Эпизоды
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The phrase "synoptic gospels" is thrown around a lot in Biblical scholarship, but what does it mean, and why are they important?
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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Many people in the modern western world view reincarnation as a belief predominately from eastern religions - especially buddhism and hinduism.
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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Пропущенные эпизоды?
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Welcome everyone to a very special episode of Misquoting Jesus - our 100th episode!
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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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?
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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New manuscripts discoveries in Biblical studies are often outed as forgeries, But sometimes -- rarely -- they turn out to be authentic.
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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When a scholar claims to have discovered a new text from early Christianity, it can send shockwaves through the academic community.
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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Why do so many Christians claim that other Christians are not really Christians? Is there a definition written in the sky somewhere?
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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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.
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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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?
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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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.
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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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?
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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?
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For a country that was apparently founded on the separation of church and state, US politics seems to be deeply enmeshed with Christianity.
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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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?
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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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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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.
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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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?
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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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?
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 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?
This episode offers a chance to uncover the layers of historical, religious, and philosophical complexities surrounding these ancient texts.
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