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The Bible Geek Podcast 20-008 Jun 09, 2020

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The story of Balaam in Numbers 22 is puzzling. Verse 6, which says any curse or blessing Balaam may speak will come true, reminds me of Jesus giving a blank check to Peter in Matt. 17. Any connection? And what is going on in this story? God seems to change his mind a lot. What was Balaam supposed to do? What is the point of Frances the talking mule? Is Matthew’s “Thou art Peter” passage some sort of pro-papal propaganda? Any advice re my relationship with a religious woman who knows I am an agnostic but urges me to try teaching the Bible? What was the Apocalypse of Peter and why was it passed over for the canon? Did any early Christians believe in the “once save always saved” doctrine? Where did the idea of the 'name it and claim it' theology come from? What is your opinion on the writers Karen Armstrong and C.S Lewis?

The Bible Geek Podcast 20-007 Jun 02, 2020

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The Bible Geek's Emergency Relief Request https://www.gofundme.com/f/the-bible-geek Can you explain more about the haberim and how they may relate to the origins of Christianity? Based on John 2:19-21 and 8:57, Irenaeus believed Jesus was about 50 at his death. Did this view die out in the pre-Nicene times or did it reappear in later theology? Also, how, if at all, could this be harmonized with the synoptic gospels? How are chthonic cults related to mystery religions, dying and rising saviors, etc? What do you think of my theory that Paul was intentionally trying to cleave off the straying Jewish cult followers from Judaism? Does your “Christian-atheism” share much with the thought of Slavoj Zizek and Jordan Peterson?

The Bible Geek Podcast 20-006 May 24, 2020

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Possible explanations of visionary experiences via hallucinaens, etc. What evidence nis there for Mark having originated in Antioch or Rome? For Matthew being wriiten in Antioch? Any idea to what extent Paul was reared in Roman or Roman-influenced culture (as opposed, say, to hellenistic / Jewish)? Acts 4:13 Peter is called "agrammatoi" ("unlettered"). Does that mean "not formally educated in religious matters or the Law of Moses" or just plain “illiterate"? Hyam Maccoby theorizes that Jesus’ Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem took place, not in the Spring around the time of Passover, but rather in the Autumn during Sukkot, the Jewish Feast of Tabernacles. Further, Maccoby feels that too many events have been compressed into the brief time of Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem and the crucifixion. It makes much more sense if these numerous events took place stretched out between Autumn and Spring. What do you think? Can you explain where scholars got the idea that the evangelist Luke was a medical doctor?

The Bible Geek Podcast 20-005 Apr 02, 2020

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Do you think the “young man” who flees the Garden of Gethsemane in Mark 14:51-52, leaving his sheet in the clutches of Jesus’ enemies might be a symbol for the casting off of the body of flesh and the emergence of the spiritual/resurrection body, having escaped the clutches of the Archons? In Raymond Brown's Anchor Bible volume "An Introduction to the New Testament," Brown dismisses the troubling episode of Jesus telling his disciples that he speaks in parables so that the public won't understand. (Mk 4:11-12), claiming it displays the biblical tendency to regard disappointing results as foreordained by God. But how is that any better? Do you think it’s completely out of the question there was a Hebrew original of the Greek version of Daniel? What’s the deal with the Western text tradition? Do we know why it exists, or what gave rise to it? Hello, Dr. Price, from Luther. I’ve got another pair of questions for you today. Both require us to wear our historicity hats. Paul and James seemingly were the two primary figures in primitive Christianity. Yet since early Christian history, the primary dichotomy or internal competition was assigned to Paul and Peter, as one gets from a casual read of Acts. How or why do you think the Peter of history became one of the Big Two, especially considering Paul explicitly and Acts implicitly has him as more a waffling flunky than a leader? What do you think was Paul’s actual belief about his religious concepts compared to those of the Jamesian church?

The Bible Geek Podcast 20-004 Mar 20, 2020

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What do you make of the young man in the loin cloth, a.k.a. the Naked Fugitive, present at Jesus' arrest? Where does F.C. Baur claim that Acts uses Simon Magus to stand for Paul? Does Deuteronomy 22:5’ prohibition of cross-dressing fit in the Mary Douglas’s discussion of Israelite taxonomy? What is your view of speaking in tongues as described in the epistles and acts? When did people stop viewing the books that became the Bible as books written by people about God's interaction with the world and begin seeing them with some higher view of inspiration, as God's own words? What was Dr. Albert Schweitzer's contribution to biblical scholarship and how is he now regarded? Do you think that Mark may have used Josephus as a source?

The Bible Geek Podcast 20-003 Feb 29, 2020

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Is the Talpiot Tomb in East Jerusalem the Tomb of Jesus Christ and His Family as well as His Parents and close relatives? Why do we not have a binity rather than a trinity? Where did the notion of the Holy Ghost come from? The noun ‘Elohim’ has three basic uses in the Hebrew scriptures: the One God, lesser deities, and very prominent saints, as with Abraham (Gen. 23:6) and Samuel (1 Samuel 28:13). Is the 3rd perhaps the root of an 'exaltation theology' that would later be applied to Jesus? In Exodus 4:21 and many times in Exodus 7-11, it is written that "Pharaoh's heart was hard" and that "Pharaoh's heart was hardened". The Hebrew word translated "hardened" can also mean “strengthened.” This is said in tandem with God promising great signs and wonders. Could this mean God would by this means encourage Pharaoh to yield, but that he still resisted? What is your estimation of Bishop Spong’s scholarly work? Do you think the Protestant emphasis on Sola Scriptura is actually making an idol of the Bible? Who are your favorite conservative NT scholars and why? Is the philosophy of history espoused by Fichte/Hegel integral to Tübingen scholarship (e.g., F.C. Baur)?

