Afterlife 15: The Letter of Jeremiah
History in the Bible
I’m back with Gil Kidron of A Podcast of Biblical Proportions. In its 29th chapter, the book of Jeremiah contains a letter that the prophet wrote to the exiles in Babylonia. There is another letter of Jeremiah to the exiles, a very short work. In the Orthodox tradition, this is a separate book all to itself. In the Catholic canon, it is a chapter in the book of Baruch. Thanks to Martin Luther, the Protestants don’t have it in any form. In this episode, Gil and I investigate the letter. Who wrote it, when, and why.
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Afterlife 14: Jeremiah and the Two Traditions
History in the Bible
There are two distinct literary traditions behind the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh). Most important is the Masoretic Hebrew tradition. The other tradition is the Greek bible, known as the Septuagint. While the two traditions are in broad agreement, sometimes they diverge quite significantly. One of those places is in the book of Jeremiah. In this episode, Gil and I explore these differences.
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Afterlife Detour 3: Ancient Egyptian Hydraulics
History in the Bible
Another detour episode. In this episode, Bernie Maopolski of the Fan of History podcast invited me onto his show to discuss new research into the step pyramid of Pharoah Djoser.
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Afterlife Detour 2: Conclave
History in the Bible
Another detour episode. This time I am with Gregg Gassmann of many podcasts: Popeular History (that's Popular with an "e"), Pontifacts, and Cardinal Numbers. You won’t find a bigger Pope aficionado than Gregg. Gregg and I discuss the papal conclave of May 2025. You can find Gregg's podcasts at and https://pontifacts.podbean.com/. Yes, we are rather late in getting this show out, but sometimes life gets in the way.
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Afterlife 13: 50 Years of Biblical Archaeology Review
History in the Bible
The year 2025 marks fifty years of publication by Biblical Archaeology Review, often known as BAR. This is halfway between a journal and a magazine, rather like National Geographic. It has worked as a bridge between professional archaeologists and historians, and the general public. In this show I am joined by my old mate Steve Guerra of the History of the Papacy podcast. We discuss BAR’s history, and present some of its articles.
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Afterlife Detour 1: A Roman Mystery
History in the Bible
On this first detour show, I am joined by Bernie Maopolski of the Fan of History podcast. We investigate the most mysterious objects ever produced in the Roman empire.
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Afterlife 12: Shavuot and Pentecost
History in the Bible
In the last Afterlife episode, Gil Kidron of A Podcast of Biblical Proportions and I explored the relationship between the Jewish festival of Passover, and Christian Easter. This time, we explore two more parallels. This time, we explore the Jewish festival of Shavuot or Weeks, and its significance to the Christian celebration of Pentecost.
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Afterlife 11: Passover and Easter
History in the Bible
In this Afterlife episode, Gil Kidron of A Podcast of Biblical Proportions (https://podcastofbiblicalproportions.com) explains to me the origins and customs of the Jewish holiday of Passover. Then I explain what Easter is about, and how it is intimately connected to Passover.
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Afterlife 10: Rabbis, Arise!
History in the Bible
In this Afterlife episode, Gil Kidron of A Podcast of Biblical Proportions (https://podcastofbiblicalproportions.com), and I try to figure out where the rabbis came from.
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Afterlife 9: Miraculous Births
History in the Bible
In this Afterlife episode, Bernie Maopolski of Fan of History (https://shows.acast.com/history), Gil Kidron of A Podcast of Biblical Proportions (https://podcastofbiblicalproportions.com), and I discuss some of the miraculous births to be found in the world's religions, including the birth of Jesus by the virgin Mary.
info_outlineThis is the second episode in a series of speculations and alternate histories. This time: What if Christian missionaries had never preached to the pagans? Second, what may happened if Christian missionaries had ignored the Roman empire, and proselytised in Parthia, instead? Third, what would have become of Christianity if the Jewish revolts had never occurred, and the Temple stood to the end of the empire?