Bart D. Ehrman's Blog, page 60

Love in Action: Christian Views of Charitable Giving

As I indicated in my previous post, the ethics of Christian love (and the very term used for it) differed from what could be found broadly in the Greek and Roman worlds.  This different understanding of love had concrete practical implications, especially in how early Christians understood charitable giving. That will be the next part [...]

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Is Christian Love Different from Love?

One of the most talked about and least understood teachings within Christianity is the idea of love.  Do you want some evidence of the misunderstanding?  Read 1 Corinthians 13, the "love chapter," in its original context (coming between, well, 1 Corinthians 12 and 14!  A little consideration almost no one has thought about!), and then [...]

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My New Course: The Genius of Matthew. What Scholars Say about our First Gospel

      I'm pleased now to announce my next online course (not connected with the blog -- but just in case you're interested) on the Gospel of Matthew, coming Feb. 3-4.   Here is the description of it that I've posted elsewhere.  Please note that there is early-bird pricing (see below) AND, on top of that, [...]

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The Fate of Jesus’ Ethics after His Death

Did Jesus' followers actually follow his teachings?  In my previous post I pointed out that Jesus had a radical ethic, a view based on the teachings of Hebrew Scripture but radicalized because of his understanding of the apocalyptic event very soon to occur with the end of history as he knew it.  As we know [...]

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The Origins of Altruism: My Next Book as It Stands Now

My book I'm working on now has gone through significant transformations since I first conceived of it a few years ago.  I am at the stage now (finally!) where I really think I know what it's going to be.  It started out as a book dealing with the history of charitable giving, morphed into a [...]

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I’m Going to the Greek Islands. Interested in Joining Me?

Another travel opportunity has come up for me this summer, a tour of some of the Greek Islands on June 10-20.  These are some of my favorite places on planet earth.  I'll be giving lectures, enjoying the sites, and hanging out with the folk who come. Needless to say, this will be really good.  If [...]

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Our Commitment to Charity

My next book will be dealing with how the teachings of Jesus transformed the understanding of what it meant to live a good life and to be a good person in the Western world.  One of the most important areas I'll be focusing on is Jesus' emphasis on going out of one's way to help [...]

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How Jesus “Fills” Scripture “Full” in Matthew

In the last post I indicated one way that Matthew understood Jesus to have fulfilled Scripture – a prophet predicted something about the messiah (to be born of a virgin; to be born in Bethlehem, etc.) and Jesus did or experienced what was predicted.   There’s a second way as well, one with considerable implications for [...]

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What Does It Actually Mean to “Fulfill” Scripture?

I’ve begun a short thread dealing with how Matthew understood and interpreted and used Scripture.   Here is a fuller exposition, the first part of which comes straight from my textbook on the NT and the second part straight from my noggin to the keyboard.  ******************************  What is perhaps most striking about Matthew's account is that [...]

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Is Matthew Duplicitous in His Reading of Scripture?

In a month or so I'm going to be producing a new online course (not connected with the blog) on The Genius of Matthew: What Scholars Say about the First Gospel.  I'm not sure if that's the actual title we'll be giving it, but it's what's in my head just now. (If you're interested in [...]

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