Month: September 2020

Hello, my name is Ensley Circle. I am from West Lafayette, IN (basically on the campus of Purdue if you know where that is), and am a Theater Major. I chose to take this course this year for a couple of reasons. First, because I was raised Catholic and have been taught about this kind of stuff for a good majority of my life. Second, I find the stories of the Bible so incredibly interesting. And third, I really want to learn more.

To me, the Bible is a collection of writings whether they might be different perspectives or stories. I have always been partial to the Old Testament because I enjoy these stories that have been collected. It is really amazing how people are able to throw themselves into the Bible and find their faith, and I am really looking forward to being able to learn more about the Bible and faith.

When you look up “What is the Bible?” a myriad of things will pop up. I find it really interesting how there are so many sources over something that has varying opinions. I think that if you were to ask a bunch of people on the street “What is the Bible?” you would get many different answers. Some people might say the Wikipedia definition that the Bible is a collection of religious texts, but to others it can be so much more. That is why it is so incredibly interesting.

I consider Michael W. Holmes to be a very reliable source. His credentials were easy to find because he is a professor and universities usually provide background information on their prominent faculty. He has a Ph.D in Theological seminary from Princeton University with an area of specialization in the New Testament. I would definitely trust the information he provides on Bible related studies because of his education and expertise.

Another search of Google provided me with information on a biblical scholar named Richard Bauckham. He specializes in New Testament Christology, Jewish and Christian apocalyptic literature, and many other areas. He shares the specialization on the New Testament with Holmes.

Through this lesson, I learned more about finding reliability in the sources I use by searching for information on the background of the author. Their education and specialization provide more clarity to how you should interpret the information they’re providing. It’s important to know that while there is a bias in nearly everything you find, if you can clearly identify the bias and where it comes from, the source still can be reliable.

I would consider Michael W. Holmes to be a very credible source when it comes to biblical studies. As a current professor over the topic at Bethel University, it is clear to see that he is well-sourced in information regarding the subject. Holmes has also acquired and Ph.D. at Princeton Theological Seminary, and M.A. at the Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, and a B.A. with the University of California at Santa Barbra. Holmes has many years of professional experience in teaching about biblical studies, and has written many books and chapters in alignment to his studies.

Another great and reliable source for Old Testament information would be Dr. Katherine Dell. In my research over Dell, I have found that she is a professor of Theology and Religious Studies at St. Catherine’s University. Dell has a Ph.D. and has had many publications regarding her work. She is a specialist in Proverbs, Job Ecclesiastes, wisdom literature, creation, ecological readings of texts, and musical interpretations of biblical texts among other things. She is a very respectable scholar, and that is why she is a trusted source in the biblical studies field.

I have found, through this research, that it is very important to do a background check for any source that you use. It might be simple to go online and use the first source you find, but that source is most likely not going to be the most reliable. There are plenty of people in respectable positions that know a lot more on a subject than most, and those are the people who we want to use in our endeavors.

Michael W. Holmes is a very reliable author. He has a Ph.D from Princeton in Theological seminary and has been involved in the biblical studies department at Better University for many years. It was fairly easy to find his background and education since he is a professor because that means that that information is on the universities website. Professor Holmes has an area of specialization in the New Testament. He does teach at an Evangelical school, which could provide room for biases, since not all beliefs are the same throughout christianity.

Another scholar I found was Scot McKnight. He has a Ph.D from the University of Nottingham and he is also a New Testament scholar. I looked for “New Testament Scholar” on google scholar. His information that I found kind of lines up with Holmes’ but the topic was not as narrow. McKnight talks about how people have reduced the Bible to solely salvation Scriptures, which is similar to what Holmes’ claims is happening with the canon, that its becoming too broad.

Oxford University Press Published Michael Holmes’ work. This proves that it obviously went through a lot of scrutiny to get approved and pushed through to be published.

Overall, I learned more about finding the background to authors to help prove reliability. I also learned about biases. I always thought to avoid biases but I learned that it is inevitable and that we, as readers, just have to realize these by looking into their backgrounds and keeping that in mind.

Michael W. Holmes would certainly be considered a credible source and a reliable author.  Dr. Holmes has degrees, including a Ph.D, from multiple religious institutions and has written countless articles and books relating to the Bible or its subject matter.  He is particularly fluent in the New Testament.  On top of this, Dr. Holmes teaches Biblical Studies and Early Christianity at Bethel University, so he constantly takes in and produces media related to the Bible.  Of course, these accolades do not mean you should take his word 10o% of the time, however Dr. Holmes is clearly a scholar and someone who is up to date on the Bible and is knowledgeable in the field having studied for many years.

In researching through Google, I was able to find someone who is most certainly a reputable and distinguished source for the Old Testament – James L. Kugel.  In particular he is a specialist in the Old Testament and the Dead Sea Scrolls.  Dr. James Kugel has taught at a few Universities, including teaching Hebrew Literature at Harvard University for twenty-one years.  Dr. Kugel currently teaches at Bar Ilan University in Israel.  He has also written over eighty research articles on the Bible and fifteen different books.  While Dr. Kugel is a very astute scholar of the Bible, humans are not without their biases.  He is a believing Orthodox Jew, which could mean that he interprets and sees things in the Old Testament differently to other sects of Christianity.  Despite these biases however, his works and his books are renowned by professionals within in the field.

Throughout the lesson, I have learned that even the most astute scholars can have their biases towards a topic, especially one as controversial as religion.  Every human holds biases, whether they be conscious or unconscious.  You need to do fervent research and make sure that these biases do not conflict with the specific article/piece of media, you need to cross check with professionals who hold different biases.  Trusting one person with all of your heart is not good from an academic standpoint, you must see what the consensus is from multiple points of view to get the full picture.

Hello everyone! My name is Elaine Gerard, and I am an incoming freshman here at Butler. I am a Political Science major, and I plan to pick up another major in Sociology and Criminology.

I have gone to Catholic school my entire life, so I know a bit about the Bible and the stories within it. to me, it is a collection of works used to better understand both ourselves and God.

I am taking this class because I both want to gain a better, new understanding of the Bible and because I need it for credit. I am excited to learn more about the inner workings of this text.