The Bible Geek Podcast 20-002 Jan 26, 2020

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Could the Sermon on the Mount have been a non or pre-Christian text incorporated by Christians and attributed to Jesus? Aren’t the Passion stories of various savior cults a revived version of the Chaoskampf myth? Would you share some of your thoughts about the book/prophet Amos? Can you discuss Christian views on reincarnation? Is there a precedent for it in the early church or even the New Testament itself? Why are the disciples denigrated as lower class dullards in the gospels? What do you think of the theory that Rabbi Akiva rewrote the OT?

The Bible Geek Podcast 20-001 Jan 10, 2020

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Pagan Greek trinities? On his first visit to Jerusalem, Paul "tried to associate with the disciples, but they were all afraid of him, not believing that he was a disciple." (Acts 9:26) Fitzmyer's commentary says these were just Jerusalem Christians as opposed to the Twelve. Does that sound right to you? Or, is it more like the term "apostle" in this sense? Acts 9:29 says "[Paul] also used to speak and debate with the Hellenists, but they kept trying to kill him." Fitzmyer says in this case “Hellenists” can't mean Jewish Christians, but rather just Jews. But isn't Acts pretty consistent in using "Hellenists" to describe Jewish Christians, like Stephen & the Gang who get recruited to go wait tables? If so ... KILL HIM? How could Paul lack the authority to draw the Corinthians, whom he evangelized, away from missionaries of James and have such a struggle in this community, yet, when he went to Rome in the account in Acts he could summon the Jewish leadership to him and they would listen to him? Can you say something about “liberation theology”, the idea that the gospel is literally good news to the poor. And, why did this theology take off in Latin America? Might Jesus’ Gethsemane prayer about the cup passing from him originally have belonged to the Last Supper context? And then might it reflect the story of Joseph dining with his brothers with reference to Joseph’s cup of divination? If so, may we infer that Jesus was using such a cup and passed it among his disciples, each of whom addressed the cup asking “Is it I, Lord (i.e., God)?” Jesus then looks into it and sees that Judas’ question got the “yes.” In light of the Lot story where he has sex with his daughter, begetting the no-good Ammonites and Moabites, obviouslydisapproving of incest, how could Abraham speak of his marrying his half sister? Wasn’t the Temple of Solomon borrowed from the Egyptian story of the temple at Karnak built by Amenhoteop III? Both stories have a Hiram of Tyre, and many of the children of David and Solomon have very similar names when compared to those of Amenhotep III. What do you think of the bible authors rewriting Egyptian history as their own jewish history ?

The Bible Geek Podcast 19-029 Dec 17, 2019

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Re: the Bible’s stance on alcohol, what about Jesus' own drinking as in Matt. 11:18-19? Are you familiar with Norman Golb and his book, Who Wrote the Dead Sea Scrolls, and if so, what do you think? Does Mark’s negative depiction of Jesus’ disciples and relatives reflect enmity between Jewish and Gentile/Pauline factions? Why does the author of “The Second Treatise of the Great Seth” speak so mockingly of the heroes of the OT? . Brandon suggests we need not worry that passages or whole epistles by Paul were censored since some pretty disturbing material still appears in the Pauline Corpus. Think so? If I understand you correctly, we agree that Simon Magus is at the root of this belief system advanced by the “works of Paul” (stuff about the law and a judging, punishing God are out). So Simon’s philosophy and writings would be considered source material. Is there any uncontaminated remnant of this belief system? What do you think of the idea that there was no historical "Nazareth" until someone pointed at a place and told the patron saint of credulity, the Empress Helena (Mother of Constantine), "Yeah, this is Nazareth."? You once said you rejected the notion in Atwill’s Caesar’s Messiah that the Romans had a part in creating the gospels and that they were engaged in a sort of esoteric satire which resulted in Christians unwittingly worshiping Titus instead of Jesus. I was wondering why you think this is such an incredible theory, isn't this precisely what happened in your case? Sure sounds like the jokes on you!

The Bible Geek Podcast 19-028 Dec 06, 2019

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Is there any apologetic for T-totaling other than the idea of setting a good example? What is the Biblical view of suicide? Was early Christian worship based on Jewish worship or influenced by pagan religion? What’re your thoughts on Neville Goddard’s books and lectures? Could the name of the Gnostic Demiurge “Yaldabaoth” derive from the Iranian celebration of the night of the winter solstice as Shab-e Yalda, literally, "the night of Yalda"? What do you think of the Bible critics Dr. Bruce M. Metzger and F.F. Bruce who think that the New Testament is historically absolutely correct? Back in the 70s, when the American population was so much more Christian then, were Evangelicals confident based on this strength in numbers, or was there a feeling of alarm, a sense of losing ground, because of the counterculture's gains since the late 60s?

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