What is the Real Meaning of Christmas? A Wonderful New Kids Book Provides the Answer!
What is the real meaning of Christmas? During this festive time of the year, many are busy reminding us that the meaning certainly has nothing to do with presents. Let’s not buy into the materialistic side of Christmas, we are told. Let’s not focus on the gifts.
Now let me say that the sentiment behind such concerns is entirely valid. Few would disagree with the fact that Christmas (especially in America) is overly commercialized and materialistic. And certainly we would want to resist this trend as much as possible.
However, is the denigration of gifts really the way to accomplish this? Are gifts the problem? Not necessarily. Year ago, my … Continue reading...
What Do Miniature Codices Tell Us About Early Christianity? #3
As I mentioned in a prior post, I am in the middle of a new 5-part series exploring what the phenomenon of miniature codices teaches us about the early Christian movement. This series is designed to draw out some practical implications (for a lay audience) from my new book with Oxford University Press, Miniature Codices in Early Christianity.
Having already done installment #1 and #2, we now turn to the third thing that miniature codices tell us about the early Christian movement. These tiny books demonstrate that early Christians were travelers and often traveled with their books.
We Were Voyagers
The lovable Disney film Moana, tells … Continue reading...
What Do Miniature Codices Tell Us About Early Christianity? #2
As I mentioned in a prior post, I am in the middle of a new 5-part series exploring what the phenomenon of miniature codices teaches us about the early Christian movement. This series is designed to draw out some practical implications (for a lay audience) from my new book with Oxford University Press, Miniature Codices in Early Christianity.
Having already done installment #1, we now turn to the second thing that miniature codices tell us about the early Christian movement. These tiny books demonstrate that early Christians may have engaged in private reading more often than we thought.
You Can’t Read!
In the 1979 film Rocky II, … Continue reading...
What Do Miniature Codices Tell Us About Early Christianity? #1
As I mentioned in a prior post, I am starting a new 5-part series exploring what the phenomenon of miniature codices teaches us about the early Christian movement. This series is designed to draw out some practical implications (for a lay audience) from my new book with Oxford University Press, Miniature Codices in Early Christianity.
By way of review (especially if you are just joining the series), miniature codices are basically tiny little books, “pocket Bibles” so to speak. As early as the second century, and especially in the fourth and fifth centuries, Christians began to create these little manuscripts that contained portions of Scripture (and also non-canonical … Continue reading...
New Series: What Do Miniature Codices Tell Us About Early Christianity?
As I mentioned in a prior post, my new book with Oxford University Press is now out in both the UK and US: Miniature Codices in Early Christianity. It’s part of Oxford’s long-standing Early Christian Studies series.
I have been working on the subject of miniature codices for more than twenty years now, ever since doing my thesis a while ago under Larry Hurtado on the apocryphal gospel fragment, P.Oxy. 840. I have also written on the miniature codex P.Ant. 12 (0232) which contains 2 John (see here), and a recent overview article on miniature codices in Paratextual Features in Early New Testament Papyri and Manuscripts, eds. … Continue reading...