what he said about loving the enemy and the foreigner? Why do they claim that Jesus said things he never, actually, talked about (many of the most pressing social questions fundamentalists are keen on)?
Is being a fundamentalist these days less about believing the "fundamental" doctrines of the faith and more about having the correct social and political views? What would Jesus make of Falwell and his Followers?
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Finding Jesus in Genesis
5 maart 2024 · 48 min
Some evangelical preachers claim that Jesus is walking all over the pages of the Old Testament. Lees meer
The Old Testament, of course, doesn't say so. But believing Christians all the way in antiquity claimed that the Jewish Scriptures not only predict Jesus but also portray him, as a person involved with the creation of the world and the history of Israel.
Where would they get such an idea? And how do they find Jesus as an active figure in the very first book of the Old Testament, from Adam and Eve to the flood of Noah to the story of Joseph, and lots of places in between? Are they just makin' stuff up, or is there a logic behind it all?
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Archaeology in the Time of Jesus.
27 februari 2024 · 49 min
In this special episode Bart interviews one of the world's leading archaeologists of ancient Israel, Jodi Magness, whose discoveries are regularly covered in National Geographic. Lees meer
The interview is a prelude to an interesting four-lecture remote course Jodi is giving on March 2-3, called "Archaeology in the Time of Jesus" (available at bartehrman.com/timeofJesus).
In the interview Bart and Jodi talk about what archaeologists really do (as opposed to what's in the popular imagination) and how the findings of archaeology can provide fresh information about Jesus' life and death, including issues connected with the Dead Sea Scrolls, Jesus' upbringing in Galilee, and his crucifixion and burial in Jerusalem.
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Was Luke Written by Luke? And Why Should We Care?
20 februari 2024 · 45 min
The Gospel of Luke and the book of Acts were both allegedly written by a companion of Paul, Luke "the gentile physician." But the books never name their author. Lees meer
So why Luke? Are are there any good grounds for naming him in particular? Or any grounds at all? Were the books probably written by a doctor? Was he probably a gentile? *Was* there a Luke? If picking his name was just guess-work -- would it affect how we interpret the books or understand their reliability?
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Why Did Paul Convert? Did He Convert?
13 februari 2024 · 51 min
Paul's apparently overnight change from ruthlessly persecuting Christianity to rigorously promoting it is almost certainly the most significant conversion in history: more significant than Augustine's, and even Constantine's. Without Paul's conversion, Christianity as we know it may well have never even happened. But what actually happened? Lees meer
The New Testament describes Paul's experience on several occasions: but can the accounts be trusted? Are they even consistent with each other? If we want to understand such a world-shattering experience, do we need to invoke the supernatural? Are there other plausible explanations? And is it right to call the event a "conversion" in the sense that Paul turned from one religion (Judaism) to another (Christianity)? These are all key issues for understanding a pivotal point in early Christian history, one that eventually would have enormous ramifications for the history of the west.
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Why Did Paul Hate Jesus and His Followers?
6 februari 2024 · 43 min
Next to Jesus, Paul is the most important figure in the history of Christianity, but as is well known, before he was a zealous apostle he was an equally zealous antagonist. What was that all about? Lees meer
Why would a Jew in the Roman world outside Israel even care if a small group of Jews were claiming that Jesus was the messiah who brought salvation? Wouldn't he just write them off as another bunch of crazies? What about their claims did he find so offensive that he had to take them on? And when he took them on, what did he actually do? Was he murdering them? Sending them off to prison? On what authority? Can the NT be right that he was authorized by Jewish authorities? Was he just beating up people he didn't like?
These are important questions because the answers can help explain the transformation of Christianity into a world religion. In this episode, we try to figure it all out!
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Gospel Thrillers! When Jesus Meets Robert Ludlum
30 januari 2024 · 50 min
Many listeners have read a relatively new kind of thriller -- about a mysterious discovery of a long-lost Gospel and the protagonist's attempt to make it public, while being hounded in harrowing scenes by political or ecclesiastical forces of darkness (the Nazis! The Vatican!). Lees meer
In this episodes Bart interviews the first scholar to discuss this genre, who in fact coined its name, in a book just now coming out, Andrew Jacobs, Senior Research Fellow at Harvard.
The backstory is fascinating and illuminating: these books started to appear during the Cold War, in the context of the increasingly serious questioning of authority, imperialism, and colonialism, and just when biblical scholars were themselves publicizing new finds that called into question the traditional truths of Christianity.
