Jesus of History Jesus is, of course, the central issue when it comes to the credibility of the Christian faith. Was he a real person? What did he say and do? What did he claim about himself? In these next lessons on the credibility of Christianity we will focus on addressing the questions that are raised about Jesus. In this lesson we explore the historicity of Jesus. How have biblical and historical scholars viewed the New Testament gospel accounts of Jesus in the past? What major shift has occurred in scholarship more recent decades? Why? Why is a skeptical approach to the biblical records of Jesus not warranted? What are some of the markers historians consider when considering the historical authenticity of the accounts about Jesus we encounter in the Gospels? When someone suggests that the Christian view of Jesus is borrowed or copied from earlier pagan myths, what are some things we can point out to them? Why are the supposed parallels of Christianity to Mithraism invalid? What have scholars recently discovered about the names of people in the New Testament that supports the historical credibility of Gospels? How much confidence can we have that the Jesus we see in the bible really lived and did the things that the bible claims?
Lesson 40: Review Questions
Lesson 40: Lesson Notes

Tags: Gospels, Jesus, Mythology, Gospels

This year (2021), due to an abbreviated class year, I have condensed our lessons on history from five to two lessons. Below are the links to the lesson notes for those two lessons, there are no podcasts of those two lessons. The podcasts and handouts for the regular full five lessons from last year are still available. See index.

Lesson 35 (condensed) on Hard Questions in Christian History
Lesson 35 (condensed) Notes

Lesson 36 (condensed) on Orthodoxy and Diversity & Christian Influence on Western Civilization
Lesson 36 (condensed) Notes

Tags: Crusades, Conquest of Canaan, Slavery, Orthodoxy

Christianity in History In this lesson we transition from our study of the bible to dealing with the historical issues the Christian apologist often encounters. We begin our examination of a number of issues from history that are often raised in objection to Christianity. What are three kinds of issues the Christian apologist needs to be prepared to address regarding history? One of the objections often raised has to do with the conquest of Canaan by the Israelites as recorded in the Old Testament. What is the importance of understanding the culture and times of the Ancient Near East (ANE) in properly understanding the Old Testament war narratives? How do people often treat the narratives in the bible about the conquest of Canaan unfairly? How does one’s view of reality influence their view regarding the Old Testament war narratives? What do we mean by Israel’s “epistemic warrant” for engaging in the conquest of Canaan? What were the Canaanites like? How does the biblical understanding of God bear on the question of the conquest of Canaan. Was God justified in judging the Canaanites? Did the Canaanites have ample knowledge of their sin and of what was right, and warning of impending judgment? Why has Christianity not viewed God’s conquest commands as a justification for religious violence or religious wars?
Lesson 35: Review Questions
Lesson 35: Lesson Notes

Tags: History, Canaan

Of Wars and Witches In this week's lesson we consider the question of the relationship of Christianity with war. A frequent charge against Christianity has to do with the church's involvement in the Crusades. When someone brings up the crusades, what are two alternate issues they may likely be raising regarding Christianity? What historical events lay behind Christendom's decision to engage in Crusades? Why is it important to keep in mind that the Crusades were fought in the Medieval era, and not in the twentieth or twenty-first century? What are six prevalent myths about the crusades that are popularly believed today? Were the Crusades a continuation of a Christian tradition of holy war as is often claimed? Why is the idea that the Crusades were fought to secure wealth and land for Europeans mistaken? While barbaric acts and atrocities were committed by both sides in the Crusades, how should a Christian respond to such charges against Christendom? What were the so-called “Wars of Religion” of the 16th and 17th centuries? Why is it a misnomer to refer to those conflicts as wars of religion? Why is it important to see the phenomenon of witch hunts in Christian history as episodic rather than chronic. What brought an end to the Salem Witch Trials? (58 min)
Lesson 39: Review Questions
Lesson 39: Lesson Notes
Handout: Principles of Just War Theory

Tags: Crusades, Wars of Religion, Witch Hunts, Salem Witch Trials

Christianity and Progress In this lesson we continue our consideration of historical issues related to apologetics. There is a great deal of popular misconception about the relationship of Christianity to the development of Western civilization. What is the source of these misperceptions? What was it about Christianity that made the scientific endeavor both plausible and desirable? What is wrong with the idea that Christianity plunged civilization into a period of “Dark Ages?” How did the Christian view of history influence the idea of the possibility of progress? How did the Medieval era set the stage for later advances in knowledge and science? Why is the idea of a “war” between science and Christianity a myth? (59 min)
Lesson 38: Review Questions
Lesson 38: Lesson Notes

Tags: History, Dark Ages, Science, Greece, Roman Empire, Progress, Medieval

Christianity's Early Years Continuing our study of historical issues related to the work of apologetics, in this lesson we begin considering the history of the church following the New Testament era. What was the strategic importance of Pentecost? What is the Bauer-Ehrman thesis and how is it mistaken? What were the two main periods of persecution experienced by the church in the first centuries. When was the greatest and most intense persecution? What is the story of Constantine’s conversion at the Milvian bridge? What are some evidences that Constantine’s conversion was authentic? What are some mistakes that people often make in evaluation Constantine’s life and influence? Did Constantine dominate and control the church during his rule? What are some prevalent myths about the Council of Nicaea? How do we know that orthodoxy was the belief of the earliest church? (59 min)
Lesson 37: Review Questions
Lesson 37: Lesson Notes
Handout: The Nicene Creeds

Tags: Constantine, Persecution, Nicaea

[Due to the Coronavirus restrictions, this class met online. This is an audio recording of that online session.]

The Bible, Christianity, and Slavery What was the historical and cultural context of slavery in the Ancient Near East? Why is that important to understand? How was slavery in Israel different from our contemporary concept of slavery? What social purpose did slavery serve in a tribal/patriarchal culture? What were some of the safeguards which the Mosaic law imposed on slavery? How was slavery in the Greco-Roman world dramatically different to that of the Old Testament, and more akin to slavery in the Antebellum South in the United States? Why would it have been practically impossible for the apostles or the early church to call for the abolition of slavery? How did the early church elevate the status of slaves and eventually effect the end of slavery in Western civilization? After the resurgence of slavery in the West during the colonization of the New World, who led the abolitionist movement in America? How did Southern Christians justify slavery biblically? What was wrong with such arguments for slavery supposedly based on the bible? (58 min)
Lesson 36: Review Questions
Lesson 36: Lesson Notes

Tags: Slavery