Home » The Bible and Beyond
Enjoy posts about a variety of subjects, all designed to help you look at religion, the Bible, and early Christian texts in a new way.
By Dr. Hal Taussig|2022-06-19T03:00:02-04:00June 22nd, 2022|Tags: Biblical Violence, Humor, Violence|
Here’s to humor that paints a dark, funny, and different perspective. Here’s to letting the people who look like they are in trouble chuckle about their future. Here’s to violent legions rushing toward their own demise.
By Dr. B. Brandon Scott|2022-06-12T16:10:30-04:00June 15th, 2022|Tags: Bible, Fundamentalism, Translation Issues|
A translation can become fixed, immutable, and sacred. … All too often a translation becomes an idol. Bible translations tend to become THE BIBLE for a community and substitute for the original languages.
By Shirley Paulson, PhD|2022-06-07T23:39:29-04:00June 7th, 2022|Tags: Healing, Salvation, Savior, Secret Revelation of John|
The meaning of salvation has shifted from an original focus on rescue from danger, disease and sin. The Secret Revelation of John is an example.
By Dr. Hal Taussig|2022-05-23T09:12:55-04:00May 25th, 2022|Tags: Community, Crucifixion, Letter of Peter to Philip, Violence|
We are finding that facing Russian violence needs ... complex combinations of courage, creativity, community, hidden transcripts, and aliveness by regular people.
By Shirley Paulson, PhD|2022-05-15T08:05:03-04:00May 18th, 2022|Tags: Christian Heresies, Empowerment, Gnosticism, Nag Hammadi, Secret Revelation of John|
For those who want to hold power and authority over others, the value of this ancient text remains controversial, because it discusses the kind of freedom that offends authoritarian control.
By Dr. B. Brandon Scott|2022-05-06T09:22:39-04:00May 11th, 2022|Tags: Gospel of Luke, Parables, Thecla, Translation Issues|
The elder is not simply a son; he is the father’s child, … In the terms of first century cultural expectations, the observant reader will notice that this father is playing the role of a mother.
By Dr. Hal Taussig|2022-04-27T02:01:13-04:00April 27th, 2022|Tags: Concepts of God, Gender Issues, Gratitude, Nag Hammadi, Prayer of Thanksgiving|
Take in, if you can, the depth of this Divinity, and the way it is expressed. Notice how it proposes that Divinity itself is characterized primarily by growth.
By Shirley Paulson, PhD|2022-05-14T23:54:55-04:00April 13th, 2022|Tags: Book of Wisdom, Savior, Secret Revelation of John, Sophia, Wisdom|
Wisdom is ideally prepared to save humanity from its sinful ways precisely because she is wise enough and experienced enough to understand all the tempting ways of the devil.
By Dr. B. Brandon Scott|2022-03-31T18:56:17-04:00April 13th, 2022|Tags: Christ, Greco-Roman, Paul, Psalms, Translation Issues|
The shifts from ‘Messiah,’ to christos, to christus, to ‘Christ’ were momentous. In the process, the root meaning of g-d’s anointed king was forfeited and with that several things were lost.
By Dr. Hal Taussig|2022-03-27T04:04:42-04:00March 30th, 2022|Tags: Ancient Writings, Genesis, Hebrew Bible, Nag Hammadi, Savior|
Although Seth stories are told in a variety of versions in these religions, Seth is always good and often heroic. And in a number of these stories, his role as Savior takes on a divine status.
By Dr. B. Brandon Scott|2022-03-14T18:46:08-04:00March 16th, 2022|Tags: Church, Early Christian Communities, Early Church, Gospel of Matthew, Paul|
In the King James translation of the Hebrew scripture (so-called ‘Old Testament’), the translators consistently employed the gloss ‘assembly,’ while in the New Testament they used ‘church.’
By Shirley Paulson, PhD|2022-03-07T02:41:21-05:00March 9th, 2022|Tags: Ancient Writings, Community, Fear and Protection, Letter of Peter to Philip, Violence|
This is an uncommon set of instructions in the face of grave danger, to say the least! It neither promises a miraculous escape, nor does it call for violence in return.
