In Our Time tackles Prophecy

Yesterday's In Our Time on Radio 4 tackled "Prophecy" and it featured one of my favourite New Testament scholars, Justin Meggitt:

In Our Time: Prophecy

Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the meaning and significance of prophecy in the Abrahamic religions. Prophets, those with the ability to convey divinely-inspired revelation, are significant figures in the Hebrew Bible and later became important not just to Judaism but also to Christianity and Islam. Although these three religions share many of the same prophets, their interpretation of the nature of prophecy often differs.
With:

Mona Siddiqui
Professor of Islamic and Interreligious Studies at the University of Edinburgh

Justin Meggitt
University Senior Lecturer in the Study of Religion and the Origins of Christianity at the University of Cambridge

Jonathan Stökl
Post-Doctoral Researcher at Leiden University.
Producer: Thomas Morris

You can listen online on get the podcast.  It's nice to see the NT Gateway featuring on its recommended reading list too.

Beyond Belief does Apocalyptic

The most recent episode of Radio 4's Beyond Belief discusses Apocalyptic. One of the guests is Philip Alexander, professor of Post-Biblical Jewish Literature at the University of Manchester, whose work will be well-known to many readers:

Beyond Belief: Apocalyptic

If you get to listen to this programme, it's because the Domesday scenario - according to which the world would end on December 21st - did not happen. The interpretation of the Mayan calendar that arrived at this date was derided by most Mayan scholars, but this hasn't stopped the media camping out in the French village of Bugarach, identified as the only village on earth which was to be spared destruction.

Apocalyptic ideas about the end of the world, as we in the West understand them, have their roots in the Jewish and Christian traditions. The popular imagery - the Mark of the Beast, the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, the Whore of Babylon - feed the imagination of film makers and writers, who draw upon Biblical imagery.

Joining Ernie Rea to discuss the nature and role of apocalyptic ideas on western religion and culture are Dr Philip Alexander, Professor of Post Biblical Jewish Studies at the University of Manchester; Dr Stefan Skrimshire, lecturer in Theology and Religious Studies at the University of Leeds; and Rev Dr Steve Jeffrey minister of Emmanuel Evangelical Church in North London. 

It's a good listen.  You can listen again at the link above, or you can download the podcast.  The programme is thirty minutes long.

In Our Time on the Pelagian Controversy

In Our Time today, on Radio 4, discussed the Pelagian Controversy. Caroline Humfress, Martin Palmer and John Milbank were in the studio with Melvyn Bragg. If you are not familiar with the programme, you might be pleased to know that it is available as a podcast.

King James Bible Programmes on Radio 4

It's been a real treat of the new year to have some excellent programmes on Radio 4 to celebrate the 400th year anniversary of the King James Bible. Let me strongly recommend in particular the three part series presented by James Naughtie:

The Story of the King James Bible

It's a lively, clear and entertaining series with three episodes of 45 minutes each. It features scholars like Alistair McGrath. It's available on the iPlayer for all, international users included, so there are no excuses for not catching up with this. Go to the main link above or to individual episodes here:

1. The Commission
2. The Translation
3. The Legacy

Then don't miss Sunday from 9 January when a whole episode was devoted to the King James Bible. It includes interviews with the Archbishop of Canterbury and Ed Kessler and Simon Gathercole. As always with Sunday, it is available as a podcast.

Also worth catching is a discussion on Beyond Belief on 3 January on Translation and this one you can get as a podcast. It is a discussion of translation more broadly but the catalyst is the King James Bible anniversary.

Lots to enjoy there, but the series is the top priority -- well worth a listen.

Don't you just love Radio 4?

Charlesworth on Sunday on the Scrolls and Google

The big news items in our area this week was the story that the Dead Sea Scrolls are to go on Google Archive and it was widely covered on the blogs. This morning's Sunday programme had a feature on it, including an over-the-phone interview with James Charlesworth -- listen again for the next week or download the podcast.

Mary Beard on Desert Island Discs

It's not that often that classicists or Biblical scholars are on Desert Island Discs, but it's little surprise that Mary Beard appeared on the programme last week. It's a very entertaining and quirky episode, as you might expect. She defends her notorious post-9/11 column, talks about her parents and her past and says that life as an academic is "bloody hard work" and yet the ideal job. Not sure Kirsty Young should have allowed her the Elgin marbles as her luxury item, though.

The nice thing about Desert Island Discs these days is that you can download it as a podcast too, with the tracks reduced to an even shorter length (10 seconds or so?!) than on the actual programme.

Also mentioned on Rogue Classicism.

In Our Time: St Paul

This morning's In Our Time on Radio 4 was about the Apostle Paul, with a good panel made up of John Barclay, Helen Bond and John Haldane. You can listen online or download the podcast for the next week.

God and the Movies on Radio 4

There was an interesting programme on Radio 4 yesterday about the impact that the commercial success of The Passion of the Christ has had on Hollywood and the desire to cash in on the "Christian dollar" in making Christian-themed and Christian-friendly films:

God and the Movies

You can catch it on the BBC iPlayer for the next six days.

