The Bible Geek Show

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The Bible Geek Podcast 17-047 Oct 15, 2017

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Besides Jesus historicism and Mythicism, is there a "third way", whereby the Jesus of the gospels is a composite of stories originally told of several historic figures?Â Several ancient sources remember Jesus as a teller of parables. Doesnâ??t this imply there was such a teacher? I would like your thoughts on creatio ex nihilo and the opening verses of Genesis. Is there any New Testament passage that references the Masoretic texts instead of the Septuagint? Why does history seem to belie Deuteronomyâ??s promises for Godâ??s protection and forgiveness for the Jewish nation? Burton Mack tells us ancient students commonly had to try to write what a well known philosopher might say on this or that topic. Does this contradict Bart Ehrmanâ??s claim that the ancients frowned on pseudepigraphy? Does Mark 4:11-12 contradict Mark 4:21-23? Does an early date for the Didache depend on an early date for the canonical New Testament? How much of the New Testament does it predate--if any?

The Bible Geek Podcast 17-046 Oct 04, 2017

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The Korean terms for God and Jesus. Why are Korean Christians so inclined to Western Protestant theology, specifically Calvinism? â??How were animal sacrifices and shamans excised from the Judeo-Christain tradition? Why was Western Christianity more successful than Eastern in suppressing polygyny?Â Please recommend some sources on â??deconversion,â?? the process of â??converting" out of a religion and into non-belief.Â Can you suggest resources on the evolution of Sophia into Christ? Suggestions on textual criticism. I would be greatly interested in knowing what your reasons may be for thinking all of the gospels were likely written in the 2nd rather than the 1st century. Suppose Gideon had a large army but divided them into groups of 300 which engaged and defeated the Midianites in various places, so that the credit for defeating â??the Midianitesâ?? (as a whole) was given to this or that 300 depending on where the tale was told? Reasons for thinking the Vedic Soma drink was not the juice of the Amanita Muscaria mushroom.

The Bible Geek Podcast 17-045 Oct 03, 2017

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When Jesus was tempted by Satan on the mountain top, why didn't he simply say "all creation is mine already, I made it, so it's not yours to give me"? Isnâ??t this Manichean? What do you know of the accusation that Count Tischendorff maybe forged part of the Codex Sinaiticus? Does the Samaritan Pentateuch have a different version of Deuteronomy? Why your pronunciation of â??Yahwehâ?? is mistaken. What do the terms â??spirit, soul, body;â?? â??mind, body, spirit;â?? â??soul, body, mindâ?? denote in the Bible? Was Lukeâ??s Theophilus Theophilus of Antioch in the 2nd century? Was the holy oil used by the priests in both the First and Second Temples a hallucinogen? Julian Jaynes suggests that people in the Bronze Age hallucinated stones speaking to them, and thought that the stones were actual gods. Does this bear on various stone stories and texts in the Bible? I've heard it said by "preservationists" (King James only preservationists at least) that Psalms 12:6-7 is the proof that God has providentially preserved the words of the Bible through the ages. But isnâ??t this a gross misinterpretation?

The Bible Geek Podcast 17-044 Sep 28, 2017

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Donâ??t ongoing theological developments inadvertently produce contradictions with earlier forms of the beliefs? What exactly was the place of Hercules in Ancient Greek popular devotion? And does it figure at all into positing an originally mythic Christ? Why does Christian iconography customarily depict Jesus as long-haired, if Paul considers long hair for a man dishonorable (1 Corinthians 11:14)? I would like to hear your comment about a recent argument touting supposed evidence of Joshuaâ??s destruction of Hazor. Does the Duhem Quine thesis salvage theodicy against the falsification argument? Why do the Abrahamic religions have such strong taboos about sex?

The Bible Geek Podcast 17-043 Sep 18, 2017

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The genealogy in the Bible goes from Adam to Jesus in some 6000+ years. Does this force Christians into a young earth stance? Could you comment on what is meant by â??wineâ?? in the Bible? What do you make of the theory that Paul was Jesusâ?? choice to repace Judas and that the eleven jumped the gun when they picked Matthaias? What did Albert Schweitzer mean by calling baptism an â??eschatological sacrament"? Why is it that baptism is and always seems to have been included in Christianity? John baptized. Essenes baptized. But did Jesus ever baptize? Did he ever instruct others to baptize? Or was this just part of bringing the Baptistâ??s flock into the fold? Can you talk a little bit about the different things that baptism (and the Eucharist, for that matter) mean to different sects of Christians?

