The Bible Geek Show Archives: Recent Episodes
thebiblegeek
11-7-2008. Based on your recommendation, my bible of choice is the NASB. I turn to it for reading any biblical books that are not in your Pre-Nicene New Testament, or in Richard E. Friedman's The Bible with Sources Revealed. It's a good bible, but of course, misses out some of the fun books like Maccabees and Esdras, Do you have any recommendations for books that contain the Apocrypha?
11-7-2008. I have been a fan of the role-playing game Vampire the Masquerade for many years. My interest has turned to the background of Lilith. She is portrayed as the mate and equal of Adam, and later as the lover of God, or Jehovah, as they call him. I'm interested in knowing more about her. My questions are: Where can I find out more about her story? Is there a relation between her and Adam, or the Christian god for that matter?
11-7-2008. I am greatly interested in learning about the origins of Christianity. I have begun to read Edwin Johnson's Antiqua Mater. I found my curiosity piqued regarding matters of biblical historicity. First, I am wondering if there have been any major new historical developments or archaeological findings since this book was published. Do you agree with Johnson's interpretations of Tacitus, Pliny, Suetonius, Justin Martyr, etc.? Isn't an accurate assessment of historical truthfulness really significant? P.S. Thank you very much Bob for providing this great service to us. It is a delight to listen to and learn from you, and I hope you know that you are needed more than you can imagine. shaggie414
10-29-2008. Dr. Price, I have recently started listening to your show, and enjoyed the lecture on Darwin, Kant, etc. that you did as part of the Modern Theology series. As I was checking this webpage out I noticed that you have published commentaries for at least one of your other lecture series. Are you planning to do something similar for this series? I would be extremely helpful countering William Baird's two volume History of New Testament Research. Sky
10-29-2008. Searching on Google I've found it difficult to find philosophically rigorous evaluations of Thomas Aquinas' Five Ways that aren't obviously guilty of either arguing against a straw man or suffering from legitimate charges of misinterpretation. I'm aware of Kenny's work, and excerpts from Plantinga's God and Other Minds, but was wondering if you had some favorites of your own. Thanks. James in AZ
10-29-2008. Jesus Absconditus. Why did Jesus spend so little time on earth after he rose from the dead? Is there some reason he had to get back to heaven? Seems like it would have been better if he'd have hung around for a few years to prove to all the skeptics without a doubt that he really had risen. I'd love to hear what you think. Thanks.
10-15-2008. If we assume that 1 Corinthians 15:3 is an interpolation (I agree), what historical evidence do we have that the Christ appeared not only to Paul but to others as well? What do you make of the reference at the end of Romans that Paul had relatives that became Christians before he did?
10-29-2008. Hi Dr. Price. I am interested to find out more about possible Zoroastrian influence on Judaism after the Exile, and also the influence of later Greek thought on Judaism. Are there any books on these types of influence? I have come across Gregory Riley's The River of God, but I would love to go deeper. Love the show. Many thanks! Seeker 101
10-15-2008. I read that gospels = biography in Richard A. Burridge's What are the Gospels? A Comparison with Greco-Roman Biography (2004). Since the ancients could write fictional biographies of historical people, but never biographies of fictional people, his conclusion is: JC is historical. Please comment.
10-15-2008. In Galatians 1:11-17, we read that Paul received his gospel directly from JC through revelation. We never read from Paul that the pillars disagreed his doctrines. That he and the pillars were in total agreement seems too much of a coincidence. Is Paul stretching the story? I have the distinct impression that something is missing, or someone is lying, etc. The way it is now, in the letters of Paul, it does not compute.
10-15-2008. A couple of times in 1 Samuel, there is a story that seeks to explain the popular phrase, "Is Saul also among the prophets?" (1 Samuel 10:11 and 19:23), but I am not sure when people would use the original phrase. Unlike "He's a mighty hunter like Nimrod," this one leaves me clueless!
10-15-2008. Dr. Price, what are your thoughts on the recent discovery of a cup with an inscription referring to a "Christ" as a magician?
10-8-2008. We waited until 8:30 pm Eastern for Dr. Bob to show up, but he never came online, so there was no questions answered this week. Cheers, Ricco
10-15-2008. I was interested in your thoughts on how religion could play out in the future. That is, as something that doesn't leave society, but that adherents no longer wear on their sleeves, like a hobby. I am having a hard time seeing how Christians would get passed the "hell" thing. Bob (Seattle)
10-9-2008. Hello. Since I sent the short note yesterday, explaining there was no Q&A yesterday, because I had not heard from Bob, I wanted to let you know that it just slipped his mind, and there is no problem. Cheers! Ricco
10-1-2008. Your geekiness, What is the relationship between Islam and moon worship? I've heard that Allah was a moon god.Is Islam a fusion of pagan moon worship and Judaeo-Christian types of ideas?
10-1-2008. Dear Dr. Price, Jews, Christians and Muslims interpret the story of Sodom and Gomorrah differently, in terms of the degree to which each reads the story as a castigation of homsexuality. In the various iterations, just what exactly was it that the mob was intending to do with, or to, the angels (Genesis 19:5)? To what degree can we be certain that the original intent was to represent the Sodomite mob as wanting to have forceful sexual relations with the two angels? And if this was the intention, have theologians traditionally equated male-on-male gang rape with homosexuality, or is it instead inferred from the general sinfulness of the cities of the plain?
