Musings on biblical studies, politics, religion, ethics, human nature, tidbits from science
Page III Vorwort Preface III Der reislauf der Hypothesen, die den Ursprung der Evangelien zn deuten suchten — der Hypothesen wenigstens, die der Geschichte angehören und dazu dienten, selbst durch ihren Sturz dazu dienten, die richtige Stellung der Frage herbeizuführen, war vollendet, als ich vor zehn Jahren mit dem auftrat, was ich für den Anfang … Continue reading “Bk 1. Fourth Gospel. Foreword”
The point of this post is to demonstrate how easy it is to read documents from the perspective of commonly accepted knowledge and mistakenly misread them, thinking they say what we have always assumed they say, and to fail to register that the original texts are not quite as clear in their meaning — nor … Continue reading “Getting History for Atheists Wrong (Again) — #4”
Many scholars assert that behind the obviously interpolated words about Jesus in the Antiquities of the Jews Josephus did in fact write something, either mildly positive or neutral in tone, about him. The problem with that assertion is that it is well recognized among scholars of Josephus that the Jewish historian absolutely hated everyone who, … Continue reading “What Did Josephus Think of John the Baptist?”
Of making many posts about John the Baptist there is no end, and much discussion may weary, or stimulate, the flesh. Here’s another one. This post is the first in a series of perhaps three that intends to raise awareness of Rivka Nir‘s case for the passage about John the Baptist in Josephus being a … Continue reading “John the Baptist: Another Case for Forgery in Josephus”
It’s been too long since I visited our French scholars of the Bible so here I continue with part 5 of Nanine Charbonnel’s table setting out the “Old Testament” sources of the Gospel narratives. In Jésus-Christ, Sublime Figure de Papier Charbonnel is presenting a case for the gospel figure of Jesus Christ being created entirely … Continue reading “Gospels Cut from Jewish Scriptures, #5”
Speaking of Steve Mason’s historical inquiry into what we can reconstruct of the origins of the Jewish War from Josephus, here are some quotations I marked as I read his second chapter. I hope to post one more time on this book, sharing some specifics of how he approached Josephus’s writings as historical sources. I … Continue reading “Understanding Historical Evidence”
Forget any notion of an anti-Roman “nationalism” yearning to be free from Rome. Forget messianic hopes and a desire to be ruled by God alone. Steve Mason proposes in A History of the Jewish War, A.D. 66-74 causes much more common to wars more generally: The Judaean-Roman conflict broke out … not from anti-Roman ideas … Continue reading “What Caused the Jewish War of 66-74 CE?”
I have written often about history, the nature of history, the history of historical writings, and historical methods. Very often the context of those posts has been biblical scholarship that falls short of meeting the basic standards of scholarly historical inquiry as it is typically found in history and classics departments. Occasionally one comes across … Continue reading “The Great Method Gap between “Biblical Historians” and Historians in History Departments”
The destruction of the Second Temple in 70 C.E. constitutes, in most analyses, a watershed event for the Jews of antiquity. The elimination of the center, source of spiritual nourishment and preeminent symbol of the nation’s identity, compelled Jews to reinvent themselves, to find other means of religious sustenance, and to adjust their lives to … Continue reading “More about Second Temple Judaism”
I have been asked to address certain arguments on another forum and thought I’d draft out this one here as something of a prep. . . . I was asked if I am “sure” Jesus existed as a historical figure, and if so why. I tried to give a short answer as follows: “Sure” is … Continue reading “A Succinct Argument for the Historicity of Jesus”
Until now I have been working from a digital version of Raphael Lataster’s Questioning the Historicity of Jesus: Why a Philosophical Analysis Elucidates the Historical Discourse, that was supplied to me by Brill for these review posts. I have since been forwarded by Brill a physical copy of the book after I informed them that … Continue reading “Review part 8: Questioning the Historicity of Jesus / Lataster (Case for Mythicism)”
This post cites the tenth and final witness called by Joachim Jeremias in a 1957 book, The Servant of God. Thanks to helpful comments left by some readers I can say that the testimony of this particular #10 witness is disputed by scholars who argue that the rabbis of “Late Antiquity” responsible for interpreting Isaiah 53 … Continue reading “The 10th Testimony for a Dying Messiah Before Christianity (7)”
Some readers will be interested in what Martin Goodman had to say about Jewish concepts of the Messiah in the Second Temple era. As much as I’m tempted to add my own comments I will restrain myself. I have written enough of my own perspective on this question other times I have addressed “messianic expecations” … Continue reading “Messiahs and Eschatology in Second Temple Judaism”
Jewish zeal for both liberty from foreign rule and a passion to be ruled “by God alone” are generally thought to be the causes of Judaea’s war with Rome that ended with the destruction of Jerusalem and its Temple in 70 CE. Hence, goes the common view, the many Jews who were influenced by this … Continue reading “Debunking myths of Judas the Galilean, the Zealots, and causes of the war with Rome”