This context raises all kinds of questions. Why the sudden passion for Gospel conspiracy? And are academic scholars dealing with real-life discoveries themselves "objective" observers, or are they too caught up in the ideologies behind these novels?
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Why Fundamentalism is Not (Always) Such a Bad Thing. Take Bart for example...
23 januari 2024 · 51 min
Bart has never held back from opposing Christian fundamentalism (and every other religious fundamentalism), even though he was once a fundamentalist himself. And many fundamentalists consider (and call) him the spawn of the Devil for his attempts to expose the flaws of fundamentalist thinking, in part because he understands the view from the inside. But Bart has never publicly talked about how being a fundamentalist had a serious upside and played a positive role in his life, affecting everything that came after in some extraordinarily helpful ways. Lees meer
In this episode he spills the beans on how being a fundamentalist proved, in some ways, to be a good thing. (Even if he doesn't advise going there!)
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Is the New Testament Actually Filled with Forgeries?
16 januari 2024 · 41 min
In our previous episodes on "literary forgery" in early Christianity, we have never yet talked about the elephant in the room. Why are there so many in the New Testament? Lees meer
In this episode we will not be going over the old ground of what forgery is (an author falsely claiming to be a famous person) or how it was justified in the ancient world, even among writers who urge high ethical standards (!). We are instead interested in the startling scholarly claim that of the twenty-seven books of the New Testament, only eight of them were probably written by the person to whom they are attributed.
In some cases the attributions are made by later readers (the author of Mark does not claim to be Mark); but in many cases the authors themselves make the false claim (2 Peter claims to be written by Peter). We might understand how one or two books like this managed to get into the Christian New Testament. But nineteen?
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If There Is a God, Why Do We Suffer?
9 januari 2024 · 50 min
The question has been around for millenia. If God is all-powerful, all-knowing, and benevolent, why do people suffer? The answer seem obvious to many (most?) people. It's because of free will. It's because of sin. Its because of the devil or other evil powers. It's because God is testing us. It's to make us appreciate the good. It is to make goodness possible. It will all be resolved in the afterlife. It's a mystery that only God can answer. Pick your answer. There other options are out there! But is any of them ultimately satisfying? Do they really explain the problem? If not, where does that leave us? Is belief in an all-powerful, loving God possible? Lees meer
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Who Really Wrote the Gospel of John?
2 januari 2024 · 48 min
Almost everyone assumes that Jesus' disciple, John the Son of Zebedee, wrote the Gospel of John. But is there any compelling reason to think so? In this episode we look into many of the issues that most people have never thought about. Most, for example, do not realize that the author of this book never mentions John, let alone calls himself John. There is a person called "The Disciple Jesus loved" (mentioned in none of the other Gospels). But who is he? Why would anyone think he is John? Is it possible he's not a real person at all? Is, as often claimed, the author claiming that it is he himself? (Bart will explain: No.) Apart from that, is it even possible that the historical John -- an Aramaic-speaking peasant called "illiterate" in the NT itself (Acts 4;13) -- could have written such a magnificent book? Could he possibly have used a secretary. If not ... who did write the book? Tune in and see! Lees meer
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Joseph, the "father" of Jesus.
26 december 2023 · 41 min
Mary is definitely the more famous of Jesus' mortal parents…but what about Joseph? Lees meer
Few people have asked about him but he is obviously a significant part of the Christmas story. But what can we know about him? Why are the writers of the New Testament virtually silent about him? What we can infer about his life and the role he played in Jesus' life?
In this episode we discuss what we can know historically about the "father" of Jesus and we explore some of the legends that sprung up about him as found in non-canonical Gospels of the early centuries.
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Why Mary? What Made the Mother of Jesus so Special? The Proto-Gospel of James
19 december 2023 · 41 min
The Proto-Gospel of James, a kind of "Gospel Before the Gospels," was one of the most influential non-canonical writings throughout the Middle Ages. The narrative does not focus on the life of Jesus but on the supernatural birth, young life, betrothal, and pregnancy of his mother Mary. Lees meer
From this Gospel come many traditions that remain important in the Catholic and Orthodox traditions (Joseph was an old many; Mary was a perpetual virgin; Jesus' "brothers" were sons of Joseph from a previous marriage); and the accounts it presents -- the miraculous birth of Mary, her upbringing in the temple, the details of her giving birth, and, well, a postpartum inspection to make sure she was a virgin -- are fascinating to readers of any religious or non-religious persuasion.
But what's it really all about? In this special episode, Bart interviews an expert on the Proto-Gospel, Christopher Frilingos, Professor at Michigan State University, in order to find out.