Yo dawg, I heard you like blessings, so I blessed the bless you blessings.

But seriously, what is Christianese, and why do we use it?  Should we?

A few articles that I mention:

• Bluey's Beautiful Conservatism

• (If that link doesn't work, just search for "Bluey's Beautiful Conservatism"

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We can make so many assumptions about the Bible and confuse it with good ideas and stories from the past that sometimes it's hard to tell the difference between a biblical concept, and just a decent idea.  Tune in for the Bible version of fact or fiction: was it or was it not in the Bible?

Some resources for this episode:

The Book of Virtues, William Bennett. Dirty Jim, by Jane Taylor.

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Ok, so maybe you don't care to talk about what a PhD student is doing with an ancient papyrus that you've never heard of before!  But you probably should care about what's going on with Mark 16, why the New King James Bible is more old-fashioned than I thought (no judgment though!) and why footnotes matter.

Sources used for this episode:

NIV Archaeological Study Bible, Zondervan, 2005

ESV Study Bible, Crossway, 2008  (oops, I thought it was 2018)

Textual Criticism of the Bible – Paul Wegner

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Once upon a time... there was a manuscript called Papyrus 66.  Come play detective with me, and figure out how a NT researcher used a Greek manuscript of John to support her theory that the Martha in the Bible never existed.  You'll see how we can use and appreciate textual criticism, without needing to accept or support theories that use it.

Some of the resources used for this episode:

• The Initial Article my Friend Sent Me

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No, don't be scared!  This is an important topic if you want to be informed about current events and apologetics.  The world of academia has provided a lot of insight into the Bible and really helped to form the Bible as we know it today.  One of the tools used to determine whether a manuscript is a fraud, the real deal, or a piece of ancient junk, is textual criticism.  Find out more, including why the church has a hard time talking about textual criticism at all.

Some of the resources used for this episode:

• Those opening stats

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There are so many English Bibles, it's hard to keep track of them all!  That's why there's something called the spectrum of English Bible translation.  Learn the different philosophies of Bible translation, what the differences are between them and what translation you should read (spoiler, there's no good answer on that one).

Some of the resources used for this episode:

• A Big List of Bibles and some key facts

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Sin, transgression and iniquity don't sound like fun things to talk about, but give this episode a try if you really want to know why we really need those words in the Bible and why they're a great translation choice.  

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When you think about how Bible translation is done, do you imagine old-school missionaries deep in the jungle, typing away on a typewriter, or young people, talking to professionals on Zoom?  Both apply!  Find out when and why.

Some links if you want to learn more about Bible translation:

• The Joshua Project

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Chesed is one of the most important words in the whole Bible, but it doesn't get much press.  But that is in part because we use so many other words to reflect it... Grace, love, kindness, mercy, and more!  Find out why it's confusing, and how we can better understand it.

Some of the resources used for this episode:

• The Naked Bible podcast Episode 350 (Transcript) https://nakedbiblepodcast.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/NB-350-Transcript.pdf

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The Latin Vulgate Bible and the King James Bible have had a lot of influence on our modern understanding of the Bible and its content.  You might be surprised to find out what unicorn meant in Middle English, who Lucifer is (or isn't), and what fruit was actually in the garden of Eden.

Some of the resources used for this episode:

• That link about begotten in John 3:16 - - Bill Mounce talkin' Greek