Historical Studies
The Pharisees.
In Jacob Neusner’s fine little book Judaism in the Beginning of Christianity he provides some valuable insights for those wanting to discuss the historical movement known as the Pharisees. He notes that we have three primary sources: the writings of the Jewish historian Josephus, the Christian Gospels telling the stories of Jesus, and “the law [...]
Messiah the holy warrior.
Over the last year or so I have become interested in Jesus’ messianic identity as it relates to the Holy Spirit. Now we have places where the Apostle Paul speaks of Jesus as the Spirit-Giver, especially as it relates to the resurrection of the saints (e.g. Romans 8.1-17; 1 Corinthians 15.42-49). The Gospel of John [...]
Book review: Anthony Le Donne’s Historical Jesus.
Anthony Le Donne. Historical Jesus: What Can We Know and How Can We Know It? Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2011. Kindle Edition. Anthony Le Donne’s Historical Jesus is one of the finest short works I’ve read on historical Jesus studies, human memory, and historiography. Le Donne positions himself as a “postmodern historian” whose task is not [...]
A “preserved” Jesus.
“The historian who continues to look for a “preserved” Jesus has no other recourse but skepticism. The historian who is intent to find “an objectively true picture” of Jesus has simply misunderstood the historian’s task to account for varying and evolving social memories and explain their most plausible relationship.” Anthony Le Donne. Historical Jesus: What [...]
Are these good or bad reasons to affirm a “historical” Adam?
Kevin DeYoung listed ten reasons why one should believe in a historical Adam in “10 Reasons to Believe in a Historical Adam” . James McGrath responded point-by-point in “Ten Really Bad Reasons to Believe in a Historical Adam” . In summary, these are the points made: (1) The Bible doesn’t distinguish between “history” and “theology”. (2) The [...]
Interview with Craig Keener.
Brian Auten of Apologetics 315 has interviewed Craig Keener about his scholarly work, especially his recent work in historiography and the miraculous. Listen here.
Historiography and the miraculous.
In the second debate between Craig A. Evans and Bart D. Ehrman (see “Ehrman-Evans 2012 debates”) Evans was asked about the miraculous as relates to doing history. The question was framed in such as way as to discover whether or not Evans is consistent when he reads claims about miracles in ancient literature. In other [...]
Rethinking history with Keith Jenkins (Pt. 3).
If you’ve haven’t had an opportunity to read Part 1 and Part 2 of my interaction with Keith Jenkins’ Re-thinking History I recommend reading those post first. In the third and final chapter of this book titled “Doing history in the post-modern world” Jenkins presents his logic for still doing historical work, even though he has [...]
Rethinking history with Keith Jenkins (Pt. 2).
In my previous engagement with Keith Jenkins’ Rethinking History (see part 1) I examine his assault on the idea that history = the past, that history is singular, and that history can be objectively understood. Today I ponder his arguments in Chapter Two: “On some questions and some answers”. These are the seven questions he [...]
Rethinking history with Keith Jenkins (Pt. 1).
Recently I finished Keith Jenkins’ book Re-Thinking History (Routledge, 1991). Jenkins is a professor of history at the University of Chichester who is known for his advocating of a postmodern historiography. What characterizes a “postmodern” historiography? Well, oddly enough this statement by the philosopher Voltaire works quite well: ”There is no history, only fictions of varying [...]
Peter Williams on the Gospels as eyewitness accounts.
Peter Williams builds on the work of scholars like Richard Bauckham and Tal Ilan in this apologetic presentation of the Gospels as eyewitness accounts: (HT: Andrew Wilson)
In the Mail: Jesus Have I Loved, but Paul? by Daniel Kirk
Yesterday I received a review copy of Daniel Kirk‘s Jesus Have I Loved, but Paul? A Narrative Approach to the Problem of Pauline Christianity in the mail courtesy of Baker Academic (you can learn more about the book here). I will be part of a blog tour running from the 9th to the 20th of January [...]
N.T. Wright on the Jesus of Pope Benedict XVI, Maurice Casey, and Bruce N. Fisk.
N.T. Wright has written an article for The Times Literary Supplement reviewing Jesus of Nazareth: Holy Week: From the Entrance into Jerusalem to the Resurrection by Pope Benedict XVI; Jesus of Nazareth: An Independent Historian’s Account of His Life and Teaching by Maurice Casey; and A Hitchhiker’s Guide to Jesus: Reading the Gospels on the Ground [...]
Anthony Le Donne on “the game of telephone”.
You may have heard some scholars compare the oral traditions of the early church to the “the game of telephone” wherein you gather a circle of children, tell the first one something, then watch as it morphs until it is barely recognizable when it has gone all the way around. This analogy is used to [...]
