Gain additional insight, information, and interaction for topics engaged through blog posts and presentations.
Bible Resources
Resources for reading the Bible, listening to the Bible, following Bible reading guides and plans, and recommendations for research and more information about the Bible.
Conferences & Presentations
Resources to help with planning for a live presentation, making the most of conference sessions, and recommendations for online conferences.
Language Resources
Resources that help and encourage the linguistic study of the Bible. Resources include word studies, linguistic and literary comparisons, and other tools for understanding the ancient languages of the Bible and related literature from the ancient Near East.
Religion & Pop Culture Resources
Resources to encourage discussion and conversation about religious and theological influences in popular culture. Resources include a curated list of movies, films, and series, organized by divine figures, and a music playlist. This is a working project.
Recent Blog Posts
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Theological Ethics of the Treatment of Animals
How does the Bible encourage us to treat animals ethically?
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Purim During a Time of Transition
The Jewish holiday Purim bookmarked my year of celebrating major Jewish holidays, and it fell merely days before my family embarked on a significant cross-country move. So naturally, this meant a few last-minute store visits to purchase baking supplies and simplifying the menu to accommodate our temporary dining table surface. Nevertheless, we made more than…
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Demanding Justice in Psalm 82
This week, I presented a summary of research on Psalm 82 at the Oxford Interfaith Forum Psalms in Interfaith Context Reading Group. We had a lively discussion that ranged from identifying the prophetic voice, the mythological provenance, linguistic and poetic features, and extended theological implications. This presentation opened with a reading of Psalm 82 in…
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The Psalter and Abraham’s Prayers
This month’s Oxford Interfaith Forum Monthly Interfaith Psalm Reading & Discussion, hosted by the Oxford Interfaith Forum, was led by Ustadha Yomna Helmy, Centre of Islamic Studies, the University of Cambridge on a Comparative Reading of the Hebrew Bible Psalter and Abraham’s Prayers in the Quran. Two Prayer Texts Dr. Helmy brought us along on…
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Tu B’Shvt—A Celebration of Trees and Life
Tu B’Shvt, January’s Jewish Holiday, called for a celebration of the birth of trees. Another name for the day is Rosh HaShanah La’Llanot, “New Year for Trees.” The holiday recalls the importance of God’s creation and the gift of nature. Trees appear as unique markers in the Torah, so a holiday dedicated to celebrating life…
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A Festival of Light
The final 2021 meeting of the Oxford Interfaith Forum Discussion Series featured a discussion about The Festival of Light. We opened our program with recognition of Senior Scholar Rvd. Dr. John Goldingay, who, along with his wife, Kathleen Scott Goldingay, suffered a significant loss this year when Kathleen’s daughter died tragically in an automobile crash.…
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Hanukkah is not a Type of Christmas
The start of Hanukkah coincided this year with the Christian Advent. I love the Advent season. The four weeks leading up to Christmas Day are reflective and a centering time of faith. I found it very enlightening to reflect on the Hanukkah tradition during this time of faithful reflection. We lit the Menorah on Sunday…
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Messiah & Messianism
The third meeting of the Oxford Interfaith Forum Discussion Series met to share different religious views about the Messiah. Two scholars presented historical and biblical traditions from Jewish and Christian perspectives: Dr. Benjamin Sax, Scholar at the Institue for Islamic, Christian, and Jewish Studies (Baltimore, MD), and Rev. Dr. John Goldingay, David Allan Hubbard Professor…
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Klara and The Sun—Emotional Awareness of an AI Companion
The novel Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro was only recently published in 2021. The book is very well done and reads easily. The author holds back just enough information to keep the reader hungry for more. This style can feel a little disorienting at first, but curiosity is sparked and I found the…
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Behind on Blogs (a preview)
This week I am traveling through Texas. On Wednesday, I flew into Austin and visited with family a couple days. Then, on Friday, I arrived in San Antonio for an annual meeting of the Society of Biblical Literature (SBL) and the Institute of Biblical Research (IBR). This conference is a great time to connect with…
