Can We Trust the Gospels?

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Archive for July, 2007

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Sunday Inspiration from Pray the Gospels

Sunday, July 15th, 2007

Excerpt
And about three o’clock Jesus cried with a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
Matthew 27:46
Click here to read all of Matthew 27:45-56
Prayer
O Lord, I wonder what You were experiencing in this moment. Far worse than the physical pain was the feeling of having been […]

Mind Your Head

Saturday, July 14th, 2007

Here is one of my all-time favorite signs from my recent vacation in Europe:

Europeans are fond of saying “Mind . . .” when we Americans would say “Watch out for . . . .” In the Tube (subway) of London, for example, one often hears “Mind the gap” (the space between the subway train and […]

Why Do Europeans Smoke So Much? Section A

Friday, July 13th, 2007

Part 4 of series: European Reflections 2006
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In my last post I noted that Europeans, in general, smoke more than Americans, in general. (Only the Swedes smoke less than Americans.) Plus, much of European smoking occurs in public places, even though many countries have laws limiting such […]

The Smell of Europe?

Thursday, July 12th, 2007

Part 3 of series: European Reflections 2006
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I’ve been to Europe three times, and every time I feel the same sense of shock when I first step off the airplane and walk into the airport. Europe has a distinct smell. It’s a smell I once associated with […]

A Classy Experience

Wednesday, July 11th, 2007

Part 2 of series: European Reflections 2006
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I realize that there are different classes of people in this world. I’m talking about socio-economic classes, you know, upper class, middle class, lower class, etc. But, in most of my life, I don’t experience class distinctions. I live in […]

A Different Way to Fly

Tuesday, July 10th, 2007

Part 1 of series: European Reflections 2007
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I don’t do a lot of flying. As a pastor, mostly I stay put and shepherd my own congregation, with only an occasional sojourn to speak at a conference or preach at another church. I consider it a blessing that my […]

European Reflections 2007

Monday, July 9th, 2007

If you’ve been reading my blog for a while, you know that I often put up various reflections after my summer vacation. Mostly these are lighthearted bits that offer me a chance to mull over what I have experienced while away from my usual routine. (And, yes, by the way, one of the reasons I […]

My Agenda-Driven Story

Sunday, July 8th, 2007

Today’s post, as well as several posts to come, are excerpts from my new book, Can We Trust the Gospels? Investigating the Reliability of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.
My theological agenda also motivates me to be truthful when I’m telling a story from my own life. Here’s an example of a story I’ve used in […]

Truthful History Motivated by Theology

Saturday, July 7th, 2007

Today’s post, as well as several posts to come, are excerpts from my new book, Can We Trust the Gospels? Investigating the Reliability of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.
Sometimes I find it odd that certain scholars have so much trouble seeing how history and theology are intertwined, and how one with a theological agenda can, […]

The Gospel Writers: No Hidden Agenda

Friday, July 6th, 2007

Today’s post, as well as several posts to come, are excerpts from my new book, Can We Trust the Gospels? Investigating the Reliability of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.
If there’s one thing that all New Testament scholars agree on, it’s the fact that the Gospels were not written merely for reasons of historical curiosity. The […]

“All Truth Is God’s Truth”

Thursday, July 5th, 2007

Today’s post, as well as several posts to come, are excerpts from my new book, Can We Trust the Gospels? Investigating the Reliability of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.
When I was a freshman in college and was struggling with my first New Testament class, I wondered if faith and reason simply didn’t fit together. I […]

The Gospels as Hellenistic Biographies

Wednesday, July 4th, 2007

Today’s post, as well as several posts to come, are excerpts from my new book, Can We Trust the Gospels? Investigating the Reliability of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.
Not long ago it was common for New Testament scholars to give up trying to fit the Gospels into existing genres, such as biography or history. The […]

What are the New Testament Gospels?

Tuesday, July 3rd, 2007

Today’s post, as well as several posts to come, are excerpts from my new book, Can We Trust the Gospels? Investigating the Reliability of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.
What are the New Testament Gospels? Are they histories? Biographies? Novels? Or . . . ? To which genre should they be assigned? And why does this […]

Closing Thoughts on Oral Tradition

Monday, July 2nd, 2007

Today’s post, as well as several posts to come, are excerpts from my new book, Can We Trust the Gospels? Investigating the Reliability of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.
When my daughter, Kara, was four years old, I decided to teach her the Lord’s Prayer. Did I simplify the language so she might understand it? Of […]

The Process of the Oral Tradition about Jesus

Sunday, July 1st, 2007

Today’s post, as well as several posts to come, are excerpts from my new book, Can We Trust the Gospels? Investigating the Reliability of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.
The Telephone game assumes that the communication of the key sentence will be done secretly, with players whispering to each other.
Think of what would happen in Telephone […]
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