I have been meaning to write an article on a few of the entries in the most recent BAR. No, not the Browning Automatic Rifle, I’m talking about the Biblical Archaeology Review. Although some of you would probably find the first more entertaining, the latter is really the more important and relevant thing to discuss, as far as I’m concerned. Especially in light of the guest appearance this Wednesday night on our show, Dr. Hector Avalos, and his fascinating book, The End of Biblical Studies. I... Read Full Story
(Name withheld), I hope you and your family are doing well. I'm going to respond to your points paragraph at a time. I will be as direct and to the point as I can, so please do not mistake my blunt responses for rudeness. I am just short on time since I am spending so much of it on my book. Below I will separate your paragraphs from mine. (This may seem long but I take this subject very seriously. This is, after all, what I do for a living; as a historian it is my job to correct... Read Full Story
Well its been a year now since I first started writing with the intent to publish a book. In that year a lot of good has happened. As many of you now know, I have been submitting my book for review with the hopes of getting published by an academic press. This good fortune has been brought about with the help of a friend, and it has allowed me to refocus my book from the original 22 chapters down to 10, significantly shortening the amount of research and time I would have otherwise needed... Read Full Story
As many of you know I work part time at a bookstore because (a) I don't make enough with RRS to support all my bills and (b) I love books and enjoy selling them to people. Well, yesterday morning as I was helping somebody in the religion section, a customer asked me for books on illnesses. I walked her over to the section and pointed out some books of interest to her, and as I was walking away she stated affirmatively that she had managed to get her son to read, and that her job was... Read Full Story
Josiah Concept Ministries and the Historical Christ Hypothesis By Rook Hawkins After my article on the problems of the historical Jesus and the Gospels as fictional narratives,[1] I was worried that Christians would be afraid to refute these positions, and therefore I would not be able to generate the dialog that I so wanted to have. Thankfully, one Christian, Cory Tucholski,[2] has taken up this charge to defend his faith against my articles. read more Read Full Story
What I am not, apparently, is a historian. There is no truth behind this jocularity, but there is a serious accusation that needs to be addressed. In a recent thread, posted by somebody who exhibits a severe naivety to logical discourse, I have been called out, as it were. In any case, this is a response, although concise as it may be, to the presupposition of this little nimrod (used in the Biblical sense, of course) for everything abrasive. Three headers, or points, are situated... Read Full Story
The Jesus Mythicist Position: Revised 2008 By Rook Hawkins (1) A Brief Introduction to the Revised Article About a year and a half ago, I started a campaign to educate people about Jesus mythicism. When I had first started working on the campaign I was not as well prepared as I am now. I have to chalk that up to inexperience. When somebody says “a lot can happen in a year”, I will consider what they have to say, because they aren’t kidding. A lot has happened in a year and... Read Full Story
Which Jesus: A Legend with a Multiple Personality Disorder?
By Rook Hawkins
Recently I wrote an article on the genre of the Gospels, and determined that the biographical genre of the Gospels is in serious doubt. The Gospels can not longer be considered a history of the life of Jesus. In this article I also brought up the position that modern scholars attempting to find the historical Jesus in the Gospel narratives are in fact fracturing the Gospels into specific sections and verses... Read Full Story
