Richard Bauckham on 'Brothers of the Lord'

Richard Bauckham recently won a prize for his book 'Jesus and the Eyewitness'

The Book of Jude  quotes Richard Bauckham as writing :-
'Palestinian Jewish-Christian circles in the early church used the title ‘brother of the Lord’ not simply to identify the brothers, but as ascribing to them an authoritative status, and therefore the brothers themselves, not wishing to claim an authority based on mere blood-relationship to Jesus, avoided the term...'

It is amazing the insight Bauckham has into the minds of the brothers of Jesus.

He can sit down at his desk, think himself into their minds, and tell you their thought-processes regarding the pros and cons of using the phrase 'Brother of the Lord'

Bauckham can tell you  , using only  his psychic powers, that Jude, the brother of Jesus, would call himself the brother  of James, but never mention that he was the brother of Jesus, presumably to avoid charges of 'name-dropping'

How can sceptics  compete with the almost superhuman insight of mainstream Biblical scholars who have such gifts as being able to read minds of 2000 years ago? 

Sceptics have to work with evidence and data, which puts them at a big disadvantage compared with mainstream Biblical scholars who can pull anything they like out of thin air..... and expect to be taken seriously.
   

Violation of human rights

Human rights violation

'A Jewish couple are suing neighbours over motion sensors that turn on the lights in their communal stairwell, which they claim make it impossible for them to leave their flat during the sabbath.

Like many Orthodox Jews, Dena and Gordon Coleman will not use electricity between sundown on Friday and Saturday night, which they regard as a day of rest. But since the sensors were installed at Embassy Court in Bournemouth, the lights come on as soon as the Colemans set foot outside their front door — which they say makes them responsible for switching them on and therefore prohibits them from leaving the building.

The couple are suing their neighbours, saying that their human rights are being breached, and are claiming up to £5,000 damages.'

'But Chanie Alperowitz, the director of Bournemouth Chabad, an Orthodox Jewish group, said: “On the sabbath there are 39 forms of creative activity which are forbidden. Among them is the prohibition of lighting a fire.

“When using electricity, one causes a fire as there are sparks created by the electricity. If the light is switched on by someone stepping outside their door, their actions have caused it to happen.'
 

Blackwell Companion to Natural Theology

The Blackwell Companion to Natural Theology is a recent book edited by William Lane Craig and JP Moreland.


The Amazon page says 'With the help of in-depth essays from some of the world's leading philosophers, The Blackwell Companion to Natural Theology explores the nature and existence of God through human reason and evidence from the natural world.'

Despite the world's leading Christian philosophers producing a mighty book of 704 pages on the nature of God, they do not even attempt to produce an argument to show that the god they worship is a Trinity.

I guess Christian philosphers can produce not one single rational argument about the 'nature' of God which supports their dogma that they worship a Trinity.

You couldn't make it up

Swinburne is an amazing page, where Christian apologist Swinburne claim God does not cure cancer, because that would deprive human beings of the choice of whether or not to fund cancer research.

Honest, I am not making this up.

Swinburne actually did write that page.

No atheist could ever produce a parody of Christian thought that approached that piece of writing.

It has to be seen to be gawped at.

How could any person ever have such thoughts cross their brain?