Here is the first of my two ETS papers, "The Name Theology in Israelite Religion." Hope you find it interesting. I think it's a good succinct summary of the history of the discussion. Of course I throw my own two cents in toward the end. The second paper on the...
journal articles
On Using Rabbinic Material to Interpret the New Testament
I'm still in the process of getting things together for the posting of my ETS papers (both of which were well received). I'll have that ready by the end of the weekend. However, I decided to post something else that I have recently run into. I'm not sure why it hasn't...
Panspermia and Religion, Part 1
I've mentioned the Journal of Cosmology on this blog before. This online academic journal is known for producing some high-level articles, but has been criticized as well for stirring controversy (most notably the recent claims of "alien bacteria" published in the...
On Academic Journals: The JSTOR Treasure-Trove
Came across this today, from the erstwhile AWOL blog of Chuck Jones. Click here for a reminder on why you need to get access to JSTOR. AWOL has posted an exhaustive list of journals accessible through JSTOR. Just gives you an idea. I'll be posting some things to...
Tools for Biblical Research, Part 2: Access to Scholarly Journals
In the wake of the last post (the NT commentary example), I've had several requests about commentaries and journals. I'll say something about commentaries in future posts, but those of you who are keeping up already know that I view them as one of several go-to...
ET Life and Recent God Talk
[Update / Addendum 10/11/2011 - see the third paragraph.] I'm betting those of you who lurk on this blog have seen the recent spate (or is it semi-mindless repetition) of news stories about the impact an intelligent extraterrestrial reality would have on religion,...
Dan Brown and the Grail That Never Was
That's part of the title of this 2004 scholarly article that examines Brown's Jesus bloodline mythology. I don't believe I've posted it before (going through the archives this weekend). The author is apparently a medievalist. It's a succinct, readable dismantling of...
Megalithic Quarrying Techniques
I came across this article today ("Megalithic Quarrying Techniques and Limestone Technology in Eastern Spain") and thought I'd share it with readers. I get lots of questions about the "impossibility" of quarrying huge stones for megalithic structures, usually with...
Tools for Biblical Research, Part 1: Toward the End of Bible Study as Most Think of It
In addition to my day job at Logos I'm an adjunct distance ed professor of biblical studies at the seminary level. One of the more common questions I get from students is about sources for biblical research papers. Poor sources are the bane of both the student who...
Canaanites in America?
Some PaleoBabble readers may be familiar with the longstanding controversy over whether certain "inscriptions" found in the United States were written thousands of years ago by ancient Semitic peoples from the Mediterranean (Phoenicians, Canaanites, Hebrews, etc.)....
New Testament (Real) Numerology
I love stuff like this journal article by Mikeal Parsons: "Exegesis 'By the Numbers': Numerology and the New Testament." I have an interest in this kind of thing (no surprise to those of you who know me - "if it's weird, it's important"). In the OT it makes things...
Ancient Egyptians and Race
Some of you may have noticed in the comments that I replied to a commenter that the idea that ancient Egyptians were Negroes is nonsense (er, paleobabble). I thought I'd direct anyone interested in this to some resources. Here is a scholarly article that does a nice...
After 90 Years the CAD is "Finished" (Chicago Assyrian Dictionary)
Here's the link to the recent announcement. I say "finished" because, having been begun in 1921, many volumes are now outdated. But it's still a great achievement. The CAD is available for free in PDF (or you can buy all the volumes for $1400). I mention the CAD on...
The Sirius Mystery: You Don't Need Columbo For This One
[[UPDATE: Talk about good timing! I guess the person who wrote this article, dated today, does need Columbo; --MSH]] I'm hoping my reference to the venerable TV detective doesn't date me too much here! Way back in 2009 I wrote the only post on this blog about the...
Aryan Mythology as Science and Ideology
I recently came across this interesting scholarly article on how Aryan Paleobabble was used by the Nazis. It's a good academic introduction tracing their rationale and (mis)use of archaeology, linguistics, and social science data.