Category: New Testament Canon

Do the Gospels Contain Eyewitness Testimony? An Overlooked Aspect of the Debate

Since the Gospels are Greco-Roman biographies, we should not be surprised that their authors would want to include eyewitness testimony. After all, the principle that historical accounts should be based on eyewitness reports (either directly indirectly) was an established value among all the ancient historians ranging from Herodotus to Thucydides to Polybius and even to Josephus.

But the issue isn’t just whether they would have wanted to include such testimony, but whether reliable eyewitness testimony was readily available. Put in the form of a question, were there named individuals in the early Christian movement who were understood to have witnessed the events related to Jesus of Nazareth and were actively … Continue reading...

A New Academic Volume on the Origins of the New Testament Canon

It goes without saying that not all academic sub-disciplines (especially in the field of biblical studies) generate the same level of scholarly interest. Some fields are more active; others less so. And it can change from generation to generation.

When I was doing my work with Larry Hurtado years ago at the University of Edinburgh, I always wondered if my sub-discipline of New Testament canon (and sub-sub-disciplines of NT text and apocryphal writings) would continue to generate academic discussion and interest in the years ahead.

Looking back, I can say that I am grateful that field of New Testament canon (and text) has continued to produce a lot of academic … Continue reading...

Two New Volumes on Christianity in the Second Century

For those regular readers of this blog (or my books), you will know that my research has focused largely on the second century of early Christianity.

It is a forgotten century of sorts. Much attention is paid to the first century (for obvious reasons!), and by the time the third and fourth centuries roll around, the church is more established (which means more sources for scholars to study).

In between sits the “Cinderella Century” (as Larry Hurtado called it), all too easily overlooked. But, in this critical time period the church faced an enormous number of challenges and transitions ones that would shape its identity for years to come.

These … Continue reading...

What Do Miniature Codices Tell Us About Early Christianity? #4

Before the holiday season kicked in, I began a new 5-part series exploring what the phenomenon of miniature codices teaches us about the early Christian movement. This series is designed to draw out some practical implications (for a lay audience) from my new book with Oxford University Press, Miniature Codices in Early Christianity.

Having already done installment #1 and #2, and #3, we now turn to the fourth thing that miniature codices tell us about the early Christian movement. These tiny books demonstrate that early Christians had a very high view of their scriptural books.   

What Was the Early Church’s Doctrine of Scripture?

For generations, scholars have … Continue reading...