10-1-2008. Please comment on Richard Burridge, 2004, What are the gospels? A comparison with Greco-Roman biography, 2nd edition, Eerdmans. Any example of biography of mythical or non-historical persons?
10-1-2008. Bob, you have mentioned the role that ancient novels, classic tragedy and the Old Testament played in the formation of the New Testament narratives. Do you think there is any role for horror stories, especially in the formation of some of the apocalypses? I know of at least one person, Deborah Felton, who is doing research into horror stories of the classical world. As I read over some of the source material she is working from, I was struck by the realization that the Biblical narrative would have to be read aloud to an audience, which raises the question: how much of the demonic stories, ghosts, and the descent into Hades, etc., were meant to frighten the listener? Or put another way, how many of these stories served the same function modern horror stories do?
9-24-2008. I read that the name Jesus is just the Greek version of Joshua -- which means "Yahweh Saves," or "Saviour." Are there any theories out there (crazy or not so crazy!) that link Jesus Christ with Joshua, Son of Nun? Do people see any connection between them?
9-24-2008. From what I understand Marcion's gospel was a form of Luke -- and Luke was based on Mark. However, it seems that Mark and Marcion are very different -- Mark is very Jewish, or at least very scriptural in that almost all of the elements within it can be traced to old testament passages. Why would Marcion use a gospel based on the Torah to develop his own? Was Marcion as anti-Jewish as I imagined? Or did Marcion not realize that Mark was interpreted scripture? Or was there an intermediate stage that I'm missing? Any help in sorting out my confusion would be appreciated!
9-24-2008. Dr. Price, I was hoping to get your interpretation of Mark 14:51-52, the famous scene of the young man and the linen cloth. I know that several scholars, including your colleague John Dominic Crossan, have paired this section with the "Secret Gospel of Mark". In your article, "Second Thoughts on the Secret Gospel" you make the case that the "Secret Gospel" was Morton Smith's forgery, if this is the case, what sense do you make of Mark 14:51? By the way, I stumbled across the book "Mystic Rhythms" on Amazon, the one that you and Carol did about Rush. Is this where you advance your Geddy Lee Myth hypothesis?
9-24-2008. I was reading a post elsewhere and someone was asking if others had more information on the Cathar. This is a new early Christian group to me. I've heard of other groups, like the Gnostics, Essenes, Nazarenes, Docetists, and the like, but I have no information except what Webster's dictionary states, which is (in the singular), "a member of one of various ascetic and dualistic Christian sects esp. of the later Middle Ages teaching that matter is evil and professing faith in an angelic Christ who did not really undergo human birth or death". This sounds almost Gnostic, with slight differences. Next in line after that definition is the word "catharsis" and Webster speaks of "purgation", purification or purgation of the emotions (as pity and fear)", a purification or purgation that brings about spiritual renewal or release from tension". I'm assuming there is a relationship, not just in origin of the word "catharsis", but also cathartic rituals. Can you please enlighten us on the Cathars and their rituals (probably cathartic ones given the word relationship), as well as other things about them and other sources to read about them? Thanks. Mriana
9-24-2008. Bob's opening monologue for the 9/24/08 "Ask the Bible Geek" show, where Dr. Robert M. Price answers questions posed on TheBibleGeek.org site.
9-24-2008. Can a sound case for interpolation of Gal 1:18-2:1 be made? Marcion's version of Galatians lacked 1:18-24 and the word "again" (Greek: palin). Tertullian and others claimed Marcion stripped out what he did not like. Can it be that Marcion had the original and the early Catholics doctored the text to suit their dogmatic agenda? Is there a way to make a case for Marcion priority in the text of Galatians?
9-17-2008. Hi everybody, I'm interested in the bible as a layman / hobbyist, so forgive any of my noob questions in advance : ) My question for today is, How did the Isreali's end up as Egyptian slaves in the first place? It just seems that Moses was called to lead them out, but I'm curious as to how / why they ended up there at all and any type of references where I can read more about that. thanks! Dennis
9-17-2008. Your Geekiness, In a lecture you gave for FreeThought Fort Wayne concerning your book "Top Secret: The Truth Behind Today's Pop Mysticisms", you gave some of your thoughts on some of the New Atheist writers, like Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris, and Christopher Hitchens. Do you have any intention of writing any articles, or perhaps even a book concerning the New Atheists, what they say that you take issue with, and what they say that you agree with. Your take on Pop Mysticism was uncompromisingly fair in it's assessment, as you take the time to appreciate as well as criticize the claims that are made. I think it would be useful for freethinkers to have such a book on the New Atheists as well, especially if it is written by one who wields the sword of discernment as skillfully and gracefully as you do. thebluediamond
9-17-2008. Dr. Price, I've been listening through old Bible Geek episodes (in reverse order--your books are being progressively unwritten!), and on many occasions you talk about how Jesus' promise to return gets progressively "hedged" as the original followers of Jesus died off, and this explains variations in the text. I'm not clear how this makes sense given the Christ-myth theory, however. If there was no Jesus, there were no original witnesses to the prophecy who would be dying off over time. So why would the prophecy be revised and extra explanations added (you mention that the transfiguration was taken to be the coming of the kingdom of God, for example) if there wasn't really anyone who thought Christ's return was imminent? For that matter, how does it make sense for there to be a belief in the "return" of Christ at all if he was mythology later transformed into history? Finally, it still just doesn't seem plausible to me that early Christians in the mythic scenario would be able to get away with just wholesale inventing the historical Jesus. Wouldn't someone have called them on it since it would be less than 100 years or so after the claimed events occurred? Are there any examples of early Jewish critics of Christianity pointing out that the NT is just midrash on the OT or that the stories are otherwise implausible? -Zac
9-17-2008. For God so loved the world that he gave his only son. I'm afraid I don't know the proper reference. But I'm confused. Since right after his death, Jesus went back to his fathers side, or was his father, what exactly was given? I don't see what the sacrifice was. I'm enjoying catching up with the past episodes. Funny way for an athiest to spend his time, but I love history. Michael Duchek San Diego, California
9-17-2008. This is a preemptize question I am asking with the hope that it will be answered about the time you are covering Islam in you world religion lectures. What is your take on Karl-Heinz Ohlig arguement that Muhummad was a Christological title and not the name of a historical person? thanks as always, Steven M Stiles
9-10-2008. Bob's intro for the 9/10 Ask The Bible Geek show, where he answers questions posted on http://TheBibleGeek.org forum
9-10-2008. Is it true that there is a consensus amongst historians that there was a historical Jesus? Secondly Michael Grant has said that the Jesus Myth position has been refuted again and again by scholars. Do you know of any materials that present these refutations? Thank you.
