Bart D. Ehrman's Blog, page 121

Fabulously Rich But Not Attached to the Lucre (?)

In the previous post I talked about how and why ancient Cynics condemned wealth – as in fact they condemned anything that a person had and considered important to their happiness and wellbeing.  If wellbeing resides in things you possess, they can be taken away from you, leading to misery.  And so, the key to [...]

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The Ancient Argument for Getting Rid of All Your Wealth

I now begin a series of posts on the “problem of wealth” in the ancient world -- that is, the problems posed by wealth, as identified by a number of elite authors, both pagan (Greek and Roman) and Christian.  The particular *problem* was understood differently between these two camps, but both camps had extremists, who [...]

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Did Christians Invent Charity?

I have now decided (I think) that my next book will be about how Christianity revolutionized the world in a way that most of us would agree is particularly good, even though most do not realize it was a specifically Christian accomplishment.  It has to do with wealth and giving to charity. Jesus himself said [...]

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Reflections on Teaching at UNC-Chapel Hill

In celebration of our tenth year anniversary on April 18, I'm publishing all the posts from previous years on April 18.  It's a random collection.  Here's the second in the series, from 2013; it's a self-congratulatory one (!)  that I was using to explain the different kinds of colleges/universities around the country (in later posts [...]

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My Next Three Books!

I have three books I’d like to write and need to decide which to do first.  I also have have a larger book project as well, an academic book, but that will be a different story for a different day.  For now, I’ve settled on these three for a general audience.  (One of them I’ve [...]

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May Q&A

Dear Gold Members, These monthly Gold Q&A's have been a lot of fun to do.  Time for another one!  Have a question?  Ask it!  Anything related to the blog! To enter your question on to the list: send it to Diane at ehrmanblog@gmail.com DEADLINE for your question. Monday May 16, midnight (whenever midnight is where [...]

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Demons and Christians in Antiquity: Guest Post by Travis Proctor

I am very pleased that my erstwhile PhD student, Travis Proctor, has published a revised version of his dissertation with Oxford University Press.  See:  Demonic Bodies and the Dark Ecologies of Early Christian Culture: Proctor, Travis W.: 9780197581162: Amazon.com: Books Travis was one of the best students I ever had, and this is an unusually [...]

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I’m Puzzled about Time. Is there a “Present”?

If you read these posts, you’ll know that I’m not a physicist or a philosopher, and really, to address the issue that is on my mind just now, I need to be either, or, preferably both.  I am puzzled about time.  About a specific feature or aspect of time.  I’ve been thinking about it for [...]

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My Debate With Roman Catholic Apologist Jimmy Akin

I had never debated a Roman Catholic apologist before.  In fact, I didn't know there *were* Roman Catholic Apologists!  I did know there used to be lots of them who were intent on defending the Catholic tradition against Protestants.  And as it it turns out, there are still some of them around.  There is an [...]

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Do My Research Assistants Do My Work for Me?

In celebration of our blog 10 year anniversary on April 18, I've decided to post the past ten years posts that were posted on April 18 of each year!   Here is the first, from April 18, 2012.  You will notice (if you pay attention to how I write these posts), that I was even more [...]

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