A Virtual File Cabinet for Our Studies of Christian Origins & Hebraic Faith
From Chat GPT on 8/4/2025. Critical Bible scholars have long recognized that in his authentic letters, Paul often casts himself in the role of a new Moses, though sometimes implicitly rather than explicitly. These parallels show up in his vocation, covenant mediation, authority, suffering, and transformative glory language. Below is a synthesis of the main […]
Continue ReadingThree responses from ChatGPT on 8/4/2025. Paul reports being blinded in his accounts of the Damascus Road experience (Acts 9:3–9; 22:6–11; 26:12–18), and some critical scholars have noted the possibility that this detail may intentionally elevate Paul’s revelatory experience above Moses’—not by literal comparison, but in a rhetorical or theological sense. 1. Paul’s Blinding vs. […]
Continue ReadingBelow is from BAR here. The Bible records that the Phoenicians had a close relationship with the Israelites: Their royalty married each other; they traded with each other; and, significantly, they never went to war with each other. Who were the Phoenicians? Where did they come from? With whom did they trade? In this BAS […]
Continue ReadingFrom ChatGPT on 8/2/2025. The debate between Peter and a character traditionally identified with Paul appears primarily in the Pseudo-Clementine Recognitions and Homilies, two related early Christian novels (likely from the 3rd or 4th century CE). The debate itself is not explicitly between “Peter” and “Paul” by name, but between Peter and a character referred […]
Continue ReadingRelated Post here. A very good paper by Dr. James Tabor is available in his Dropbox directory. The file name is Wadi-el-Yabis-Pella-in-John-1.pdf. The paper was written for an SBL group in 2011 and is titled Wadi el-Yabis and the Elijah “Wadi Cherith” traditions in Relationship to John and Jesus in the Gospel of John. Extracts […]
Continue ReadingChurch-of-the-Apostles-Found-on-Mt.-Zion-Pixner-BAR by Bargil Pixner. The PDF is also in his directory in Dropbox. The link is to the pdf at Tabor’s site and is recommended by Dr. Tabor. It contains great info about synagogues, tombs, various locations of Zion, etc.
Continue ReadingSee Joel Baden’s Rise and Fall of Biblical Israel, Lesson 5 transcript in Dropbox. Joel points out numerous places where David puts a show (so the writer says) that he is innocent of killing his rivals, and to prove it he kills the killers who had been his accomplices. Ironically, all of Saul’s heirs to […]
Continue ReadingFrom ChatGPT on 7/29/2025. Here is a comprehensive list of all the stories in the Bible where Mary, the mother of Jesus, is explicitly mentioned by name. This includes both the New Testament accounts and the Acts passage after Jesus’ ascension. Citations are grouped by context or story. Summary of Books Where Mary is Named: […]
Continue ReadingWhat Is the Arava? The biblical land of wandering at BAS by Nathan Steinmeyer, July 28, 2025. Within the Bible, the name Arava often refers to the entire Jordan Rift Valley, the narrow stretch of land running from the Sea of Galilee all the way down to the Red Sea, passing through the Dead Sea, the […]
Continue ReadingFrom ChatGPT on 7/28/2025. The Byzantine and Crusader periods were two major eras in the history of the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant, particularly significant for understanding Christian history, the development of church infrastructure, and interactions between Eastern and Western powers. 1. Byzantine Period (c. 324–638 CE) Overview: Characteristics: Sources: 2. Crusader Period (1099–1291 CE) […]
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