Explore our collection of theological essays, biblical studies, and reflections on faith and culture.
When might the Gospel according to Matthew have been written? Of course, any answer can only be speculation, but that does not mean we are reduced to groundless opinion. In this series of articles I point the way to an approach different from the general consensus among scholars today which…
In my first essay on “synopticity” I offered a rather rough definition of the phenomenon and important, though not exhaustive examples. In this essay, I want to introduce broader aspects of the phenomenon of “synopticity.” The first example that I have in mind is conventional stories, stories of different historical…
Since the judgment of Babel was followed by the initiation of the circumcision, the impending end of the circumcision in AD70 explains the significance of the first century miracle of foreign tongues. Except for a few Aramaic “teasers” in the book of Daniel, the Word of God was monolingual and…
To the best of my knowledge “synopticity” is not a word used in theology or Biblical studies, but it seems an appropriate word to describe the kind of phenomena associated with the Synoptic Gospels, Matthew, Mark, and Luke. These three Gospels tell essentially the same story with significant — sometimes…
Humor is a funny thing. It is altogether familiar yet also mysterious. What makes us laugh? Why do we find things funny? There are academic fields of study dedicated to discovering what makes things humorous. These academicians even have a journal entitled International Journal of Humor Research . No joke.…
Out of all the characters in Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales , the Pardoner has been called the “one lost soul.” The pious Parson, who closes out the collection of tales with a sermon on the seven deadly sins and how a sinner can absolve himself of them, connects the…
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To ordain is, in Hebrew, to “fill the hand.” Though in some passages the phrase describes priestly or quasi-priestly ministry, it normally refers to the rite of ordination itself. By the rite, Yahweh “fills their hands in order to priest” (Numbers 3:3) or “fills his hand in order to put…
In the third of his 2001 Stob Lectures, published as Common Objects of Love , Oliver O'Donovan explores the modern phenomenon of "publicity," the distinctly modern proliferation of images and information through advertising, news media, and entertainment. Publicity didn't exist in the ancient world. Kings had messengers and spies, but…
Exodus 29 lays out the instructions for the ordination rite for Aaron and his sons. Leviticus 8 describes the actual event of the ordination, and is organized by the eight-fold repetition of the clause, “as Yahweh commanded Moses” (Leviticus 8:4, 5, 9, 13, 17, 21, 29, 36), which effectively divides…
As soon as our kids could speak, we taught them little gestures of civility. Say "thank you" and "please." Don't hide your face when an adult talks to you. Say "Yes sir" and "Yes ma'am," not ironically or grudgingly, but respectfully. I don't think I ever told my boys, "Don't…
David Martin (1929-2019) was a secularization skeptic. He acknowledged that modern societies typically undergo a process of "differentiation," in which various sectors of social and political life free themselves from the oversight of religious authority. He acknowledged that in many modern societies religious institutions and values are "marginalized." But he…
Aaron the priest is dressed in holy garments of glory and beauty (Exodus 28:2). So are his sons: They have tunics, sashes, and caps “for glory and for beauty” (Exodus 28:40). Yahweh pours glory on the head of Aaron, but it runs down on his beard, down to the skirts…
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