By Shirley Paulson, PhD|2022-03-02T01:59:31-05:00March 2nd, 2022|Tags: 1 Timothy, Deb Saxon, Early Christian Communities, Gender Issues, Thecla|
Thecla is willing to die, but she doesn’t patiently endure violence toward her. … So that’s a very different dynamic than what is often presented as the pattern that a good submissive woman should follow. An interview with Dr. Deborah Niederer Saxon.
By Shirley Paulson, PhD|2022-02-05T18:28:54-05:00February 9th, 2022|Tags: Gospel of Peter, Mary Magdalene, Noncanonical Texts, Resurrection|
The more I read these other texts, the more light I find shining on the Bible and the spiritual things I’m interested in. Getting a better view of what Mary saw in Gethsemane is worth it.
By Shirley Paulson, PhD|2022-02-01T17:34:06-05:00February 2nd, 2022|Tags: Christianity, Jesus, Noncanonical Texts, Secret Revelation of John, Thecla|
"This is the biggest thrust from After Jesus Before Christianity. How will we end up talking about those first two centuries, now that you’ve exposed that these words don’t work right?" An interview with Dr. Shirley Paulson.
By Shirley Paulson, PhD|2022-01-13T12:44:52-05:00January 12th, 2022|Tags: Fear and Protection, Heaven, Material World, Thecla|
Heaven was not found in another place or time, but right in the midst the world she inhabited. The world’s fire was blazing, but in her other dimension of thought, Thecla was holding tight to God.
By Shirley Paulson, PhD|2022-01-04T02:42:07-05:00January 4th, 2022|Tags: Education, Gospel of Mark, Gospel of Thomas, Greco-Roman, 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.
By Shirley Paulson, PhD|2021-12-06T06:41:38-05:00December 8th, 2021|Tags: Christmas, Eugnostos the Blessed, Gospel of Luke, Gospel of Truth, Letter of Peter to Philip|
“Joy to the world!” “‘Tis the season to be jolly.” The Christian Advent wreath reminds us that joy welcomes the Messiah. But there’s a tension between uninhibited joy and the knowledge of pain in the world.
By Shirley Paulson, PhD|2021-11-30T23:33:04-05:00December 1st, 2021|Tags: Concepts of God, Demiurge, Dr. James McGrath, Mandaeans, Plato|
"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.
By Shirley Paulson, PhD|2021-11-10T12:53:21-05:00November 10th, 2021|Tags: Fear and Protection, Healing, Jesus, Letter of Peter to Philip, Violence|
The first time I read the relatively unknown text called the Letter of Peter to Philip from the Nag Hammadi collection, I was stunned with its overall message of guidance in the face of violence.
By Shirley Paulson, PhD|2021-12-06T06:45:10-05:00November 3rd, 2021|Tags: Concepts of God, Demiurge, Marcion, Material World, Plato|
When you have a God that is very different, you get very different human possibilities... An Interview with Dr. Stephen A. Cooper
By Shirley Paulson, PhD|2021-12-06T06:46:02-05:00October 13th, 2021|Tags: Concepts of God, Demiurge, Marcion, Secret Revelation of John|
Using the myth of the demiurge, the author of the Secret Revelation of John shows why humans feel the kind of pain and sorrow that God never inflicted on them.