9-10-2008. Dear Dr. Price: One topic that I never saw well-addressed in any harmonization account of the Gospels was the varying reports provided by Mary Magdalene, in Luke and John. To wit (NASB): Luke 21 : 4 While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men suddenly stood near them in dazzling clothing; 5 and as the women were terrified and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, â??Why do you seek the living One among the dead? 6 â??He is not here, but He has risen. Remember how He spoke to you while He was still in Galilee, 7 saying that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again.â?? 8 And they remembered His words, 9 and returned from the tomb and reported all these things to the eleven and to all the rest. 10 Now they were Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James; also the other women with them were telling these things to the apostles. 11 But these words appeared to them as nonsense, and they would not believe them. 12 But Peter got up and ran to the tomb .. But in John 20: 1 Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came early to the tomb, while it was still dark, and saw the stone already taken away from the tomb. 2 So she ran and came to Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and said to them, â??They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him.â?? 3 So Peter and the other disciple went forth, and they were going to the tomb. Luke clearly has Mary reporting of the resurrected Jesus, Peter thinking the story to be nonsense, Peter running to the tomb. But in John we have Mary reporting that someone has taken the body and they don't know where they have "laid" him (an un-resurrected accounting as one could provide), Peter going to the tomb. These "certainly" have to be referring to the same account. I can't find any articulate apologist responses to this issue. How have you seen this addressed in a rational, reasonable attempt at harmonization? Many thanks, iPatch
9-10-2008. I remember, during an Infidel guy podcast, hearing you talk about the "Book of the generations of Adam" genealogy in Genesis 5 and its direct parallel to some list of Sumerian or Akkadian or Babylonian kings; but since then I have not been able to remember in which episode you talked about it nor have I stumbled back upon it. I was wondering if you could draw that parallel again, and perhaps even go into a little more detail about the dating of the ancient near eastern texts referenced and where one might find good translations of them for personal study.
9-10-2008. Bob you mentioned the other night a forthcoming talk you are going to give on pre-Christian savior. Who are some of the figure or are you talking about Isis, Bacchus, Mithra, Ashtar the Awesome, Baal,etc. Or was there a a general cult of the Savior that did not care about the specifics of the Savior. How does the Marcionite/Gnostic revealer Chrestus aka "the Good" figure in with this savior cult or was this a later synthesis that associated the two concepts. Thanks, Steven
9-10-2008. Are there any plans to (re)publish Hermann Detering's article The Falsified Paul in the new JOHC as I can't find a back issue available and a hard copy version is much easier to read and refer back to. Thanks.
9-10-2008. Bob, In World Religion lecture #7 you mention that you believe Judaism may have originally been like Zoroastrianism with an evil deity created the unkosher foods animals. If this is the case does it explain the charge that John the Baptizer had a demon in Luke 7, since John would be eating the creations of the evil diety? Coud this pericope be a reference back to the polytheistic Hebrew faith Margaret Barker argues was still around with the formation of Christianity? Or is merely an early Christian attempt at attacking the founder of a rival sect by equating him with a crazed ascetic who eats bugs? Steven
9-3-2008. Bob's opening monologue for the September 3 show where Dr. Price answers questions submitted on http://TheBibleGeek.org
9-3-2008. Hi Dr. Price There's a stone tablet with Hebrew inscriptions in the news this week that may have an impact on the Historical Jesus debate. The story is here: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/06/world/middleeast/06stone.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=messiah&st=cse&oref=slogin In summary, it's an inscribed tablet dating from the late 1st century BCE, in which a messiah figure is prophesied to rise from the dead in three days. The times article says that this may be evidence that the resurrection prophecies in the Gospels may actually have been uttered by Jesus, since he would have had a context for them within apocalyptic Judaism of the time. And yet, I couldn't help recalling all the apologists who argue for the historicity of the resurrection itself, because 1st century Jews could never have imagined a dying and rising messiah if it hadn't actually happened. If this tablet is genuine, and the interpretation of the inscription correct, doesn't it pretty much demolish that argument?
