A Virtual File Cabinet for Our Studies of Christian Origins & Hebraic Faith
Note from me – This response was the original response (now with updates) to the prompt below that asked for a list of beliefs that Paul taught as well as Jesus; i.e. where Paul agreed with Jesus. Claude cited seven, but three did not “fit” with what I heard taught. When I separately asked Claude […]
Continue ReadingThis post contains questions raised by Bart Ehrman in the intro text to his course “Paul and Jesus: The Great Divide” at BSA. Reformatting is mine.
Continue ReadingFrom Claude.ai on 3/31/2026. Prompt: Provide a list of Jesus’ disciples and their occupations. Identify the gospels with the names and the differences recognized by critical bible scholars. cite the names or positions of any family members. This could be reported in a table format that will fit comfortably in a WordPress web post. The […]
Continue ReadingIn addition to the post below, see the post on this site, Fish in the Sea of Galilee. From Claude.ai. Prompt – Provide bible scholar John Dominic Crossan’s explanation of how the Sea of Galilee became the Sea of Tiberias and how that impacted Jesus’ message. This is a rich topic that Crossan has written […]
Continue ReadingMargaret Mowczko’s post provides an insightful perspective on the famous story. Claude.ai prepared the following summary of her article. Here is a summary of Marg Mowczko’s views in her January 2026 article “My Two Cents on the Widow’s Mites”: The Traditional Reading Is Wrong Marg argues that the point many people take from this story […]
Continue ReadingFrom ChatGPT Romans 1:3–4 is one of the central texts in debates over early “exaltation Christology” because its wording can be read as describing a transition in Jesus’ status at the resurrection. Critical scholars disagree on how far that transition goes. Core Debate: What about Jesus’ status changed at the resurrection as depicted by Paul […]
Continue ReadingThe following is a transcript of his very insightful 7-minute talk. Justin Martyr will say quite rightly, well, you guys believe that your emperors can descend into heaven, what’s wrong with us believing Jesus could ascend into heaven? We’re doing the same thing. What Luke-Acts did was come up with a counter-narrative. In the entire […]
Continue ReadingExtracts from BAS article — Gladiators, Graffiti, and Martyrs – What a Pompeii corridor reveals about the early Christian world by Lauren K. McCormick March 09, 2026 Few images capture the Roman world more vividly than the clash of gladiators in the arena. These spectacles drew enormous crowds across the empire and became one of the […]
Continue ReadingThis post contains the conversation at BSA titled “Jesus sacrifice” started on 2/23/26 by Kimberly Callaway, but first here is an extract from a Bart response to a question. “Technically, if God releases a person from the consequences of their sin based on the death of Jesus he is not “forgiving” (foregoing payment or penalty) […]
Continue ReadingFrom ChatGPT on 2/25/26. In the Synoptic Gospels, the account traditionally called “the rich young ruler” appears in Matthew 19:16–22, Mark 10:17–22, and Luke 18:18–23. Each Gospel contributes one of the three descriptive elements: rich, young, and ruler. Below are the specific verses (NRSV for New Testament citations) that provide each characteristic: 1. He is […]
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