ancient world
Jesus the (Second Temple-era) Jew
“If we don’t understand the Judaism of Jesus’ time, how can we understand him and his message?”
David Heim interviews Matthias Henze
The Museum of the Bible is utterly inoffensive. The Bible is not.
Can artifacts and interactive exhibits ever do justice to scripture's wildness?
200 years that shaped Judaism, Jesus, and all that followed
The religious world we know was formed between 250 and 50 B.C.E.
What made early Christians a peculiar people?
“One second-century pagan critic of Christianity was willing to tolerate everything else about Christians if they would only worship the gods.”
David Heim interviews Larry W. Hurtado
An Introduction to Design Arguments, by Benjamin C. Jantzen
Many people have an intuition that the natural world shows purpose, order, or providence. Benjamin Jantzen does a marvelous job analyzing the attempts to turn that intuition into arguments.
reviewed by J. B. Stump
Social and Economic Life in Second Temple Judea, by Samuel L. Adams
Samuel Adams's book is important on two counts: he focuses on the once-neglected period of the Second Temple, and he asks economic questions rather than theological-spiritual ones.
reviewed by Walter Brueggemann
Gratitude, by Peter J. Leithart
Peter Leithart’s book can be seen as one long act of ingratitude. Sometimes, he seems to be saying it is more blessed to reject than to receive.
reviewed by Stephen H. Webb
Fleeing Herod, by James Cowan
James Cowan's book follows the Holy Family's path through Egypt. It is anchored in numerous conversations with monks, nuns, guides and fellow pilgrims.
reviewed by Paul-Gordon Chandler