When news was slow over Christmas, a spate of newspapers ran one of those "here's an interesting little factoid" articles about a Israeli archaeologist who dug up a different town called Bethlehem in north Israel, quite close to Nazareth and said "hey, I wonder if the bible story about Jesus' birth is about this one, not the one at the other end of ( Read more... )

Note: The last couple of entries failed to crosspost from DW to LJ. You can see them at jack.dreamwidth.org if you want.

One Sabbath Jesus was going through the grainfields, and as his disciples walked along, they began to pick some heads of grain. The Pharisees said to him, “Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?”Is this ( Read more... )

Now John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting. Some people came and asked Jesus, “How is it that John’s disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees are fasting, but yours are not ( Read more... )

“Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?”

17 On hearing this, Jesus said to them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”This is another of the famous quotes, and one I quite like ( Read more... )

"As he walked along, he saw Levi son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,” Jesus told him, and Levi got up and followed him ( Read more... )

"Once again Jesus went out beside the lake. A large crowd came to him, and he began to teach them ( Read more... )

Jesus forgives and heals a paralyzed manJesus arrives in Capernaum and the crowds are even larger. Some friends of a paraylzed man can't get close to Jesus, and break through the roof to lower the man to Jesus. Jesus says "your sins are forgiven" which is theologically controvertial, and then heals him ( Read more... )

Mark 1:35-45Jesus spreads his teachings to other towns. Jesus heals a lepper and some other people. He says to keep it quiet (why? just so he's not snowed in with petitioners?). He tells him to make the appropriate sacrifices in thanks. But word gets out, and now Jesus is mobbed wherever he goes, and has to stop before entering the towns, but still ( Read more... )

Jesus Calls His First Disciples

16As Jesus walked beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. 17 "Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will send you out to fish for people."

I don't suppose it happened literally as its described here, but this is a lovely passage, a very ( Read more... )

10 Just as Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. 11 And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.OK, we make really, really sure the reader gets the point here. I suspect this "heaven being torn open" may have been more obvious in ( Read more... )