More of Anthony Le Donne’s historical Jesus.
Several days ago I posted some excerpts from Anthony Le Donne’s Historical Jesus: What Can We Know and How Can We Know It? (see here) Here are some more statements that caught my eye: “The first perceptions of Jesus were shaped by the external spurs and constraints unique to his historical context.” (p. 23). Kindle Edition. [...]
“Apologist” as a dismissive label.
There are some people who are self-designated apologists that I struggle to take seriously. I am skeptical of what they write because I sense that it is tainted with a misguided agenda. I imagine that if I sat down for coffee with one of these folks he would raise his voice until it got uncomfortable, [...]
Book Review: The Stories of Jesus’ Birth by Edwin D. Freed.
Edwin D. Freed. The Stories of Jesus’ Birth: A Critical Introduction. New York: T&T Clark, 2001. (Amazon.com) Edwin D. Freed’s book on the Infancy Narratives of the Gospels is intended to function as an introduction to the subject. The author approaches the subject critically. It is a work that takes historiographical methodology seriously, though Freed [...]
Anthony Le Donne’s historical Jesus.
I am grateful to Nick Norelli who was adamant that I read Anthony Le Donne‘s Historical Jesus: What Can We Know and How Can We Know It? These are some excerpts from the early part of the book that have caught my attention: “…it must be said that there is no need to draw a line [...]
Exile defined by E.W. Said.
This Sunday I will be preaching the homily for the Third Week of Advent on Matthew 2.13-15. In this passage Jesus is exiled to Egypt in preparation for his exodus back to the land of his people. These two themes of exile and exodus will be the focus of my sermon. I read Edward W. [...]
Craig A. Evans on the historical setting and meaning of Christmas, the Dead Sea Scrolls, and Herod the Great.
As I mentioned in a previous post CTS will be showing a documentary titled ‘The Journey to Christmas’ today and tomorrow (for details go here). Craig A. Evans is one of the scholars (“experts”) that is consulted throughout the shiow. He discusses the historical setting of Christmas, the Dead Sea Scrolls, Herod the Great, and [...]
Simply Jesus: an interview with N.T. Wright.
N.T. Wright was interviewed about his new book Simply Jesus (HT: Kurt Willems):
Book Review: History: A Very Short Introduction by John H. Arnold
Arnold, John H. History: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000. One thing that was made obvious to me while reading Michael Licona’s The Resurrection of Jesus: A New Historiographical Approach is that I have not thought through what principles guide me as I study history and that I am not alone in that [...]
The eyewitness, John Mark?
In Thomas C. Oden’s The African Memory of Mark (a book sent to me by IVP Academic some time ago) he surveys how John Mark is remembered in the African Christian tradition. It is a fascinating book. In many ways it challenges what Oden calls “Euro-American historicist criteria” by allowing for memory and tradition to have a [...]
Book Notice: The World of Jesus and the Early Church edited by Craig Evans.
I received word that a new book edited by Craig A. Evans titled The World of Jesus and the Early Church: Identity and Interpretation in the Early Communities of Faith is set to release next month. The blurb from the back of the book is as follows: Religious communities that possess sacred documents define themselves, at [...]
An argument from incompetent design?
I consider myself an evangelical who is fairly competent. I have presuppositions, but evidence matters and I am willing to participate in a hermeneutical cycle of testing my presuppositions against counter claims to ask if they withstand scrutiny. Of course, if my views have flaws this doesn’t mean I abandon them straight away. There must be a [...]
Interview with Craig Evans.
Brian Auten of Apologetics 315 has interviewed Dr. Craig A. Evans on a wide array of subjects related to historical Jesus scholarship here. This is part of the blurb: “He talks about his background and how he got into this area of scholarship (Jesus, the Gospels and Biblical manuscripts), what impresses him most about the [...]
Preferring a historical Adam, but willing to admit a metaphorical one (guest post by Paul Bruggink)
Guest Post: Paul Bruggink I am writing this as a Christian layman who would prefer to believe that Adam and Eve were historical. But with the rapidly mounting scientific evidence indicating that they might not have been historical people, I then would like to find a way to reconcile a metaphorical Adam and Eve with [...]
Adam is a metaphor (guest post from Jeff Fischer).
Jeff Fischer, self-described lay person Metaphor: one thing conceived as representing another; a symbol. Adam is best understood as a metaphor. He represents, or is a symbol for, all of mankind. I have not always believed this. I was taught that Adam was an historical figure. But now science has got in the way, and [...]
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