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What Is Biblical Literacy?
We complain about it, write about it, claim it’s important or even critical, design programs to create it, but what is it? I don’t mean that none of us know what we mean when we say “biblically literate” or “biblically illiterate,” but do we all mean the same thing? I don’t think we do, and…
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Fences: Mending or Rending
The following is a sermon I presented at the Unitarian-Universalist Church of Pensacola on September 11,2005 and originally posted here on September 13, 2005. I’m reposting it because when I went to look for it, I found that the original post had somehow been truncated, and also because there is a one word at a…
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Experiencing the (Baptism of the) Holy Spirit
This is a topic where I tend to make just about everyone uncomfortable. Long time readers may recall a previous discussion of speaking in tongues, and my own experience of it. Those who expect me to be intellectually oriented and rational are uncomfortable with mystical experiences, and many who are comfortable with the mystical experiences…
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Follow-Up on According to John – The Word Became Flesh
I’m embedding the YouTube of the session below. There were a couple of points on which I didn’t quite say everything I wanted to, or left things a bit unclear. I’m going to post on two topics, and link to them below: 1. Theological Development and Determining Date and Authorship 2. Extreme Basics of Textual…
Follow-Up on According to John: Theological Development and Determining Date and Authorship
In my Google Hangout discussion I mentioned using the development of theological concepts in dating a particular writing. I don’t think I really covered the issue involved all that well, so I’m going to follow up briefly here. My purpose is not to argue any particular position, but to illustrate the issues. If I might start…
Follow-Up on According to John: Textual Criticism
This post relates to my follow-up on my second session of studies on the Gospel of John. First, I’d like you to read my earlier Textual Criticism – Briefly. This dates from 2006, but I don’t see anything I need to correct. I would like to expand on a few points, however. On the matter…
Quote: Philosophers Talk in Obscure Ways
I thought of this quote as I was preparing for my study on John tonight: Philosophers sometimes appear to talk in obscure ways. They do so because they take into consideration what people often overlook. If a poet (Longfellow) can say, ‘things are not what they seem’, the philosopher will give reasons why. The fact…
Link: Did Jesus Perform Miracles?
I’d like to call attention to a discussion on the blog Across the Atlantic regarding whether Jesus actually performed miracles. This blog features point/counterpoint between Antonio Piñero and Thomas Hudgins. We have thus far Part 1a, Part 1b, and Part 2a. I’ll leave it to you to follow if you wish.
Gospels Again
Tonight on our Energion Publications sponsored Google Hangout on Air (completely separate from my series on John), we’ll have a two part program. The first half hour will be an interview by Elgin Hushbeck, Jr. with Dr. David Cartwright about his book Wounded by Truth – Healed by Love. I’ll then be on with Elgin…
Announcing According to John: The Word Became Flesh
This will be the second study. I’m going to mention a few things to think about. The question remains as to how many of these things I will be able to address, but I think it’s worthwhile to consider these in any case. The study will be via Google Hangouts on Air at 7:00 pm…
Follow-Up on Study of the Gospel of John – Introduction
I’ll include the YouTube for my first study session on the Gospel of John below. During my discussion I promised to provide a link for the article I referenced suggesting that the Rylands Papyrus, P52, may be dated a bit too early. The article I referenced is available on Academia.edu, and is titled The Use…
When a Teen Refuses Treatment
My wife has some good comments on a current case. Dealing with cancer in a young person is always heartbreaking. The number of people who are sure they know what the right answer is, is quite astonishing, in my view.
Some of My Own Books on Sale (Gospel of John Study)
The advantages of being a publisher is that I can put books on sale to go with posts. Normally I only do that for things on my company page (Energion Publications), but since I’m starting a study of the Gospel of John on my Google+ Page/YouTube Channel, I’m doing it with a few of my…
Bruce Epperly Interview and Sale
Last night I had the privilege of interviewing Dr. Bruce Epperly, author of several Energion titles out of a total of 28 books he has written so far. Bruce is always both interesting and challenging, and doesn’t avoid the hard questions. We placed his books on a special “buy 2 get 1 free” sale just…
When Should You Talk about Textual Criticism?
I’ve posted a question that originates with Thomas Hudgins over on the Energion Discussion blog. Here are my comments to go with that post. The question has quite a number of implications. For example, if your listeners do not normally look at the textual notes in their Bible translation, they might not be aware of…
Trailer and Theme for My Study of John
Above is the theme banner for my study of the gospel of John. The video below is a trailer for it. I am working on getting used to video. I’m more comfortable with text, I think.
Received Next Round of ALGNT
And what is ALGNT? I’m glad you asked! That’s Aprenda a Leer el Griego del Nuevo Testamento. Thomas Hudgins has just forwarded the latest round of corrections. You haven’t lived until you’ve laid out a Greek grammar written in Spanish, always assuming Spanish is, for you as for me, a second language.
Sunday School Today: Authority and Truth
I think I titled the next chapter in my book When People Speak for God rather pretentiously: Authority and Truth. That’s what we’ll be discussing today in my Sunday School class. As I was reading the chapter, I came across the following, which ties into several things I’m thinking about these days: There is, however,…
Studying Through John
With the new year I’m starting a new online study, working through the Gospel of John using Herold Weiss’s book Meditations on According to John. A previous effort by my wife and I to conduct a group discussion failed both due to our schedules and due to low participation. In this case, I will be…
Interview with Dr. Bruce Epperly
On Tuesday, January 6, 2015, I will be interviewing Dr. Bruce Epperly on his newly released book Finding God in Suffering: A Journey with Job. I’ve just completed a trailer for this event: You can watch the actual event here:
Of Scholarship and Tribalism
When I was working on my MA, one of my professors recommended a paper I had written for publication. He suggested submitting it to the university’s journal, Andrews University Seminary Studies. I was of course greatly pleased to have one of my papers recognized in this way, especially considering the respect I had for that…
So Why Don’t We Do Something about It?
I’ve been exchanging thoughts with Dave Black about the pastoral role and biblical languages, including textual criticism. One of my difficulties here is that I am more likely dealing with people on a day to day basis who are not well acquainted with their English Bibles, and thus it’s a bit harder to talk about…
Merry Christmas
My favorite from my own Christmas essays is God Does Things Backwards. I commend it to you today.
Embrace Interpretation
When I tell someone that they need to consider how they interpret a particular verse, I often get that glazed-over or eye-roll expression that says, “There you go again. Why can’t it just be simple?” The fact, however, is that we have to interpret everything. As I look out my window at the branches of…
Should Pastors Learn Textual Criticism?
I’ve been watching one discussion and participating in another that converge in this post. The first discussion is via blogs, David Alan Black (extracted to The Jesus Paradigm for a permanent link) and Thomas Hudgins both posting significant numbers of entries recently regarding textual criticism. The second is one I’ve had personally, and it regards…
Links: Some C. S. Lewis on Christmas
Thomas Hudgins provides samples: here, here, and here. For those who may not know, Thomas Hudgins is the lead translator for the Spanish edition of David Alan Black’s intorductory Greek grammar, Aprenda a Leer el Griego del Nuevo Testamento, which we expect to start shipping around mid-January 2015. If I can find the time, I’m…
Something Positive To Watch This Morning!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=p2zUf06iy1A