A Virtual File Cabinet for Our Studies of Christian Origins & Hebraic Faith
6/20/2026 – This post contains Claude.ai’s summary of the transcript (in Dropbox) of the lecture by Paula Fredriksen – Paul and Augustine on the Redemption of the Jews. Prompt: Summarize the attached lecture, identifying Paula’s understanding of Paul’s teaching and how Augustine differed or changed Paul and when they agreed. Summary: Paula Fredriksen on Paul, […]
Continue ReadingFrom Claude.ai is this brief comparative sketch of other NT/early Christian eschatological scenarios: 1 Thessalonians 4-5 — Imminent, undelayed parousia. Christ descends with a shout; dead in Christ rise first, then living believers are “caught up” (the rapture passage) to meet him. No restrainer, no antichrist figure — just sudden, unpredictable arrival (“like a thief […]
Continue ReadingFrom Claude.ai on 6/8/2026. Prompt: Do critical bible scholars and archaeologists see any connection between the earthquake in 363 CE in the Levant and the role of Christianity in Rome with the Council of Nicaea and Emperor Constantine’s conversion? This is a rich question that actually involves a slightly different framing than you may have […]
Continue ReadingJesus was not interested in creating Christians. Read More. Somewhere along the way, people replaced the challenge of embodiment with the safety of devotion. It became easier to worship Jesus than to live as he lived. Easier to admire the Buddha than to undergo the kind of inner confrontation his path required. Religion turned living […]
Continue ReadingBy Jim Palmer Before the extracts from his very good article, here is a clip from his article, The Bible After God: A Post-Religion Guide for Understanding the Bible “…theology isn’t the free search for truth, as much as a defense of an already held position. A lot of theological reasoning is circular, inevitably “proving” […]
Continue ReadingFrom Claude.ai on 6/1/2026. This is a rich and genuinely fascinating area of critical scholarship. Here is a thorough breakdown: John 3:3 — Anothen: “Born Again” or “Born from Above”? The verse in question, using your preferred NRSV translation, reads: “Very truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being […]
Continue ReadingFrom Claude.ai as a follow-up to the post here on 5/31/2026. Yes — the history of Trinitarian theology is essentially a long series of attempts to resolve the tension between God’s unity and the distinction of the three persons, and each attempted resolution tended to err in one direction or another. Here is a comprehensive […]
Continue ReadingFrom Claude.ai Here is a thorough overview of how critical Bible scholars define these two major Trinitarian heresies, along with the key teaching analogies scholars use to illustrate them. Arianism Definition Arianism is a Christological doctrine that rejects the traditional notion of the Trinity, teaching that Jesus was created by God and is therefore distinct […]
Continue ReadingFrom Claude.ai. The Epicurean Paradox (also called the Problem of Evil) is a logical argument against the existence of an omnipotent, benevolent God, attributed to the ancient Greek philosopher Epicurus (341–270 BC). It goes roughly like this: “Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then he is not omnipotent. Is he able, but […]
Continue ReadingHow Not to Interpret the Bible. Part Ten. What about the Trinity? Last updated on: July 14, 2022 at 8:52 am By Ben Witherington Here is a summary by Claude.ai of Witherington’s position as laid out in that article: Progressive Revelation as the Framework Witherington’s central organizing principle is progressive revelation — God disclosed truth gradually, […]
Continue Reading