Christianity started out as a tiny sect of Jewish followers of Jesus, but within 400 years it was the dominant religion of the Roman world and a major political force. It had a rough start, however; Romans did not accept this new movement with open arms. But was Christianity an illegal religion? Did the followers of Jesus have to hide in the catacombs? Did the emperors consider it a threat to the social order? In this episode we talk about the early reception of Christianity, in particular the persecutions, in order to explode many of the myths one hears about the new faith in its early days.

You think Christianity is diverse today? Fundamentalists? Roman Catholics? Mormons? Methodists? Branch Davidians? Episcopalians? Russian Orthodox? And on and on?

In fact, the wide varieties of Christian today pale in comparison with what you could find in antiquity, with beliefs that virtually defy belief. How could people with views that seem so far beyond the pale (that there were many gods? That the Creator was evil? That Christ never died?) call themselves Christian and claim they were following the teachings of Jesus? That's what we discuss in today's podcast.

Most readers completely overlook Matthew's portrayal of Jesus as the Jewish Messiah who fulfills the Jewish Law AND insists that his followers do so as well. (What? Jesus' followers have to KEEP the Law of Moses?) But Matthew conveys the message loud and clear in some passages and with brilliant ingenuity in others, including some that are widely familiar but not widely understood. Think: the magi.

If there is one thing most people are certain of about the Bible, it is that it describes how after people die they will be rewarded with heaven or tormented in hell. But does it? As it turns out ... well, you'll be surprised by what the Bible actually says. And once your surprise fades, you'll probably want to know: where do the Christian ideas of the afterlife come from?

There are hundreds of Bible translations available – but why so many and why are they different? When a biblical scholar decides to do a translation, which manuscripts do they choose to use, how to they know what the ancient words meant, and do religious considerations get in the way of accurate translations. Are there places where no one can agree on what the original text says? Jennifer Knust is a prominent New Testament scholar who helped lead the committee that recently produced an updated edition of the New Revised Standard Version. Here she discusses with Bart the problems and pitfalls of biblical translation.

What's wrong with the King James Version? Anything? Why don't we *all* use it? The KJV is the best known and arguably most elegant, aesthetically pleasing, and significant piece of English literature ever. But there are problems with it for anyone wanting to know what the biblical authors actually said. Some of the problems are today rather amusing, many are serious, and all are worth knowing about.

Many people say that the New Testament cannot be true because we don't know exactly what the authors originally wrote, or because there are contradictions in it, or because some of the books were not written by their alleged authors, or because there are historical mistakes. But even if these things are true, does that mean the New Testament cannot be true – on some level?

Dive into the exciting belief of apocalypticism in ancient Jewish times. What is it? Why is it in the New Testament? And what was its purpose?

What does the New Testament actually say about women's roles in the early church? Has the church acted consistently with the examples and guidelines offered in New Testament?

Special guest, Dr. James Tabor, offers a historical "revealing" of the apostle Paul. Through careful examination of Paul's authentic or "undisputed" letters, his disputed or "Deutero-Pauline" epistles, and the book of Acts, Dr. Tabor peels back the layers to get to the historical Paul's life, beliefs, and personality.