Bible Feed

Is Christianity relevant?

Dan and Jon discuss the relevance and impact of Christianity in the modern world. They delve into how aspects of Christianity have influenced society, not only in superficial ways like our calendar, but in deeper things such as values, moral codes, and societal norms. The hosts reference various sources, including notable historians and authors like Tom Holland and Yuval Noah Harari, asserting that many fundamental beliefs and values in Western society, such as the sanctity of life and the concept of equality, have their roots in Christian teachings. That may make Christianity relevant in modern society, but does it make it true?

Intertextuality

In our first episode of 2024 Paul and Dan talk about "intertextuality" - basically, how the meaning of a text is influenced by references to other texts. The Bible (not surprisingly) is full of links between its 66 books. But how far can we take this? Can we go too far and see patterns where there are none (like seeing the face of Jesus in a slice of toast)?!  What guardrails might we have to make sure we read responsibly?

Have yourself a lesser known Christmas story!

Relaunching the podcast, Dan and Laurence celebrate by pondering a lesser known Christmas story. They encounter Simeon, Anna and a community of people in the temple at Jerusalem "waiting for the consolation of Israel". As the baby is held high by Simeon, they realise that the birth of Jesus is not only deeply rooted in a backstory, but is the climax of a centuries old narrative. Complete with mystery deaths and incomplete sentences, this is an invitation to have yourself a lesser known Christmas story!

Fallen angels and the sons of God - Part 2

Paul and Dan continue their exploration of the Divine Council worldview by looking at claims made about verses in Deuteronomy 32, the introduction to the book of Job and Psalm 82.  In summary, they conclude that while it is useful to understand the cultural background to the text of the Bible, it is also important to avoid being distracted by relatively speculative ideas from the main thrust of the Bible message - that Jesus died to reconcile humans to God.  Let us know what you think!

Fallen angels and the sons of God - Part 1

Having explored how the Bible uses the terms 'devil', 'satan' and 'demons', Paul and Dan now turn to the whole subject of whether the Bible talks about fallen angels.  Is the phrase 'sons of God' used to refer to angels?  If so, does that include spiritual beings with independent power to oppose God and his people?  Using the framework of Michael Heiser's book, Unseen Realm, they start to examine what is termed the 'Divine Council' worldview.  This involves grappling with some of the most mystifying parts of the Bible text - but hey, we're just ordinary people trying to understand the Bible better!