Musings on biblical studies, politics, religion, ethics, human nature, tidbits from science
‘Parable’ is an English version of the Greek word parabolē. According to Aristotle (Rhetoric, 2.20) parables were used by orators in inductive or indirect proof as a generally recognized means of demonstration and illustration. They are, according to him, of two kinds: true events taken from history, and the more easily invented example such as … Continue reading “What Is a Parable?”
As a follow up to my previous post here is more detail of Michael Goulder’s argument that the Lord’s Prayer was originally composed by the author of the Gospel of Matthew. I am referring to Goulder’s “The Composition of the Lord’s Prayer” as published 1963 in The Journal of Theological Studies. Goulder begins by setting out the five propositions generally … Continue reading “The Composition of the Lord’s Prayer”
This post continues on from It is absurd to suggest. . . . It’s about a much lesser known anti-mythicist than Goguel but I will excuse myself for that anomaly on the grounds that Goguel’s book is freely available on the web and many would have read it already. Maurice Goguel is evidently R. Joseph … Continue reading ““It is absurd to suggest . . . . “: Professor Hurtado’s stock anti-mythicist”
I have just completed reading Fighting Words: The Origins of Religious Violence by Hector Avalos. The argument is not quite what I expected but it was certainly clear and logical and has given me a new perspective on the way religion and religious conflicts function in our communities and the world at large. Now I … Continue reading “Fighting Words: How Religion Causes Violence”
Now for something light. It comes from a book by two professors at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Avigdor Shinan and Yair Zakovitch, titled From Gods to God: How the Hebrew Bible Debunked, Suppressed, or Changed Ancient Myths & Legends, published 2004 by the Jewish Publication Society. Chapter 14 explores the curious episode that led … Continue reading “What Did Ham Do to Noah?”
Continuing the series from Nur Masalha’s Expulsion of the Palestinians. . . . The Peel Commission released its report in July 1937 with British Government support. The Peel recommendations were to be the blueprint for future British policy in Palestine and opened the road towards a State (not just land) for the Jews. The commission … Continue reading “Compulsory Arab Transfer Necessary for a Jewish State”
Not only Christian apologists but even some respected academic historians argue that Christianity had nothing to do with Nazism and that the Holocaust was inspired by atheistic, non-Christian ideologies. Not so, argues Hector Avalos, in Fighting Words: The Origins of Religious Violence: In fact, we shall argue that the Holocaust has its roots in biblical … Continue reading “The Biblical Roots of Nazi Racism”
The more I have read of the works of Acharya S (aka D.M. Murdock) and the more engagement I have had with those who fervently advocate her views the more I have suspected that some form of cult-like belief system lies beneath their surface appearances. Part of the reason for my suspicions has been the … Continue reading “Astrotheology, A Religious Belief System (as per D.M. Murdock/Acharya S)”
. This post continues my discussion of the Vision of Isaiah. It will briefly consider some additional aspects of that writing that make it an attractive candidate as the source Simon/Paul’s gospel. . An Assembly of Prophets The Vision of Isaiah gives a significant role not just to Isaiah himself but also to a group … Continue reading “A Simonian Origin for Christianity, Part 9: The Source of Simon/Paul’s Gospel (conclusion)”
[Observant readers will recall that we tackled this subject once before in When Is Paul’s Silence Golden?] Ad hoc soup The standard historicist response to the question of Paul’s silence on the historical Jesus relies heavily on Freudian Kettle Logic — to wit, “(1) Paul did mention Jesus quite a bit; (2) We shouldn’t be surprised that Paul didn’t mention Jesus very … Continue reading “Casey: Taking Context out of Context”
I very much doubt that it is possible to tell the gender of an author simply from reading the author’s works. (Surely there are too many times women authors have fooled reading publics with male pen-names and male authors of romance are also on record as having fooled even literary judges with female pseudonyms.) But … Continue reading “Women in Acts (An Acts Seminar Perspective)”
Continuing the Jesus and Dionysus posts (sharing the 2006 Hermathena article by John Moles) . . . The status of Christianity against Judaism The Dionysiac myth also serves as a framework through which to address the status of Christianity in relation to Judaism. The god came to Thebes, to his own people among whom he … Continue reading “Functions of Dionysiac Myth in Acts, #2”
“Jesus and Dionysus in The Acts of the Apostles and early Christianity” by classicist John Moles was published in Hermathena No. 180 (Summer 2006), pp. 65-104. In the two years prior to its publication the same work had been delivered orally by John Moles at Newcastle, Durham, Dublin, Tallahassee, Princeton, Columbia, Charlottesville and Yale. The … Continue reading “Jesus and Dionysus in The Acts of the Apostles and early Christianity”
Many of us are aware of the arguments of Frank Zindler that the John the Baptist passage in Josephus is an interpolation, but we leave those aside here and look at what Rivka Nir of the Open University of Israel offers as reasons for doubting the genuineness of the John the Baptist passage in Antiquities. … Continue reading “So John the Baptist was interpolated into Josephus? One more argument for the forgery case”