Paula Fredriksen joins me to discuss her new book "Ancient Christianity: The First 500 Years" - a masterful overview of how diverse early Christian movements evolved into the institutional church.

Watch the interview on YouTube instead.

Professor Fredriksen (Boston University) is one of the world's leading scholars of early Christianity, Paul, and Jewish-Christian relations. Her previous books include "Paul: The Pagans' Apostle" and "When Christians Were Jews."In this conversation, we explore:- How Jewish scriptures in Greek shaped early Christianity- The surprising diversity of second-century Christianities- What we actually know about early Christian persecution- Constantine's complex relationship with the church- Apocalyptic expectations and their evolution- Asceticism, celibacy, and religious authority

Paula Fredriksen, Ancient Christianities: The First Five Hundred Years (Affiliate Link)

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Why do biblical scholars say Paul didn't write half the letters attributed to him? I sat down with Dr. Harry Maier, from Vancouver School of Theology, to understand exactly how scholars determine authorship of ancient letters—and why some of Paul's letters are considered "disputed."

Want to watch this instead? Find the video here!

Dr. Maier's Academia page - https://vst.academia.edu/HMaier

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Anders Petersen (University of Aarhus) bridges evolutionary biology and New Testament studies to argue that religion functions as emotional investment in shared symbolic systems rather than abstract belief. We discuss why humans aren't naturally social (unlike bees or ants), how pistis means "faithfulness" not "faith," why the Gospel texts are myths rather than historical records, and what it means to embrace Christianity as a 21st-century tradition rather than returning to Jesus's original religion.

Links

- Prof. Petersen's Academia page

- The Emergence and Evolution of Religion (Edited Volume - Affiliate Link)

Anders Klostergaard Petersen is professor and chair of research at the Department for the Study of Religion at Aarhus University, Denmark. He has published extensively in the fields of Late Second Temple Judaism and Early Christianity, as well as on methodological and theoretical questions pertaining to the overall study of religion and culture. He is currently involved in a grand project on cultural evolution with a special focus on the history of religion.

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What can 2,000-year-old letters tell us about how Paul actually lived? I sat down with papyrologist Peter Arzt-Grabner to find out what ancient papyri reveal about Paul's real life - and the answers shocked me.

Peter's Academia Page Peter's book, "Letters and Letter Writing" - (Sponsored Link)

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- Website: ⁠cjcornthwaite.com⁠

- Email: [email protected]

🎙️ FOOTNOTE FAMOUS

Conversations with the world’s top scholars of the Bible and Christian origins. 

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Patreon - ⁠https://www.patreon.com/FootnoteFamous⁠ 

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Markus Vinzent reveals how the New Testament was actually compiled - and why the Paul's letters we're reading are "third-hand" at best.

Want to watch the video instead? - https://youtu.be/dj4_lfRghZo

📚 RESOURCES:- Vinzent's book: "Resetting the Origins of Christianity" (Affiliate Link)

- Reconstructed Marcionite Paul - - based on Vinzent's initial reconstructions (2023) - OPEN ACCESS

- English Translation based on the team's data-driven refinements (2025) Apostolos English translation: (Affiliate Link)

Follow Markus and his team on YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@Patristica/

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📱 FOLLOW FOR MORE

 - YouTube: @cjcornthwaite 

- Instagram: @cjcornthwaite

- Website: ⁠cjcornthwaite.com⁠

- Email: [email protected]

🎙️ FOOTNOTE FAMOUS

Conversations with the world’s top scholars of the Bible and Christian origins. 

🔗⁠https://www.footnotefamous.com/⁠

SUPPORT THE CHANNEL

Patreon - ⁠https://www.patreon.com/FootnoteFamous⁠ 

YouTube Memberships - ⁠C. J. Cornthwaite - YouTube⁠

Book a 1:1 Conversation With Me: ⁠https://www.cjcornthwaite.com/book-online⁠ 

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Prof. Mark Goodacre argues that John knew the synoptics... and it's the key to reading it! Mark Goodacre is Professor of New Testament and Christian Origins at Duke University and author of "The Case Against Q." His research focuses on the synoptic problem, Gospel of Thomas, and Gospel of John.

Want to watch this instead? - https://youtu.be/pzm5C1nAM04

🔗 Mark's YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@podacre

🔗 The NT Podcast: https://podacre.blogspot.com/ Mark's Books - The Fourth Synoptic Gospel, https://amzn.to/3IjwpAY(Affiliate Link)-

The Case Against Q, https://amzn.to/4mEAk9N (Affiliate Link)-

"Synoptic Problem, A Way Through the Maze (FREE) - https://markgoodacre.org/maze/

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📱 FOLLOW FOR MORE

 - YouTube: @cjcornthwaite 

- Instagram: @cjcornthwaite

- Website: cjcornthwaite.com

- Email: [email protected]

🎙️ FOOTNOTE FAMOUS

Conversations with the world’s top scholars of the Bible and Christian origins. 

🔗https://www.footnotefamous.com/

SUPPORT THE CHANNEL

Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/FootnoteFamous 

YouTube Memberships - C. J. Cornthwaite - YouTube

Book a 1:1 Conversation With Me: https://www.cjcornthwaite.com/book-online 

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I interview Prof. James McGrath, the Clarence L. Goodwin Chair in New Testament Language and Literature at Butler University.

Watch this episode on YouTube instead

James' Books (sponsored links)

• "John of History, Baptist of Faith" - https://amzn.to/41O9WCA
• "Christmaker" - https://amzn.to/4gkAuRW

Link to the Protoevangeliun of James - https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0847.htm

James McGrath's Reconstruction of John's infancy gospel - https://www.patheos.com/blogs/religionprof/2022/04/a-hypothetical-infancy-narrative-of-john-the-baptist.html 📱 FOLLOW FOR MORE - YouTube: @cjcornthwaite - Instagram: @cjcornthwaite- Website: cjcornthwaite.com- Email: [email protected]🎙️ FOOTNOTE FAMOUS (MY PODCAST)Conversations with the world’s top scholars of the Bible and Christian origins. 🔗https://www.footnotefamous.com/SUPPORT THE CHANNEL

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YouTube Memberships - ⁠C. J. Cornthwaite - YouTube

In this episode, I talked with Dr. Robyn Faith Walsh about her book, The Origins of Early Christian Literature.

Watch This Episode on YouTube Instead

Get the book on Amazon Sponsored Link

Dr. Walsh's Academia.edu page

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About: Robyn Faith Walsh is an Associate Professor of New Testament and Early Christianity and Gabelli Senior Scholar at the University of Miami (UM).

She earned her Ph.D. at Brown University in Religions of the Ancient Mediterranean, with a focus on early Christianity, ancient Judaism, and Roman archaeology.

📚 The First Biography of Jesus: What Mark's Gospel Really Is (with Prof. Helen Bond)Prof. Bond's Links 👇👇👇

👉 Biblical Time Machine (Helen's Podcast) - https://www.biblicaltimemachine.com/

👉 The First Biography of Jesus (Book) https://amzn.to/4m4phqh (Sponsored Link)

Professor Helen Bond from Edinburgh University reveals groundbreaking insights about the Gospel of Mark that challenge traditional interpretations.

-How Mark created the foundational portrait of Jesus that shapes both historical and faith-based understanding

- How characters function as literary devices rather than developed personalities

- How Mark's writing style reflects sophisticated ancient biographical conventions

Footnote Famous - Conversations with the world's top scholars of the Bible and Christian origins.