A Virtual File Cabinet for Our Studies of Christian Origins & Hebraic Faith
From ChatGPT on 2/24/2026. Below is a recalculated list of known 1st-century CE settlements within a strict 25-mile (40 km) radius of Nazareth. Method Major Urban Centers (1st Century CE) 1. Sepphoris (Zippori) Distance: ~4 mi NWArea: 40–50 acresPopulation: 8,000–12,000Administrative capital of Galilee before Tiberias. 2. Tiberias Distance: 18–20 mi EArea (early phase): 40–50 acresPopulation: […]
Continue ReadingThis post contains Claude.ai’s summary of my transcript (in Dropbox) of Richard Friedman’s lecture on BAR/BSA here. I find his views very reasonable of what originally happened and how it came to be the story we know. Here is a summary of Richard Friedman’s argument in approximately 1,000 words: Summary: “The Exodus Based on the […]
Continue ReadingFrom BibleMapper.com
Continue ReadingThis post contains my end-of-class “sermon” delivered at the end of the Preaching & Teaching course by Rev. Dr. Rob Couch at Christ United Church. In it, I told about the history of Micah in Lachish and Moreshet. The Claim – Micah, a prophet from a town southwest of Jerusalem, shared what Jehovah does and […]
Continue ReadingWhat’s Missing from Codex Sinaiticus, the Oldest New Testament?Compare differences between the King James Version and Codex Sinaiticus by BAS Staff, February 19, 2026. Below is the BAS staff’s comparison of the narratives in the KJV and the Codex Sinaiticus. The paragraphs before the table are very interesting but not included here. One other omission in […]
Continue ReadingCanaanite Worship at Lachish—New Details Emerge by Itamar Weissbein Extract – Situated in the southern part of the Judean foothills (the Shephelah), Tel Lachish controlled a main road leading from the Mediterranean coastal plain to the mountains of Hebron and Jerusalem in ancient times. In the Hebrew Bible, Lachish is known as an important Canaanite city-state, which […]
Continue ReadingThis post contains a 1000-word summary by Claude.ai of a lecture and Q&A by Bart Ehrman at the BSA here. The lecture and Q&A was a little more than hour and is IMHO a very good overview of the events from Constantine’s origins to his death. The 9,000-word transcript is in his directory in Dropbox.
Continue ReadingFrom Claude.ai on 2/17/2026. Prompt: What is the Apostolic Creed, and how does it relate to the evolution of the Nicaea Creed? [See also the post in this site titled The Councils and Creeds creating the Trinity] Great question — the relationship between these two creeds is often misunderstood. The Apostles’ Creed The Apostles’ Creed […]
Continue ReadingFrom ChatGPT The Great Trunk Road near Nazareth in the time of Jesus The Great Trunk Road in the Galilee during the first century CE was part of a much older international highway system that connected Egypt to Syria and Mesopotamia. In Roman times, this road system was maintained and integrated into the imperial network, […]
Continue ReadingFrom ChatGPT Distance from Megiddo to Nazareth (1st century context) Modern geographic measurements give a good approximation of the ancient distance, since the two sites have not moved and the basic terrain is the same. Estimated walking time in the 1st century Ancient travel on foot typically averaged: Using the 14–16 mile distance: Practical estimate […]
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