As many of you know, a few months ago I invited my long time friend and erstwhile fellow-student at Moody Bible Institute, Robin Jones, to write a some posts for the blog.  Robin continues to be an evangelical Christian and is deeply committed to important social issues that I think just about all of us are also concerned about: hunger, homelessness, suffering, and justice. Here now is her third  and final post.  I hope you find it both interesting and inspiring: ************************   Who doesn’t love a good story? Stories embody our humanity in a way few other things do. Some of you may be familiar with the radio commentator Paul Harvey who was famous for telling how an unknown twist of fate catapulted someone into a totally different life story or created a completely unexpected conclusion. After giving the surprise ending, he would famously conclude with “and that’s the rest of the story.” While Paul Harvey was indeed a great storyteller, I propose that the master at that craft was Jesus. He told stories [...]

I recently announced a tour I will be doing – Covid permitting – to Rome and Southern Italy this coming June.  (See it here, with a brochure:  https://ehrmanblog.org/interested-in-going-to-rome-with-me/)  On the tour I’ll be giving lectures and hanging out for the ten days with everyone else; it should be great fun.  For the sites we see we will have local tour guides who are flat-out experts on everything.. In this post I’m announcing a tour that will be coming directly on the heels of that one – again, Covid permitting.  It is possible to come to either one, or both.  Those who choose to do both will get a discount.   Consider it buying in bulk.  This second one will be to the Southwest coast of Croatia and nearby islands.   This is one of the most gorgeous places in the known universe, and I’m particularly excited about it, because I’ve never been there.   I’m drawn by the beauty but also by the medieval towns and, even more ancient, its  connection with some very important [...]

This Sunday I will be giving two more live Zoom lectures on the Gospels to anyone who wants to come. They will be recorded for my undergraduate course on the New Testament.  There will be a 30-minute Q & A to follow the second one. There is no charge per se, but I would like to ask for a donation to the blog in exchange, if you can see your way clear to do it.  If not, that’s fine – we all have our circumstances!  But one of the main reasons I’m doing these lectures is to raise money for the Food Bank of North Carolina; as with all food banks right now, it is in desperate need.  Your donation is completely tax deductible. Here is the info you need: Time: Sunday, Feb. 28.  1:00 pm first lecture; 2:15 second (EST) Lectures will each last about 50 minutes. First Lecture:  Jesus as a Divine Man in the Gospel of John This lecture goes to the heart of the Gospel John and its distinctive portrayal of [...]

As we are all so painfully aware, almost all travel holidays this past year were canceled.  But now many tour companies are optimistic that by late spring or early summer, with widespread vaccination internationally, travel will resume.  We will know eventually! I have been asked to do a special tour to Rome and Southern Italy, June 4-14, 2021, (THIS June!) to give lectures on the relationship of Christianity and traditional Roman religions and cultures in the early centuries CE:  “Christians and Pagans.”   I’ve agreed to do it, and will go ahead with it, of course, only if it is completely safe. The tour company, Thalassa, is terrific; it will be a small and intimate group and we will have tons of time to talk, discuss, and hang out together.   They are now accepting registrations for the trip.  Below is a poster for it, with a link for more information.  Here is part of what I say about my lectures. When Christianity arrived on the world stage in the first century AD, Rome and the [...]

This Sunday I will again be giving two live Zoom lectures on the Gospels to anyone who wants to come. They will be recorded for my undergraduate course on the New Testament.  There will be a 30-minute Q & A to follow the second one. There is no charge per se, but I would like to ask for a donation to the blog in exchange, if you can see your way clear to do it.  If not, that’s fine – we all have our circumstances!  But one of the main reasons I’m doing these lectures is to raise money for the Food Bank of North Carolina; as with all food banks right now, it is in desperate need.  Your donation is completely tax deductible. Here is the info you need: Time: Sunday, Feb. 21.  1:00 pm first lecture; 2:15 second (EST) Lectures will each last about 50 minutes. First Lecture:  The Alternative Perspectives of the Gospel of Luke. This lecture will show how Luke differs in significant ways from both Mark and Matthew, and will [...]