9-3-2008. Hi! I'm a humble Amphibian-American living in the Northwest. Having grown up Jewish (and you wouldn't believe how hard it is for a frog to keep Kosher) and hanging out with Chassids I have at least a passing acquaintance with my Tribe's odder tradition. I don't have enough Hebrew or Aramaic to really get further into it, but that's just a matter of making the time. My flirtation with Eastern traditions tended towards the Vajrayana school. My wife grew up in an indifferently Chinese Ch'an Buddhist home. We became Sufis a few years back. She came up with a very good line - "Mystics recognize each other. Fundamentalists only see themselves and sin." It's not completely true, but there's definitely something there. In all four of these the training and tradition have always been available. In some times and places they would get you killed for heresy, and there were all sorts of cautionary tales and safeguards. But in the end the esoteric, personal and whatever else you want to call it was around for those who cared to look for it. And one didn't have to look too hard. So where is the mystic Christian tradition, let alone a living one? The Orthodox seem to keep them shut up in monasteries. The Catholics have Contemplative orders, once again kept far away from the flock. Is there anything like Chassidus, Kabbalah, the Tantras or Tariqat in the Christian world? Or is it all locked safely away where most people can never get near it?
9-3-2008. Bob, In Mark 2:14 Levi the son of Alphaeus is mentioned, then in Mark 3:18 a character named James or Jacob, son of Alphaeus is named one of the twelve. Are they suppose to be brother or the same person or what? In Matthews redactions of the naming of the twelve (Matthew 10:2-4) "Matthew" lists Matthew the tax collector and James the son of Alphaeus, while Luke includes the name Matthew without the saying whether this Matthew was a tax collector and James the son of Alphaeus. This combined with the fact that Matthew in the retelling of Mark 2:14 (Matthew 9:9) calls the tax collector Matthew suggest that they are different people, if they are different people then what is the importants of the name Alphaeus? Steven
9-3-2008. As you may already know the Codex Sinaiticus will be released online for the first time. Here is the story: http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5gzdZYondd-Jlqw-ziW9W3qmSSeUwD922E3300 http://www.codexsinaiticus.org/ What is the significance of this? Love the show keep it up!
9-3-2008. I was reading Acts around 4:15-18 when I noticed that events are being described that, presumably, no Christian was present to record for the purpose of including in the Bible. It is obvious that to the overall nature of Bible writing is that of an omniscient narrator. But this case is not a question of chosen style of writing, but what facts were available to the writer from which to construct the story line at all. If Christians make the claim that God inspired the Bible in the sense that he proved such unknowable facts to the human author, then why would this hypothetical God bother to be filling "his critical message to the human race" with such trivia has the words and motivation of the Sanhedrin in this minor episode. How much of the Bible is written in this "omniscient-trivia" style? Thanks from a lifelong atheist.
9-3-2008. Hi Dr. Price, I have been a fan of yours for a long time now and I have always loved your approach to your work... getting to the point, I was wondering if you could make any suggestions toward an M.A. Thesis on the Apocryphal Acts, whether sources, ideas, or if there is an area that you think there could be more research of the literary-critical type, I know you have a strong background in fiction and literature in general, so I just figured I would ask if you had any ideas in the back of your mind, maybe something bouncing around in there concerning the Apocryphal Acts that is just golden! As all your ideas are! Thanks so much, keep up the good work, you have inspired many!
8-27-2008. It seems to me there are two contradictory ways of debunking the New Testament and believe me it needs debunking. 1. This is the emphasis on the Jewish Christians who ran the early church, were dispersed after the Roman destruction of Jerusalem, and eventually were considered heretics by the mainstream churches. The Pauline Church ignored them as much as possible and was not really interested in the real Jesus, a Jewish apocalyptic figure. The Robert Eisler book on the Old Russian version of Josephus gives us an interesting picture of this Jesus and of his politically rebellious followers. 2. This is the emphasis of Burton Mack and others that Jesus can be found only in the Q source and in the Gospel of Thomas and he was less a Jewish apocalyptic figure than a Cynic offering aphorisms and not much more. Which is the better position?
8-27-2008. Good day Professor, and I thank you in advance for your time. I have not yet read your book "The Pre-Nicene New Testament," but I am engaged in a discussion regarding what you purportedly said in regards to Romans 1.3 & 1.4. The person I am discussing this with has quoted you as saying that you believe that Romans 1.3 - 1.4 are an interpolation. This person says you did not explain how you came to that conclusion, and who specifically agrees with you. The reason I am interested in this is because I personally have examined the text, and found substantial consistencies in the language of at least Romans 1.3 with the rest of Romans. Here's my example: Romans 1.3 "Jesus Christ our Lord" - Rom 1.3, 5.21, 6.11, 6.23, 7.25 "The seed of" - Rom 1.3; 9.7; 11.1 "According to the flesh" - Rom 1.3; 8.1; 8.4; 8.5; 8.12; 8.13; 9.3; Therefore, at your earliest convenience we will await your reply. Best regards. - Team FFI
8-27-2008. I was doing a show when someone brought up the 'artifacts' discovered by Ron Wyatt- the nurse archeologist. While it is very easy to dismiss his findings, I must ask about the inscriptions themselves? Have the Israelite saga graffiti been debunked, refuted and falsified? Should we add this to the pieces of Jesus' cross or his foreskin, or challis and all the other fakes or is it legit. What say you?
