Smithsonian
Those of you who were planning to go have probably been notified, but in any event: The Smithsonian lectures on Heaven and Hell scheduled for tomorrow (Saturday March 14) have now been cancelled. Keep safe!
Lecture Cancellations and Non-Cancellations (so far)
I hope all of you are well and staying away from viruses. As it turns out, just now I’m reading On the Beach, a fantastic 1957 novel set in 1963 about what happens “after the war,” when the northern hemisphere has destroyed itself with a massive nuclear exchange, and the people of Melbourne are waiting as the radiation cloud is slowly heading their way over the course of months, with nothing to stop it. (I’m reading novels like this, and watching comparable films, as I’m thinking about my next book Expecting Armageddon.) Suddenly this morning I realized (duh!) how timely it is, mutatis mutandis. Maybe I’ll blog on such things. But for now! Our new companion Corona has disrupted many of our lives and is certain to disrupt virtually all of them. Please accept my hopeful thoughts that the disruptions you experience are merely inconvenient and not debilitating, either physically, financially, socially, or emotionally. Some of my immediate trips and lectures have been cancelled (well, postponed for a year or so!), and I wanted [...]
Intimate Relationships: Nonbelievers and Believers
Over the past couple of months I’ve received maybe seven or eight emails from readers – some on the blog and others not – about marriage (two in the past 24 hours). Not about what the New Testament says about marriage, but about what these emailers should do with *their* marriage. Each of these was married to someone who was a faithful, committed, religiously conservative Christian of one kind or another (evangelical, Catholic, Mormon), but the emailer had, a while back, moved away from their earlier faith commitments, and now considered themselves agnostic or atheist or both, and weren’t sure how to handle it the marriage situation. In some cases the question was: should I tell my spouse? In others it was: how can this work? In others it was: how can I convince them that their views are full of problems and help them see the truth? I am not a marriage counsellor, as some of you may have noticed. But I do have a lot of experience with questions like this, and have [...]
Authors and the Fiasco of Book Tours
With the advent of social media, author book tours have more or less gone the way of the stegosaurus. Some authors do them, but mainly only the celebrities, Hilary or David Sedaris. And you might be surprised to know that most authors think their demise is a very good thing. A book tour sounds exotic – at least it always did to me: “An Eleven-City National Book Tour!!!” How good can it get? Well, actually, it can get a lot better… Let me preface this by saying that right now is an absolutely awful time to be publishing a book, the worst time in recorded history (well, OK, in my recorded history). The only way to sell a book seriously is to get serious media attention. That means TV, radio, and front covers. But at this stage of human evolution, if your name is not Donald, Bernie, or Corona, it just ain’t gonna happen. The media can’t squeeze it all in, and books are at the bottom of the heap. Even if your book is [...]
Fund-Raising Blog Dinner on March 13, Washington D.C.
On March 13, I will be holding a fund-raising dinner for the blog in Washington DC from 7:00 - 9:00 pm.. It will be at a nice restaurant to be named later (either the Bistro Bis at the Kimpton Hotel George or somewhere near by). We will have a maximum of seven places at the table (along with me, making eight). For the fund-raising: the event is $200 per plate, the money to be donated directly to the blog. Each person will also pay for his or her own meal. There will be no set agenda for the dinner. It will be a chance to get to meet each other and talk about matters of mutual interest and importance, especially as they relate to the blog –anything connected, even remotely, with the New Testament and early Christianity. The basic idea is that you will be able to pick my brain at will, and I may pick yours. We did a similar event in December in Durham, and a good time was had by all. Or [...]
Great Deal on My New Book!!
Are you interested in pre-ordering my new book: Heaven and Hell: A History of the Afterlife? Here's a fantastic deal. As you may know, I have done eight courses over the years with the Great Courses (starting back when they were called The Teaching Company!). If you pre-order the book (or have already done so), you can receive an 80% discount on any of them. That's a pretty rippin' serious discount. Just click on this address. https://simonandschusterpublishing.com/heavenandhell The Great Courses I've done over the years. The New Testament The Historical Jesus Lost Christianities: Christian Scriptures and the Battles over Authentication From Jesus to Constantine: A History of Early Christianity The History of the Bible: The Making of the New Testament Canon After the New Testament: The Writings of the Apostolic Fathers The Greatest Controversies in Early Christianity How Jesus Became God For full descriptions of each of these courses, go here: https://www.thegreatcourses.com/professors/bart-d-ehrman/?pid=150 Are you familiar with the Great Courses? They really are great -- not mine necessarily, but in general. I've watched a ton of them, on [...]
Sacramento Lecture: Cancelled
Several people have asked me about my scheduled lecture in Sacramento at the Slavic Pastors apologetics conference. I'm sorry to say that the sponsors of the event have cancelled my talk (without, well, notifying me!). They assure me that it is not because of my views, but because of their financial restraints. I'm not hugely sorry, as it would have been a bit of a lark and not my normal kind of thing: it was a long trip over three days to tell a group of conservative evangelical pastors that Jesus really did exist. (!)
