Ancient Corinth, on the Peloponnesian peninsula in Greece, is known primarily to moderns as one of the cities visited by St. Paul and the setting of Paul’s pair of letters to the Corinthians. (First Corinthians is abbreviated I Cor., and Second Corinthians is abbreviated II Cor.) One of the most familiar passages of the Bible, […]
St. Paul
Random Christmas Thoughts
Three days before Christmas: a good time to share some random thoughts on the reason for the holiday – the man Jesus with the title “Christ.” Jesus the man lived nearly 2,000 years ago as a Jewish subject in the Roman Empire. After he died, his followers kept his memory alive in a myriad of […]
Pre-Christian Origins of the Labyrinth
Labyrinths – intricate structures of interconnecting passages through which it is difficult to find one’s way – have become popular focal points in the spiritual quests of people from many religious and non-religious persuasions. Labyrinths made of hedges outdoors or painted or etched on floors of churches can be found in more than 80 different countries […]
Love and Public Policy
I recently attended a convention of the Episcopal Diocese of Vermont with the theme “love heals.” The convention highlighted the work of Magdalene and Thistle Farms, located in Tennessee, and its amazing founding director, the Rev. Becca Stevens. According to its website, “Thistle Farms is a powerful global community of women healing from prostitution, trafficking and […]
First Anniversary!
One year ago, I posted my first blog on WisdomWordsPPF.org! I thought I would provide a review of the topics and topic areas, to give new visitors a feel for what I have been covering and to help sporadic visitors to get caught up. (Note that there are overlaps in the following selections.) Posts on […]
Images from Philippi
Philippi in northern Greece is an important city for the history of Christianity and a fascinating archaeological site. Here we will highlight a few features that raise important issues for modern contemplation, since Christianity has had such vast influence on the West. I will illustrate these points using photos of mine taken on site during […]
The Trials and Tribulations of Translating Scripture 2: Pitfalls and Challenges
In Trials and Tribulations 1, we presented an overview of the history of the Bible and the various ancient manuscripts that scholars have used over the centuries to translate Biblical texts from the original languages into other languages. We noted that translating from ancient languages and incomplete manuscripts copied centuries later present challenges to translators […]
Paul’s Female Colleagues: Not Keeping Silence in the Churches
Sixteen years into the 21st century – despite the reality of women in the workplace, women in leadership positions in business and government, and the ordination of women in many Protestant denominations and in Judaism – we can still find preachers railing against the leadership of women in Christian organizations. (We will concentrate here on […]
St. Paul and Women
Philippi, in the north of Greece, was a significant city in the history of Christianity. St. Paul visited the city and wrote a letter to the community there, which is in the New Testament of the Bible. While Paul may be seen as someone who suppressed women, based upon other letters in the New Testament […]