There came a time in Israel's history when they were overran by one of their enemies, the Midianites. For seven years this brutal nation oppressed God's people and drove them into hiding (Judges 6:1). Every year, after Israel had planted their crops and tended the fields for the entire season---right before the harvest---, the Midianites…
In Deuteronomy, God instructed the kings of Israel to develop a relationship with the scriptures: "And it shall be, when he sitteth upon the throne of his kingdom, that he shall write him a copy of this law in a book out of that which is before the priests the Levites: and it shall be with…
For the first phase of the MVC Project, we learned the script of SIU's copy of the Meditationes Vitae Christi manuscript and compared the manuscript to the published scholarly edition of the text, noting any differences. Now we are on to the second phase of our task. SIU's copy of the MVC is unique, but not simply…
When God created the the world, he "planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed" (Genesis 2:8). In the center of this garden grew two trees: the Tree of Life, and the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Often we talk more about that second…
In November of last year I started reviewing a paper about the deity of Jesus that was written by my friend John Carroll. I covered the earlier sections of the paper in my first and second posts on the subject; and I recommend reading those first if you haven't already. Now, I am going to finish…
Currently in my work with the MVC Project, I have been examining the manuscript for textual variants by comparing the SIUC copy of the manuscript against the critical edition. Up until fairly recently, the differences that I have found have been small: changing word order in a way that doesn't affect translation, omitting or adding…
A new year has come; and it is common for us to look forward into the new year with expectancy. Many of us see the new year as a time to make a fresh start of things, to better ourselves, and to get rid of bad habits that we may have in our life. This…
In Carbondale, a city about half an hour from my home town, there is a nativity scene that is put up pretty well every year. Inside the little stable is baby Jesus lying in a manger, with Mary and Joseph adoringly looking at the Christ child. Two wise men and a shepherd also join the scene,…
With Christmas coming quick, I wanted to share the Christmas story as it is beautifully told in the Meditationes Vitae Christi. If you don't know what the MVC is, or you aren't aware of my research with a newly discovered MVC manuscript at Southern Illinois University, go back and read about it some time. For now, just enjoy the…
Mark 16 is one of the most awesome chapters in the entire New Testament. It tells us how Jesus rose from the dead (v.1-8), and how he appeared to Mary Magdalene and a couple other disciples (9-13). It tells us how he commissioned his apostles to preach the gospel and baptize (14-16), and how the…
Lectionary 