8-27-2008. Tacitus in his work The Annals says this: "Christus, from whom the name had its origin, suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of one of our procurators, Pontius Pilatus..." source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tacitus_on_Jesus How legitimate is this passage by Tacitus? Was Tacitus considered a very accurate historian?
8-27-2008. Bob, You mentioned, I believe it was in the Genesis lecture, that you once had some of your students write stories about Goliath from Goliath perspective. This idea has struck me as an interesting concept and I was wondering if you might consider doing an anthology of Goliath stories? I was thinking of writing one myself but was unsure of a publication outlet for a swords and sandal short story, then I though the person I would like see publish it was you. Would you consider publishing through lulu an anthology of Goliath or Biblical modeled stories with an introduction done by you?
8-27-2008. Dr. Price, I have two questions if i may: 1. I'm curious what you make of the Luke 1:1-4. Is the whole passage a later interpolation? If authentic, do you think the author is "guilty" or "innocent"? By innocent I mean that he for whatever reasons thinks that his sources are historical in nature, and that he has genuine historical information to add from his "eyewitnesses and servants of the word". Or is he guilty, in the sense of being one of the earliest known Jesus historicist who knowingly takes symbolic source stories and construes them as a Jesus biography? 2. I've heard many Catholics claim that Revelation 12:1-6 refers to Mary, the mother of Jesus, and her role as a salvatory "co-redemptrix" or "mediatrix". Not sure if you're familiar with the "Our Lady of Guadeloupe" cult following, but they claim a supernatural origin of an image of Mary standing on the moon with stars above her and the sun behind her -- and use this as a proof text. Does the text have anything to do with Mary? Who is the woman? And what is the significance of the 1260 days? Many thanks, Daniel.
8-26-2008. Bob,at a number of place you have mentioned Rational theology and Rational lifes of Jesus, I know that this movement and their explanation of Biblical miracles came under attack by Strauss. Is there any books in English represent this movement and their theology I am especially interested in the varous Lifes of Jesus. Thanks, Steven
8-26-2008. I have occasionally heard or read New Testament scholars speak dismissively of the Enlightenment or "Enlightenment thinking," particularly when discussing how historians ought to regard the miracle stories. I just finished a book by Marcus Borg and N.T. Wright, "The Meaning of Jesus," in which Wright treats the Enlightenment as if it's something that went out with the wringer-washer. Granted, I don't get out much, but just when did rationalism and empiricism fall out of favor among historians? Seriously, are the values of the Enlightenment really considered passe by NT scholars, or is this just an attempt by apologists to excuse magical thinking when doing historical reconstruction? -- Scott Knickelbine
8-26-2008. Greetings Dr. Price from Robert Bumbalough in Mesquite Texas aka libertarianbob. I listened to Biblegeek #12 (recorded in November 2005) yesterday. In that show with Reginald Findley, you mentioned you were working on a book about Paul and his roots in Marcionite Gnosticism entitled "The Amazing Colossal Apostle". Is that work available? I'm very interested in learning the story of how Paul got on with the Gnostics. Thanks and Best Robert Bumbalough
8-25-2008. Bob, I have a question for your Genesis Lecture series. In the 8 June Genesis lecture you talked about the scarifice of Isaac, you however did not mention the alternative story put forward in Shalom Spiegel's book "The Last Trial: The Akedah on the Legends and Lore of the Command to Abraham to Offer Isaac as a Sacrifice" that Isaac as actually scarificed and resurrected after two to three years. Could you give your thought on this tradition. Steven
8-23-2008. Bob, I know you have written a few articles/ essays on the Book of Mormon and was wondering if you could point to any scholarly aka non apologic work on the Book of Mormon? As always thanks, Steven
8-22-2008. Bob's intro to the 8/20 Bible Geek webstream. The webstream is new, and is when Bob answers the questions that accumulate in the "Ask The Bible Geek" forum. The questions answered each week will be released, at this point, one a day, so that you get a Bible Geek bite each day.
8-19-2008. Dr Price, two questions regarding Romans 13:9 - "For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not covet, and if there be any other commandment, it is summed up in this word, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself." First, it is interesting that the author only quotes those commandments which deal with relations amongst people. Is the author intentionally ignoring commandments like 'Remember the Sabbath Day', or 'Thou shalt have no other gods before me' and others which deal with relations with God? Jesus states that the sum of the Law was to 'Love the Lord thy God AND love thy neighbor. Yet, the statement that the Law can be summed by 'loving God' is strangely absent from this Romans passage (also see Galatians 5:14). What is going on? Second, moral commandments like 'Thou shalt not kill' are stated as negatives. How does the author consider not killing, or not stealing from a neighbor to be loving that neighbor? I don't steal from my neighbor, but I do not necessarily love that neighbor. Just what does the author mean by 'love' in this context? Thanks - Ravishing
8-18-2008. Where is any evidence of the deaths of these people. It is often argued that they wouldn't have died for what they were preaching if they thought it wasn't true, which is disputable in itself. Do we have any reliable evidence that all of them actually even existed let alone were martyred?