This Wednesday (2/17/21) 7:00-8:15 pm I will be holding a live ABA (“Ask Bart Anything”).  It will be over Zoom and will be open to anyone on the planet who wants to come. The format: I will take live questions both orally and through chats.  The questions can be on ANY topic that anyone is interested in.  If it is something I don’t know anything about (quantum physics or the Ming Dynasty) or that I would rather not talk about (that little incident when I was 16….) I’ll just say so.  I will get through as many questions as I can, answering easy ones briefly and taking as long as I need to deal with more complicated ones.  My only request will be that questions are direct questions, not lectures, sermons, admonitions, condemnations, expositions of one’s favorite views, or statements of one’s opinions so the rest of the world can hear and convert. Interested?   There is no need to register, no obligation of any kind.   And not cost.  Free to all.  BUT: If you you [...]

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I am now getting in the habit of doing Zoom lectures on the New Testament on Sunday afternoons; these are being recorded for my undergraduate course on the New Testament.  But all of you are invited to come this week, but because of UNC’s schedule, it will be one lecture instead of two, with Q & A to follow. There is no charge per se, but I would like to ask for a donation to the blog in exchange, if you can see your way clear to do it.  If not, that’s fine – we all have our circumstances!  But one of the main reasons I’m doing these lectures is to raise money for the Food Bank of North Carolina; as with all food banks right now, it is in desperate need.  Your donation is completely tax deductible. Here is the info you need: Time: Sunday, Feb. 14.  1:00 pm EST. Lecture will last about 50 minutes, followed by the 30 minutes of Q&A. Topic: Jesus the Jewish Messiah: Understanding the Gospel of Matthew. This [...]

A number of people have suggested that it might be interesting for me to hold a live “Ask Me Anything” (AMA) session.  I’ve been told that the term “AMA” is copyrighted (?!) and not open for public use.   So we are going to call this an ABA (“Ask Bart Anything”).  It will be over Zoom and will be open to anyone on the planet who wants to come. The format: I will take live questions both orally and through chats.  The questions can be on ANY topic that anyone is interested in.  If it is something I don’t know anything about (quantum physics or the Ming Dynasty) or that I would rather not talk about (that little incident when I was 16….) I’ll just say so.  I will get through as many questions as I can, answering easy ones briefly and taking as long as I need to deal with more complicated ones.  My only request will be that questions are direct questions, not lectures, sermons, admonitions, condemnations, expositions of one’s favorite views, or statements [...]

Last week I gave two Zoom lectures, recorded for my undergraduate course on the New Testament, and invited all of you to come.  It went extremely well and a good time was had by all.  Well, OK, a good time was had by *me*!   After the second lecture we had about 30 minutes of Q&A, all very lively. I'm going to do it again *this* Sunday.  Wanna to hear them?  Then come!  There would be no charge per se, but I would like to ask for a (completely voluntary) donation to the blog. This will be Sunday, Jan. 31..  I will give two lectures (different times this week!), one at 1:00 and the other at 2:15.  Each lecture will take about 40-45 minutes.  The topics this time:  "The Oral Traditions about Jesus Before the Gospels."  This is the most controversial talk my students have ever heard about Jesus. I explain how the stories about Jesus were circulated and came to be changed, and even invented, in the years before the Gospel writers heard them and [...]

Because of the crisis, I will be teaching my course, Introduction to the New Testament, remotely this semester, by recording two lectures a week, starting Sunday, for my students to listen to during the week at their convenience.  Last week for the heck of it I tried recording a lecture by myself in an empty room.  It, uh, did not go well, to say the least.  I need *someone* to talk to if I’m going to talk.   Otherwise I just stumble over my words and forget everything I’m supposed to say. I would like an audience. Which gave me an idea.  Would any of you like to hear one or more of my lectures as I record them?  There would be no charge per se, but I would like to ask for a (completely voluntary) donation to the blog. Here is what I have in mind.   We will try it out this Sunday (Jan 24) on Zoom.  I will give two lectures, one at 2:00 and the other at 3:15.  Each lecture will take about [...]