The end of the semester rushes up to meet me; the annual meeting of the Society of Biblical Literature with its editorial board meetings and panel presentations begins at the end of this week; Thanksgiving will be waiting as soon as I return.  You will forgive me, I trust, if I take a couple of weeks off from blogging.

Instead, I have just posted in the “Sermons and Lectures” section recordings of the first two of five sessions I led in October on the topic of “Israel’s Ancestral Narratives” at First Presbyterian Church here in Richmond.  Have a listen. I will post sessions three through five next week.

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone!  If you will be travelling, please take extra precautions on the highways.  Rest well before setting out, stop frequently to refresh, and drive defensively.

1 Thess 5:2

“The sky is falling! The sky is falling!” – Chicken Little

Paul wrote his first letter to the church in Thessalonica, which scholars date to the early 50’s CE making it probably the oldest document in the New Testament, largely to send greetings and encouragement, but also to assuage a fear that had arisen in the church.  The New Testament provides ample evidence that the early church eagerly anticipated the Continue reading “Like a Thief in the Night” 1 Thess 5:2 →

We teach children the adage, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me,” to equip them against hateful and harmful things that people say. The saying means to remind people – the adults passing it on and the children learning it – that what people say about us does not necessarily have anything to do with who we actually are. Continue reading Sticks and Stones →