christian faith

By: Biblical Archaeology Society Staff

The staurogram, a crucifixion symbol made out of the Greek letters tau-rho, is 200 years older than the oldest previously-known images of Jesus on the cross.

By: Megan Sauter

Laodicea was a wealthy city in western Turkey that flourished for centuries. Why does the author of the Book of Revelation call the church of Laodicea “lukewarm”—neither hot nor cold? Recent excavations at the site might provide the answer.

By: Biblical Archaeology Society Staff

A lost Syriac manuscript, the Revelation of the Magi, translated into English by Bible scholar Brent Landau, may help answer that key question from the Christmas story: “Who were the magi?”

By: Marek Dospěl

Just like their pagan neighbors, Jesus’s followers of the first Christian centuries would commonly resort to protection amulets to guard themselves from illness and any kind of harm.

By: Robert Cargill

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers decided to expand the list of domain extensions. According to BAR Editor Robert Cargill, the one that has created the most problems for Bible-related academic societies is the new .BIBLE domain.

By: James Tabor

James Tabor presents a fresh look at the original text of the earliest Gospel.

By: Lawrence Mykytiuk

Did Jesus of Nazareth, “the man Christ Jesus” (1 Timothy 2:5), really exist? What’s the evidence outside of the Bible? Classical and Jewish writings from the first several centuries C.E. give us a glimpse of the person who would become the central figure in Christianity mere decades after his crucifixion.

By: Reviewed by Brian E. Daley, S.J.

Brian E. Daley, S.J. reviews "Sinning in the Hebrew Bible: How the Worst Stories Speak for Its Truth" by Alan F. Segal and "Sin: The Early History of an Idea" by Paula Fredriksen.

By: James Tabor

On Wednesday Jesus began to make plans for Passover. He sent two of his disciples into the city to prepare a large second-­story guest room where he could gather secretly and safely with his inner group.

By: Leonard Greenspoon

It seems, to me at least, that we—all of us who care about Biblical Studies—are in danger of losing our individual and collective memories about major figures in our field. I had the honor and pleasure of studying with Wright during his final years of teaching at Harvard University (he died in August 1974), and I can tell you that he was never more alive or animated than when he held an archaeological artifact in his hands.