8-17-2008. I was listening to a show you did on the Infidel guy about how Samson represents the Sun god. I know his name means Sunshine in Hebrew, What myth would this story have been taken from? Does it have any earlier origins? Also when Manoah ask's the angel what his name is why do you think he wouldn't tell him? And why did they think it was God? Does this have anything to do with the reference to Yahweh not giving his name? Thank you so much for taking the time to read my question.
8-15-2008. In Randel Helms' book "Gospel Fictions" the author points out that in three of the four canonical Gospels that the words of Jesus are recorded differently, and Matthew spins the words for his own purposes. In Mark and Matthew Jesus is depicted as uttering his final words as ""My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?". But as Helms point out: "Mark presents these words it self-consciously realistic fashion, shifting from his usual Greek into the Aramaic of Jesus, transliterated into Greek letters: "'Eloi eloi lama sabachthanei (My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?Matthew is fully aware that Mark's crucifixion narrative is based largely on the Psalm 22, fully aware, that is, that Mark's Gospel is part of a literary tradition. Aware of the tradition, Matthew knew that no Aramaic speaker present at the Cross would mistake a cry to God (Eloi) for one to Elijah - the words are too dissimilar. So Matthew self-consciously evoked yet another literary tradition in the service both of verisimilitude and of greater faithfulness to the Scriptures: not the Aramaic of Psalm 22:1 but the Hebrew, which he too transliterated into Greek - "Eli Eli" (Matt. 27:46) - a cry which could more realistically be confused for "Eleian". Matthew self-consciously appeals both to literary tradition -a "purer" text of the Psalms-and to verisimilitude as he reshapes Mark, his literary source. ..... Matthew certainly knew that he was creating a linguistic fiction in his case (Jesus spoke Aramaic, not Hebrew.) though just as clearly he felt justified in doing so, given his conviction that since Psalm 22 had "predicted" events in the crucifixion, it could be appealed to even in the literary sense of one vocabulary rather that another, as a more "valid description of the Passion." My question then Dr. Price is why did Mark and Matthew want to have his bystanders at the Crucifixion scene say in Mat 27:47 "And some of the bystanders hearing it said, "This man is calling Eli'jah." While Mark has it that: Mar 15:35 "And some of the bystanders hearing it said, "Behold, he is calling Eli'jah." Helms seems to have hit the nail squarely in that Matthew used Hebrew words as his Jesus' last utterance to make the observation of his bystanders more realistic, but I do not understand why it was important to Mark and Matthew to have the bystanders indicate that they thought Jesus was calling Elijah. Could you shine your light on this one, please?
8-13-2008. 1. How historically reliable and accurate do scholars consider the accounts of Josephus in regards to what he wrote? What are some other sources for the Jewish Roman war and the destruction of the Temple of Jerusalem? 2. Do you think it's possible that John of Giscala could be the John of Revelation fame?
8-6-2008. 1) I'd put off buying the PNNT for quite some time because my budget was tight. I got a few Target giftcards and was finally going to order it. But its out of stock!! What's the deal with that? Does Target just suck? Or did you manage to sell all the copies that were printed? 2) I have asked in the past about a graduate program or teacher from a Dutch Radical perspective and you said that that there saddly wasn't any. Do you know of teacher or program you consider good on the Pauline letters or Marcion? I have already looked into Tyson but was wondering if there was any others. Thanks 3) Any thoughts on famed Greek translator Richmond Lattimore's translation of the New Testament? As I've heard it doesn't vary a lot from other translations, but I feel like it works better for when you're reading the New Testament as a literary document, as it abandons the conventional chapters and verses and so on. But in the introduction he says absolutely nothing about theology (I don't think he even mentions God!), so I wonder what sort of axe, if any, he might be grinding with his effort, or what his religious view are.
7-29-2008. Dr. Price could you speak on your theory of how Christianity evolved? Thanks, Steven
7-23-2008. It's often been said that in the hebrew written parts of the bible, 'legs' and 'feet' are used as euphemisms for penis. How do we know this euphemism is what we think it is? Is it merely that it makes the most sense out of the passages? Also, I assume that the same doesn't apply to the greek, otherwise the scene where jesus kisses the disciple's feet would raise all sorts of questions...
7-16-2008. In Moses lecture 4 you mentioned that Abraham was a moon god who gave birth to the stars, can you elaborate on this? If he was a moon god what are the implications for Islam in claiming to be a Abrahamic faith or do you think they inherited this label from the various Christian sects that influence, according to Luling, the formation of the Quran and Islam? Next it seems to me that Joshua is a old Semitic deity especially since his father is reported as Nun, who was the Deity of water/sea in several Middle Eastern Mythologies. Is this correct, if so could the story of his destruction of Jericho have been an attempt to explain the destruction of the walled town by people who did not understand Geology? (How was Jericho the great walled city destroyed? Well Joshua the God did it by shaking the walls and causing a great fire to consume things.)
7-9-2008. Dear Bible Geek, sorry I didn't get to meet you along with S.T. Joshi last year. I want to pick your brain about the Unitarian Church. I attended for several years hoping to be among rationalists, but I found that it is becoming increasingly New Age. I gauged how popular New Age topics were by attendance to them. For example, when "The Secret" was featured, you couldn't find a place to park, I'm told. I think you used to be a Unitarian minister? I'd love to have your take on this.
