Those who have immersed themselves in these texts have been strengthened, shocked, inspired, and healed by relating to them. They contain extraordinary gems of wisdom, but also challenge preconceived notions about what it meant and what it means to identify as a follower of Jesus.
Healing Violence in the World: Letter of Peter to Philip
Healing Violence in the World: Letter of Peter to Philip, the second course in our Nag Hammadi series, explores some of the practical and enduring ideas the early Christ people had about facing violence.
Presenters Dr. Shirley Paulson and her co-instructor, Dr. Hal Taussig, guide you through some surprising new ideas about Jesus in this little-known text, the Letter of Peter to Philip. Now available on Udemy!
The Gospel of Thomas Goes Public
The Gospel of Thomas Goes Public is the first course in the Nag Hammadi series.
Presenters Dr. Shirley Paulson and her co-instructor, Dr. Hal Taussig, explain the complex but extremely important relationship between the recently discovered Gospel of Thomas and the Bible, and help learners gain confidence in their own ability to interpret and make use of the text. Sign up and purchase on Udemy.
Ancient Christian Texts for Modern Healing
Ancient Christian Texts for Modern Healing is an introduction to early Christian writings and their challenges or promises for transforming the world. This course is offered through the website, Udemy. There are plans to offer many more! Sign up and purchase on Udemy.
Taught by Shirley Paulson, PhD, the introduction course provides a good foundation for continued study. Learn more about the course here.
Monday Textual Studies
Once a month, at 8–9 pm Eastern Time on Monday nights (generally the fourth of the month), Dr. Hal Taussig presents an online discussion of one of the early Christ movement texts. These discussions, hosted by Shirley Paulson, PhD, begin with a well-framed overview of the particular text, and then participants ask questions and share their own insights about the meanings and potential for these texts.
Conference Presentations and Similar Events
After Jesus Before Christianity Events presented by the Westar Institute
The new book by Hal Taussig, Erin Vearncombe, and Brandon Scott is now available from Harper-Collins and Amazon.
For more information about each event and a registration link, please visit the Early Christian Texts events page.
Visit the Event page to learn more about Early Christian Texts presentations.
Please use the contact form for more information on upcoming events.
The Bible and Beyond Blog
The Bible and Beyond blog explores historical and spiritual questions about Jesus, women, salvation, healing, the meaning of life, and where Christianity came from. This blog opens the conversation that will help all writers and readers unlock some of the mysteries from extra-canonical books, forgotten scriptures, so-called “gnostic” gospels, and the Bible. Read Shirley Paulson’s introductory post here.
The Bible and Beyond Articles
The Bible and Beyond articles take readers beyond the surface of some of their favorite ancient texts, to show what’s happening behind the scenes and why these writings can be so meaningful to us today. Some texts are obscure, and few people know about them. Others are well known, but their meaning remains a mystery.
The Bible and Beyond Podcast
The Bible and Beyond podcast is a series of interviews with scholars who are able to unlock mysteries from extra-canonical books, forgotten scriptures, so-called ‘gnostic’ gospels, as well as the Bible. Host Shirley Paulson, Ph.D., and her guests explore historical and spiritual questions about Jesus, gender, women, salvation, healing, and the meaning of life. The discoveries these scholars share don’t always fit with what we’ve been told, but time and again they lead us toward a deeper intimacy with Jesus.
Finding Depth in Jesus’s Farmer Parables
"There are long traditions in Greek and Roman and Judaean writing, using farming to think about important aspects of life like morality, wisdom, virtue, and education." An Interview with Dr. Ian Brown.
More Answers to the Question “Where is God When Things Go Wrong?”
"When you come to the point where you encounter powers that are antithetical to God, then the question of how this could have happened becomes a pressing one." An Interview with Dr. James McGrath.
Marcion Answers “Where Is God When Things Go Wrong?”
When you have a God that is very different, you get very different human possibilities... An Interview with Dr. Stephen A. Cooper