I just returned from a 13 day stay at Virginia Theological Seminary (VTS) in Alexandria, VA. I was there from Sunday, November 3, 2019 to Saturday, November 16, 2019. I was invited to spend a few weeks there during my sabbatical from UNC Charlotte by the Dean and President, the Very Rev. Ian S. Markham, Ph.D. It was an incredible experience. I learned a lot over these two weeks including things I didnāt even expect. I anticipate writing a few posts reflecting on what I learned. For this one, I want to include some pictures and an overall reflection. Iāll dig deeper later.Ā
Continue reading “My time at Virginia Theological Seminary”What do I believe – 2 years later? part 4
This is part 4 of my reflections on what I believe. As explained in part 1 (found here), I wrote a blog post over two years ago titled “What do I believe?” I plan to look at that original post after Iāve finished this series. I have no idea how many posts Iāll write this round. My first post focused on my struggles with a bodily resurrection. The second focused on the Holy Spirit. The third focused on the Bible. For this post, I will focus on the other āworldā I navigate: science.Ā
Continue reading “What do I believe – 2 years later? part 4”What do I believe – 2 years later? part 3
This is part 3 of my reflections on what I believe. As explained in part 1 (found here), I wrote a blog post over two years ago titled “What do I believe?” I plan to look at that original post after Iāve finished this series. I have no idea how many posts Iāll write this round. My first post focused on my struggles with a bodily resurrection. The second focused on the Holy Spirit. For this post, I want to focus on a different topic: the Bible.Ā
Continue reading “What do I believe – 2 years later? part 3”What do I believe – 2 years later? part 2
This is part 2 of my reflections on what I believe. As explained in part 1 (found here), I wrote a blog post almost two years ago titled “What do I believe?” I plan to look at that original post after Iāve finished this series. I have no idea how many posts Iāll write this round. My first post focused on my struggles with a bodily resurrection. For this post, I want to focus on a different topic: the Holy Spirit.
Continue reading “What do I believe – 2 years later? part 2”What do I believe – 2 years later? part 1
That’s kind of a weird title. Two years later from what? I’ve been going through my reflections the past few days to see where I need to create new tags to help me write my book. I noticed that almost two years ago I wrote a blog post titled “What do I believe?” Full disclosure, I’ve not read it in two years. I thought it would be interesting to first reflect on what I believe now and then compare the two posts to see if anything changed. I anticipate writing multiple posts on this topic.
Continue reading “What do I believe – 2 years later? part 1”Sinai and Synapses, Solar Eclipse, and a new Podcast
I recently started a new endeavor with four other 2017-2019 Sinai and Synapses Fellowship Alumni: Rabbi Rachael Jackson, Reverend Zack Jackson, Kendra Holt Moore, and Dr. Adam Pryor. We decided to launch a new podcast focused on science and religion, titled Down the Wormhole. New episodes are released each Wednesday and I hope people will join in on the conversations.
Continue reading “Sinai and Synapses, Solar Eclipse, and a new Podcast”Just some general updates and thoughts
On Monday, 7/15, I’m heading off to Houston, TX, to participate in a writing workshop with the Write Brilliant program I’ve been part of these past few months. I’m excited about this opportunity. I convinced my research partner, Mark, to join me. We are going to have a great time.
Continue reading “Just some general updates and thoughts”Matthew 21-22
Matthew 21: Thereās a lot going on in this chapter and Iām struggling to unpack it. We first see a story about Jesus entering Jerusalem on a donkey and a colt. This apparently fulfills what was foretold in Zechariah. I sent off an email to Father Greg asking if the NT writers had access to the OT scrolls. I just wonder if since this was written AFTER Jesusās death, did the authors add things like this to strengthen his story. For example, hereās what the notes say for this part of the text:
Continue reading “Matthew 21-22”Isaiah 13-15; Psalms 99-101
Isaiah 13: Even though I am struggling with Isaiah a little bit, I really do need to get into the history of this book. I need to figure out what scholars have learned about the historical setting of this book.
This chapter is about the overthrow of Babylon. We learn in the beginning that God intends to unleash his fury on Babylon. God will put together a huge army to take out Babylon. There is a lot of description here about the horrible things that will help to these people. Itās kind of intense. For example, this is pretty intense: āTheir infants will be crushed before their eyes; their houses plundered, their women rapedā (CEB, v. 16, p. 1114 OT). DAMN!
Continue reading “Isaiah 13-15; Psalms 99-101”Visit to the Bible Collection at the Stuttgart Library
10/15/18
Today I met with Dr. Christian Herrmann, the head of the Historical Collections department at the WĆ¼rttembergische Landesbibliothek (State Library of WĆ¼rttemberg). I reached out to him a little over a week ago to see if I could set up a visit to look at the Bible Collection, which he also oversees. I was expecting a simple visit where he would set me up in a room with a few editions and let me just look over them. I was in for a surprise. He took me downstairs to the full collection and spent almost 2 hours with me showing me several different versions of the Bible.
Continue reading “Visit to the Bible Collection at the Stuttgart Library”