7-2-2008. I know that there are defenders of the idea that the gospels were originally written in Hebrew and then translated into Greek. This seems to be very important to some conservative apologists. However, I & II Macabees, and the other deutro-cannonical books were written 100 years before the gospel events were purported to transpire, and they were written in Greek, which is why the Protestant reformers and the Masoretic scribes refused to admit them into the Old Testament/Tanack. During the 100 years on either side of the Common Era, was anything of religious import written in Hebrew, or was it all originally written in Greek? If everything was written in Greek, then why wouldn�¢??t everyone expect the Gospels to be originally in Greek? Why would apologists feel the need to maintain that the Greek gospels were translated from Hebrew originals?
6-25-2008. curious if you have ever heard of or read this translation at concordant.org also what is your take on the greek word Aionion being mistranslated eternal instead of eonian, being that Aion is a noun meaing eon or age and Aionion is only the adjective form of this word as I have been told. Seems to me this would be the same as translating yearly, daily, or hourly as eternal and eliminating their distinction. Rich
6-18-2008. Dr. Price, Is the continual acceptance of the James ossuary by the like of Dr James Tabor (UNC-CH) an example of theological bias, in this case the believe that there had to be a Historical Jesus, influencing 1st century archeology of Israel? If so what is the value of archeological research for Biblical scholarship?
6-11-2008. It has been pointed out that the author of Matthew is not describing a miraclous birth but is trying to put a positive spin on the fact that Jesus's Biological father was not Joseph. For this reason the Gospel of Matthew includes in Jesus's geneology a number of other women who had scandals associated with their becoming pregnant or who appear to have had premarital sex(in the case of Ruth). Accepting that this is indeed what Matthew is attempting to do whose birth is he exlaining away? Or put another way, if Jesus is purely a mythical character, as I think he was, why does Matthew create the problem of him being illegitimate? If Matthew is responding to a preexisting story what is the Sitz-em-Leben of this story?
6-4-2008. I am having trouble here. I have listened to hundreds of hours of atheist podcasts, attend bible studies, etc. To my surprise, I had never heard of Norman L. Geisler. I am familiar with christian apologists and have had little difficultly discounting them. After suffering through "I Don't Have Enough Faith to Be an Atheist", I can discount much of his science, moral, and logical arguments. I am having problems with his dating of the gospels (as early as 30 - 50 CE, if I recall correctly), and his insistence on the "facts" (especially Luke). I have been trying to find critical responses to his work, but I can seem to find anything useful. I guess I have been lucky dealing with very unintellectual christians. This is the only time I have been thrown by an apologist. I am familiar with your analogy, and use it frequently, "just because New York City exists doesn't mean spider man is real". I am still not taking the leap of belief in the supernatural because the gospels may be more historically accurate than I thought. I would like for you to point me in the direction of some refutation of this book ideally, or just refutation of the certainty of the historical context of the gospels. I am not fishing for a lengthy response on your part by any means. I assume that you are a busy man, but I can't seem to find a good response to this book. I would just like a few links, or maybe a book suggestion.
5-28-2008. When Jesus drove out demons, where did they go? Luke 8 seems like if Jesus drove them out, they would be in the abyss. So they begged to go to the pigs. It sounded like demons need dwellings, whether animals or people. But where did the demons go after the pigs were drowned? Mt 12:43 portraits demons seeks rest by finding human bodies to dwell. so demons need rest can't just wander around?
5-14-2008. Some scholars assert that the ancient god men (osiris ,tammuz,etc.) were not actually ressurrected back to earthly life but simply died and went directly to the afterlife,so ressurrection didnt actually count as earthly rebirth,what is your take on this,as ive read that many scholars have an anti borrowing agenda,trying to show that actual ressurrection of ancient godmen(osiris,tammuz etc.) never really were ressurrected like jesus was after 3 days,therefore jesus was new,unique and the only real godman to have actually died,after 3 days get ressurrected to earthly life and then go to heaven.thanks
5-7-2008. Bob- in some of the objections I've read to the authenticity of I Peter it's claimed that the author's use of quotations from the Septuagint makes genuine Petrine authorship unlikely. However I was under the impression that the Matthew gospel also made use of the Septuagint (eg the alma/parthenos goof). To make things even more complicated, I've been reading some stuff by an internet rabbi who claims the Septuagint didn't even exist in the 1st Century C.E. Can you please set me straight on this, especially the question of whether the Septuagint would have been used by any of the NT writers. Thanks very much.