The Bible Geek Podcast 17-042 Sep 12, 2017

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Why do even critical scholars resist the conclusion that the gospel stories are plainly rewrites of OT stories, not traditions of what Jesus said and did?. Â Is there anyway to harmonize the god of the Old Testament and the story line of the Old Testament with Jesus and the New Testament ? Can we honestly call creation "good" or "perfect" if there is a dog gone crafty serpent in there? Given that the gospels are legendary anyway, could the idea of Peter as an ignorant fisherman beÂ complete fiction, and perhaps the original Cephas/Peter was in fact highly educated and thus could have written 1 Peter? Please explain the â??filioqueâ?? controvery. Matthew 19:12 has Jesus endorse celibacy. In 1 Cor. Paul says something similar but without quoting Jesus. Doesnâ??t this support Mythicism? Hamon, in the Septuagint, is called a 'Macedonian' instead of a Persian. Could the translator have been trying to avert blame from the Persians? Â What is the intent in Acts 15 when the Gentiles are urged to avoid â??bloodâ??? Revelation 6:6 has the Black Horseman commanded not to harm or destroy the oil. Might this refer to adulterating it? How does Paul fits into the orthodox account of the origins of Christianity? Why would Jesus not teach everything to his followers while on earth? And why not impart any new teaching to his original circle rather than some outsider?

The Bible Geek Podcast 17-041 Aug 29, 2017

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The best evidence for God's existence is that there IS NO evidence for God's existence. That is to say, if he were to be measured he would no longer be transcendent, infinite, etc. A good, if ironic argument for GodÃ¢??s existence in the face of no evidence? Might the two feeding, one with 7 baskets of leftovers, the other with 12, symbolize the Gentile and Jewish churches respectively? What would it have been like for ancient Jews in Palestine to see a total solar eclipse? If Paul did in fact know the apostles and James the brother of Jesus would that be considered reliable evidence that Gospel accounts are more or less accurate? Why do critics recognize the post-apostolic standpoint of LukeÃ¢??s prologue but not of 1 Cor. 11:2?

The Bible Geek Podcast 17-040 Aug 24, 2017

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Can you recommend some good books on the historical John the Baptist or on early understandings of or religions based on him? Is there an approach you'd recommend for someone trying to get a more robust self-education on the origins of Christianity? When Jesus tells Peter, â??Get behind me, Adversary!â?? might he have been asking Satan to â??back him up,â?? reinforcing his resolve in the face of his coming Passion? In Mark 15:7 Barabbas is described as having committed murder during "the insurrection." Is there any historical evidence, Josephus perhaps, that can describe this insurrection? Please comment on the work of Stephan Huller and that of Roger Pearse on Mithraism in the Roman world. One listenerâ??s childhood vision of God fighting Godzilla!

The Bible Geek Podcast 17-039 Aug 20, 2017

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How did the idea of demons and demon possession come into Judaism and Christianity? In Mark 14:47 the disciples try to resist Jesusâ?? arrest. Why do the Synoptic Gospels move from "one who stood by", to â??a companion" to â??a follower" and John seems to feel it necessary to name the one eared man? Just because the fragment P52 has text that matches what we currently identify as John 18, how can we presume that the missing pieces, if they were to magically appear, would in fact be a complete copy of the Gospel of John? If God existed, wouldnâ??t the Hubble Telescope have spotted him by now? Â Who introduced the â??nomina sacraâ?? into NT manuscripts, and how can we be sure what names are intended in these abbreviations? What do you think of the most common arguments offered for the existence of God? Might the stars that fall to earth in Mark 13 refer to fallen angels? Might the episode of the young man in Mark 14 be a vestige of a version in which Jesus escaped his captors?

The Bible Geek Podcast 17-038 Aug 16, 2017

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Opening the Transfiguration episode, Mark and Matthew state that "6 days had passed" before this event while Luke states "8 days" had passed. Why the difference in the days? What, if any, is the textual evidence that some Gnostics believed Judas Iscariot was specifically commissioned by Jesus to "betray"Â Jesus, in order to liberate the Christ aeon from his body? What do you think of the parallels between Jesus Christ and John Conner from the terminator series?Â What are the main arguments/pieces of evidence that, in your view, prevent historicity from being completely thrown off the table? Can you give me some historical insight into what Blaise Pascal thought of the Wager?Â If you were a psychologist how could you actually prove a patient who thought he was God that he was mistaken? Does Matthew 5:17-20 leave room for the â??least in the Kingdomâ?? are still saved? Would Acts 10-11 contradict Matthew 28 if â??make disciples of all the nationsâ??refers to the nations of Israel, rather than to the gentiles? Does the NT oppose secret knowledge and esoteric interpretation or not? In short, is new testament ecumenicalism fatal to historicity? Re whether Judas's betrayal is really necessary to Gospel narrative. In days before photography, would it have been that easy to recognize a famous person on street like that? If the Persiansâ?? Jewish protÃ©gÃ©s were Zoroastrianized, how did the Sadducees get in charge of Judea? I'm hoping you can clarify something about your stance on abortion. What do you think about instances of ectopic pregnancy, rape, incest, and victims of human trafficking? Are there circumstances which you'd say it's a moral imperative to allow an abortion?

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