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Slides and handout on ‘Wealth and possessions according to Acts 11–28’ (my SBL paper)

I enjoyed contributing to to a seminar on ‘Wealth and Poverty in Luke-Acts, Revisited’ at the SBL annual meeting in Denver recently. I spoke on ‘Wealth and possessions according to Acts 11–28’, a neglected part of Luke-Acts in this discussion. Here are my slides from the talk, and here is the handout I made available through the SBL/AAR app (I liked this addition to the app this year)—I’d welcome thoughts and comments. Oh, and the sign above? It amused me!

Slides on Matthew 8–9

I had the delight of addressing the Leicester Diocesan Evangelical Fellowship today on Matthew 8–9, a section which focuses on Jesus’ authority. Here are the slides from that talk for those interested (they’re an adapted version of slides I shared as part of my larger Matthew teaching for Blackburn diocese a couple of weeks ago here). Comments and thoughts most welcome!

A cracking read: Luke Timothy Johnson’s autobiography as a scholar

Luke Timothy Johnson, The Mind in Another Place: My Life as a ScholarGrand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2022. ISBN 978-0-8028-8011-6. I read Luke Timothy Johnson’s book with great appreciation over the weekend. It’s clear, lucid, engaging, and very encouraging and stimulating. I’ve long been an admirer of his work: his published PhD dissertation, The Literary Function of Possessions in Luke-Acts (SBLDS 39; Missoula, MT: Scholars, 1977) was a pioneering ‘narrative’ reading of Luke-Acts which I found very helpful in my own PhD work a few years later, Continue reading →

Slides for my talks on Matthew

I’ve had a fun day with lay ministers and clergy from Blackburn (Anglican) diocese today, organised by my friend Amy White. Here, here and here are the three sets of slides from my input to the day, covering (i) an introduction to Matthew and how he orgnises his Gospel; (ii) listening to Matthew using Tom Wright’s four ‘louspeakers’ from his excellent book How God Became King on the Gospels; and (iii) walking through Matthew 8–9. Above is one of the books I recommended, by my Continue reading →

A new book on baptism

Pontien Ndagijimana Batibuka, Baptism as an Event of Taking Responsibility: A New Reading of Romans 5:12 to 6:23, Langham Monographs, Carlisle: Langham Publishing, 2022. ISBN 9781839732348. £24.99. Dr Pontien Batibuka has just published a revised version of his fine doctoral study of Romans 5:12–6:23, focusing on the meaning of baptism in that section of the letter. It’s well worth reading. He is a professor of New Testament studies and the Library Director at Shalom University of Bunia, Democratic Republic of Congo. He co-founded the NGO, Continue reading →