Raffle Winners!
I am pleased to announce that the raffle for galleys of my book Heaven and Hell: A History of the Afterlife has been concluded. We have three winners of the autographed copies, and I have notified them. If you participated and I did not notify you, I'm so sorry. But be of good cheer! The book will be available on March 31. Many thanks to all who participated!
A “Newly Discovered” “Gospel”: Was Jesus Married with Children?
When James Tabor graciously made two guest posts a couple of weeks ago, he raised a lot of intriguing questions for our blog readers. I was asked by one of them to address James's view that Jesus may well have been married. I was pretty sure I had dealt with this at one point on the blog, and just now I've checked, and it was almost exactly five years ago, well before most of you were on the blog, and probably before some of you were born. A series of posts. On a lively and interesting topic. Was in fact Jesus married? The series started with a news report that a Gospel had been newly discovered that provided evidence that in fact he probably was. I'll start by reposting that one, and then get into the issue of how we can weigh the evidence one way or the other. It's an issue that continues to intrigue! But rarely does anyone actually discuss the actual *evidence*. It's much easier to make bold claims. I'm not talking [...]
A Raffle!! Would You Like a Pre-publication Copy of My Book on Heaven and Hell?
Would you like to read my forthcoming book Heaven and Hell: A History of the Afterlife prior to publication (it will be released two months from now!)? I have three galley proofs that I would like to give away – not to the highest bidder (as in the last fund-raising venture) but to three randomly-chosen winners based on tickets sold at a very affordable price. These are complete, pre-publication copies of the book, in paperback, less expensively produced, but exactly as it will appear in print, except for a few typos here and there that came to be corrected later. This is the form of the book as it was sent off to review journals, book sellers, and book stores – all of whom want, naturally, to know if the book is any good before they purchase stocks or recommend others to do so. My publisher has given me permission to release these three to the public as a fund-raiser for the blog. I will personally sign it to each of the winners and then [...]
Want A Korean Version of My Last Book?
OK, this will not be a high demand item. But I have five copies of my book Triumph of Christianity in Korean translation. I don't read Korean. Does any of you? Want one? I'm happy to mail one to you, but only if you're willing to help cover the cost of mailing by making a donation to the blog. Make the donation as large as you'd like! Hey, what are we worth? But for domestic mailing, let's say a minimum of $10; international, $25. If you're interested, don't reply here, but zap me a message at [email protected]. If you don't read Korean, there's no time like the present!
A Graphic Novel (Textbook) on the New Testament!
I have recently decided to undertake a brand new venture. Well, more truthfully, I’ve been persuaded to do it. I have a new editor at Oxford University Press. My old editor and good friend (he lives in Chapel Hill, as it turns out. But when I first met him he lived in Manhattan), Robert Miller, who has edited all of my textbooks and all their revisions, my various readers, and most of my Oxford trade books, has retired after a long and successful career. Taking his place at OUP as editor of both Religion and Philosophy (there are a lot more courses and books in the latter) is Andrew Blitzer. Andy is a young and energetic editor with vision and ideas – and he’s on the blog! Andy from our first meeting urged me to think about a new kind of textbook on the New Testament. A graphic novel kind of textbook. Hmm… OK then. Really? I knew nothing about graphic novels. When I first saw a section of them at Barnes & Noble I [...]
Volunteers Needed! Readers for Audio Versions of the Posts. You Interested?
I don’t think I’ve made any kind of official announcement that we are doing a massive rehaul of the blog, a complete rebuild. But I am now. Official announcement: WE ARE DOING A MASSIVE REHAUL OF THE BLOG, A COMPLETE REBUILD. Well, technically “we” are not. Steven Ray, my assistant from the beginning and mastermind of all-things-blog-related is. He’s been working on it for many months. It’s a major undertaking. For some years now he’s been keeping the current version running on duct tape and bailing wire, having started it over eight years ago when technology and life as we know it was different. Things have changed. Now we’ll change better with them. We are using the new blog structure to implement lots of other changes that we think will make the blog much better for blog users and to attain the goals of the blog itself better. There have always been two goals: To disseminate scholarly knowledge about the New Testament and the Beginnings of Christianity as broadly as we can, in simple terms [...]
Bidding to See My New Book
I have written emails to everyone who has participated in the auction and put in a bid to have a look at my new book before it appears. I *believe* I have managed to contact everyone. If you did put in a bid but did *not* received (today) an email about it, and about what happens in the auction now, please send me an email at [email protected] Many thanks! I will announce the amount raised at the end of the week.
Would You Like to Read My New Book NOW Instead of When It Gets Published???
