Jan 17
By: Steven Shisley
Most scholars believe that early Christians did not use the cross as an image of their religion. So how did the cross become modern Christianity’s most popular symbol?
Jan 10
The oldest Hebrew Bible texts are the Dead Sea Scrolls (c. 250 B.C.E.–115 C.E.), but the most nearly complete copies of the Hebrew Bible are codices from a thousand years ago. What happened in the period between these two discoveries? The Ashkar-Gilson Manuscript fills the gap in our knowledge of this interim period.
Jan 8
By: Ronald S. Hendel
If we wanted to find the flood that gave rise to the legend of Noah’s Flood, we should look for a big flood in northern Mesopotamia, says scholar Ronald S. Hendel.
Jan 8
By: Megan Sauter
Can the Book of Enoch shed light on Noah the movie? Ronald S. Hendel examines the flood story.
Jan 3
By: Biblical Archaeology Society Staff
Who did Cain marry? Where did she come from? Mary Joan Winn Leith suggests that while the Israelite storyteller knew that other men and women in Genesis existed outside of Eden, they did not matter to him or factor into his account. He was concerned with Adam and Eve and their progeny—not those outside of this group.
Dec 31
By: Megan Sauter
In ancient Israel, were gluttony and drunkenness—excessive eating and drinking—viewed as acceptable behaviors? As it turns out, the answer is somewhat complicated. On the one […]
Dec 30
By: Biblical Archaeology Society Staff
Was Joseph Jesus’ biological father? If not, who was Jesus’ biological father? Andrew Lincoln examines what early Christians thought about conception and explains how views about this subject have changed over time.
Dec 26
By: Biblical Archaeology Society Staff
Until the discovery of the Nag Hammadi codices in 1945, the Gnostic view of early Christianity had largely been forgotten. The teachings of Gnostic Christianity had been virtually erased from history by the early church fathers.
Dec 25
By: Megan Sauter
If Jesus was born in Bethlehem, why is he called a Nazorean and a Galilean throughout the New Testament? Philip J. King addresses this question in his Biblical Views column.
Dec 23
By: John Drummond
In the month of December it isn’t hard to come across a Nativity scene. Be it in your neighbor’s yard or A Charlie Brown Christmas, […]