4-30-2008. Dr. Price, You have mentioned multiple places to include Paperback Apocalypse about YHWH/Jehovah's (sorry I have yet to find a good Hebrew font for my computer) battle with Leviathon, this event as you have noted has a lot of simularities to the other Near Eastern Mythologies. I also believe that they exhibit a lot of parrellels with the Greek Mythology leading me to wonder if stories like YHWH vs. the Dragon and Apollo vs. the snake might stem from a common source. Nor is this the only place I see simularities. I also believe that the stories of Abraham's attempted scarifice Issac, and Athamas attempt to scarific his son Phrixos, stem from a common source. Also Herakles vs the lion and Samson vs. the lion just to name a few. This brings me to my question do you know of any book still in print that covers any potential parellels between the Hebrew Scripture and other Mythologies and Religions. I asked for in print because I have a couple of professors who are neophils and have stand their views that anything out of print must be obsolete and thus already refuted. Also to any BibleGeek fans I have purchased both books that Ricco and Bob have released already and they are good, in fact the readability and Price's foreword make The Quest for the Historical Jesus well worth the purchase cost even if you have it already. Can not wait for future titles to be released. And last but certainly not least to Bob and Ricco keep up the good work. Thanks
4-23-2008.. Dr. Price, After listen to your reply to the Quest for the Historical Jesus question I think a good couple of books for you to put out is Strauss' two books: The Life of Jesus, Critically examined and The Life of Jesus for the People. Which brings me to my question; In Pre-Nicene New Testament you mentioned that the author of Luke used psuedo-Philo's nativity of Moses found in Biblical Antiquities, this caused me to question if Moses might too be a mythical hero. Now I know that Psuedo-Philo was influenced by Hellenism and was probably trying to make Judaism national hero shine as much as the Pagan heros but the accounts of Moses in the Torah also have various aspect of the Mythical Hero motif. What is your take on this, is there a historical Moses behind the various documents of the Pentateuch or is Moses a mythical hero? Thanks as always, Steven
4-16-2008. QUESTION: Bob, i saw a theory that mark was originally written in latin ,not greek and was tranlated into greek, hence the latinisms in the text. what do you think of this theory?
4-9-2008. Dr. Price, At a number of places on past Biblegeek episodes you have mentioned your and Dr. Doughty; along with Hermann Detering; being advocates of neo-Dutch Radicalism. Have either of you managed to pass on this theory to a new generation, or will it pass away again (as it did with the passing of GA van den Bergh van Eysinga) with you, Doughty, and Detering? I am especially interested in people working in acedemia. Thank, Steven
4-2-2008. Why have arguments holding that the belief in the resurrection of Jesus started with non-physical appearances of Jesus to the disciples in dreams or visions failed to persuade the "majority" of Biblical-Critical scholars? Are there some good discussions, books, or papers on this topic (that is, why such arguments have not been found persuasive to many scholars)?
3-25-2008. My church's youth group is about to begin an "intense" study of the Pentateuch, and I was wanting to know if there is anything that would be useful to know before I listen to my church's version of history. Thanks.
3-19-2008. I am continually amazed to see how many Christians argue that the 70 weeks of years, or rather 69 weeks in the book of Daniel, accurately predicts, even to the very hour, Christ's crucifixion. They argue that this is an amazing testimony to God's foreknowledge. However, they don't seem to see the glaring inconsistency in that these same teachers have inserted a stretchable gap which has now lasted more that 2000 years. In my view this makes the 490 years term of fulfilment, laughable. What's the point in having a pin point accurate prediction of 69 weeks, only to insert an ever increasing gap before the final week. The 70 weeks of years is broken up into 3 sections; 7 weeks, 62 weeks and 1 week. I notice these prophecy pundits don't insert a gap in between the first 7 weeks and the 62 weeks. Also if this passage was really talking about Jesus, wouldn't all the Religious leaders at the time of the crucifixion have seen that Christ was the fulfilment of this passage? What is your take on this?
3-12-2008. Dr. Price answers the question: Does Mark in his gospel talk about the destruction of the Temple in 70 AD in any way. Can we be sure if this was written before or after 70 AD? Can we say for certain if it was on one side or the other of the destruction?
2-28-2008. Dr. Price answers a question from the web site; TheBibleGeek.org. This question can be found and discussed at; http://thebiblegeek.org/node/1316
2-22-2008. Benedict of Nursia (born in Nursia, Italy about 480 CE and died about 547 CE) was a founder of Christian monastic communities and a rule giver for monks living in community.
2-20-2008. The Didache, meaning "Teaching" is the common name of a brief early Christian treatise (dated by most scholars to the early second century), containing instructions for Christian communities.
2-19-2008. Quintus Septimius Florente Tertullianus, anglicised as Tertullian, who lived from aout 160 to 235 CE, was a church leader and prolific author of Early Christianity. He also was a notable early Christian apologist.
2-14-2008. Clement 1 was the fourth Pope and Bishop of Rome from 88 to 99 AD and is considered the first Apostolic Father of the early Christian church.
2-14-2008. Saint Polycarp of Smyrna, lived between 69 and 155 CE, was a Christian bishop of Smyrna, now Izmir in Turkey, in the second century. He died a martyr when he was stabbed after an attempt to burn him at the stake failed.
2-11-2008. The Gospel of Thomas is a New Testament-era apocryphon completely preserved in a papyrus Coptic manuscript discovered in 1945 at Nag Hammadi, Egypt. The book was bound in a method now called Coptic binding. It was written by a school of early Christians who claimed the Apostle Thomas as their founder and does not have a narrative framework, nor is it worked into any overt philosophical or rhetorical context.
2-7-2008. Philo (20 BC - 50 AD), known also as Philo of Alexandria, Philo Judaeus, Yedidia, and Philo the Jew, was a Hellenistic Jewish philosopher born in Alexandria, Egypt.
2-6-2008. Gaius or Caius Plinius Caecilius Secundus, born Gaius or Caius Plinius Caecilius (born from 61 to 63 -- died about 113 CE), better known as Pliny the Younger, was a lawyer, a remarkable writer, an author and a natural philosopher of Ancient Rome.
12-9-2007. Ricco reads the questions answered by Robert M. Price on TheBibleGeek.org episode 104.
12-5-2007. Ricco reads the questions that were addressed by Dr. robert M. Price in episode #103, released on 12/2/07