As you may know, my next book Heaven and hell: A History of the Afterlife will be published on March 31. That’s nearly three months off. Would you like to read it *now*? I have three copies of the galley proofs that I am willing to auction off -- as a fund-raiser for the blog -- to be sent directly to the highest bidders. A “galley proof” is the book as it is sent out to reviewers and journals and editors and book stores well in advance – some months ago now – so they can decide whether to advertise and / or stock the book and at what quantities. They are never for sale. They are in paperback with the same kind of cover that will be on the book itself, but at a cheaper production level since they are not for display in bookstores. The book itself – the content -- is as it will be published, *except* for minor stylistic things (typos here and there etc.) that had not yet been cleared [...]
Blog Year in Review, 2019!
We are at the end of yet another year and I would like to take the occasion to reflect on the blog, how we’ve been doing and where we’re going, now on the cusp of 2020. (Yikes. Already?) The blog has been doing extremely well. When I started this venture in April 2012, I had no clue what I was getting into, what it would take, and what it would give. It is taking more and giving way more than I anticipated at the time. I have always had two principal goals, very different from each other but both vitally important, the raisons d’être of the blog. The first, of course, is to disseminate serious critical knowledge about the New Testament and early Christianity to a wider public. It is amazing how much bad and simply wrong information is out there on the Internet. Especially on topics pertaining to religion. In particular the religion that most people in the western world – those who subscribe to a religion -- happen to subscribe to. A lot [...]
Christmas 2019
For a long time now I’ve had ambivalent feelings toward Christmas. Some of my blog posts from years past on the day and its meaning have very much celebrated its great sides (you can just search for “Christmas” on the blog and you’ll see them). But I’ve long seen the downsides as well, frequently discussed among people we know and know about and more frequently felt even when not discussed. I still see these down sides – one above all -- in some ways more and more every year. But I’ve begun to wonder if at least there might not be *something* good that can come out of them. Or at least a couple of them. The one for which I think there is no real hope is the severe loneliness and depression the season causes for so many people. It is a fraught time, when everyone else seems to be enjoying family, friends, and festivities, but so many have no one and nothing to look forward to, or horrible experiences with the holiday in [...]
UpcomingTours, Lectures, and Book Readings
A number of my upcoming "events" have been more or less finalized (barring natural or national catastrophe, collapse, or cataclysm or, well, catabasis). At the bottom are the currently scheduled book readings/lectures based on my forthcoming Heaven and Hell: A History of the Afterlife. Any questions about any of this, let me know. But first: my two international venues. APRIL 14-24, 2020 Tour to Rome!! I've mentioned this a couple of times on the blog, most recently here: https://ehrmanblog.org/my-trip-to-rome-interested-in-joining/ This is going to be an amazing trip! But they are ALMOST completely full. So if you think you want to go, better contact them now. Here is the brochure with contact information for the organizers, Thalassa Tours. https://www.thalassajourneys.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/Pagans_Christians.pdf April 24-30 Lecture tour in Sweden. This has just been added to my schedule. I will be giving talks at universities in Umeå, Stockholm, and possibly Upsala. Are you in Sweden? Maybe we could meet! THEN, in OCTOBER 2020 October 16-29 Tour to Egypt, sponsored by the University of North Carolina General Alumni Association [...]
Do You Want (and Need) a Free Membership to the Blog? Gift Memberships 2019
Thanks to the incredible ongoing generosity of members of the blog, I am happy to announce that there are a limited number of free one-year memberships available. These have been donated for a single purpose: to allow those who cannot afford the annual membership fee to participate on the blog for a year. I will assign these memberships strictly on the honor system: if you truly cannot afford the membership fee, but very much want to have full access to the blog, then please contact me. Do NOT reply here, on the blog, as a comment. Send me a separate email, privately, at [email protected]. In your email, please provide me with the following information: Your first and last name. Why you would like to take advantage of this offer. I don't need or want a full account of your history or financial affairs, only an idea of why you are not able just now to purchase a membership. Country of citizenship (we're required, as a non-profit, to ask) Your preferred personal email. Your preferred user [...]
One of the Blog’s Main Charities: Urban Ministries of Durham
As you know, the overarching purposes of the blog are (1) to communicate broadly, to a reading public, scholarship on the New Testament and Early Christianity (as opposed to most of the material you find on the Internet, which is almost entirely devotional and not based on historical scholarship) and (2) in doing so, to raise money for charity. The latter is what keeps me going. I absolutely love communicating with non-scholars what the scholars are finding about these fundamentally important topics. But my ultimate passion for the blog is to help people in need. Hence the charity aspect. As you know, every penny that comes into the blog from membership fees and from direct donations goes to the charities we support. There are no overhead costs because I pay for the blog myself, as my own contribution. Blog members sometimes indicate they would like to have more information about what those charities are and what they actually do. There are five that receive our support. Three of them are local to me: Urban Ministries [...]