The Oldest Bible

It is good to see Codex Sinaiticus still making the news and on Monday, Radio 4 (which most right thinking Brits, and many others too, love with passion) broadcast a half hour documentary:

The Oldest Bible

Roger Bolton tells the story of the Codex Sinaiticus bible, found in 1844 in a monastery in the Sinai Desert and then split between Egypt, Russia, Switzerland and the British Library. It is soon to be digitised for world-wide viewing, and poses a significant challenge to the Bible as we know it.

You can listen again from the link above, or by going straight to the iPlayer. It will be available for the next few days. Once I've listened, I will comment here. Meanwhile, an article related to the programme has drawn heavy criticism and helpful correction from Dirk Jongkind on Evangelical Textual Criticism. I would be interested to hear Dirk's and others' comments on the programme too when they have listened.

Beyond Belief on Paul

More from Radio 4: Beyond Belief back on 23 June dealt with Paul. No one else on the blogs has mentioned it so far (Surely I am the only biblioblogger who listens to Radio 4). The contributors are Paula Gooder, Gerald O'Collins and Ed Kessler, all three great choices, especially Paula! You can catch it again on Listen Again from the previous link (just select 23 June St Paul from the drop down menu). If you don't yet subscribe to the podcast, you can do so at Beyond Belief: Podcast. One choice question that gets discussed: would Paul have circumcised his son if he had one?

Tacitus on In Our Time

Last week's In Our Time on Radio 4 dealt with Tacitus:

“The story I now commence is rich in vicissitudes, grim with warfare, torn by civil strife, a tale of horror even during times of peace”. So reads page one of The Histories by the Roman historian Tacitus and it doesn’t disappoint.

Tacitus’ Rome is a hotbed of sex and violence, of excessive wealth and senatorial corruption. His work is a pungent study in tyranny and decline that has influenced depictions of Rome, from Gibbon’s Decline and Fall to Robert Graves’ I, Claudius.

But is it a true picture of the age or does Tacitus’ work present the tyranny and decadence of Rome at the expense of its virtues? And to what extent, when we look at the Roman Empire today, do we still see it through his eyes?

Contributors

Catharine Edwards, Professor of Classics and Ancient History at Birkbeck, University of London

Ellen O’Gorman, Senior Lecturer in Classics at the University of Bristol

Maria Wyke, Professor of Latin at University College London

You can listen again on the web, or you do what I do and download the podcast. In fact, why not subscribe while you are at it?

Frank Deasy on Start the Week

One of my favourite podcasts is Start the Week, Andrew Marr's regular Radio 4 Monday morning programme. It's great to discover this week that Frank Deasy is one of the guests, talking about The Passion. You can listen live on the web, or download the podcast -- go to the Start the Week website. The material specifically about The Passion begins at about 24:30.

The Wikipedia Story

I mention this since it is an occasional topic of conversation on this blog, and a correspondent mentioned the programme to me the other day. This week's Radio 4 Choice Podcast is The Wikipedia Story, presented by Clive Anderson. Go to the Radio 4 Choice Podcast page to download if you don't already subscribe, or listen to the stream.

Beyond Belief on Mary Magdalene

I interrupt my blogging holiday to note that while driving from Birmingham to South Derbyshire yesterday, it was a pleasure to catch my friend Bridget Gilfillan Upton on the latest Beyond Belief on Radio 4. (It's great being in the UK -- you can get Radio 4 just by switching on the radio in the car! You don't even have to have your laptop and an internet connection!). You can listen again here:

Beyond Belief: 24 July 2006

As well as Bridget Gilfillan Upton, there was a second woman whose name I have forgotten (sorry) and also Timothy Freke, whom I've met on a couple of occasions, most recently on a previous episode of Beyond Belief on Gnosticism.

Silverscreen Beats 3 and 4

The third and fourth Silverscreen Beats programmes were broadcast on Radio 4 yesterday (15.45 BST) and today (15.45 BST) and they are now available on-line to listen again:

Jesus Christ Superstar (July 5)

Lyricist Tim Rice reveals that the movie only came about because the stage show was such a flop, and how Tom Jones inspired the title to the film.

Life of Brian (July 6)

Composer Geoffrey Burgon reveals how he wrote a traditional, serious score to counteract the comedy in a controversial film. Director Terry Jones admits that he was surprised that the song Always Look on the Bright Side became such a hit.

There are several contributions from me in both programmes. The last part, on The Last Temptation of Christ, is broadcast tomorrow.

Update (Friday, 10.54): see Matt Page's comments in Bible Films Blog: Silverscreen Beats: Godspell and Superstar and Silverscreen Beats: Life of Brian

Silverscreen Beats

Over on Matthew Page's Bible Films Blog (note originating in Peter Chattaway's Filmchat: Jesus Movie Soundtracks on the BBC), there's a post about a new BBC Radio 4 programme:

Silverscreen Beats

It is on all this week at 3.45 pm BST, five episodes at 15 minutes each, taking the music for King of Kings, Godspell, Jesus Christ Superstar, The Life of Brian and The Last Temptation of Christ. You can listen again from the link above. Matt asks:

As for the series as a whole, I suspect it is a repeat. Certainly before Mark Goodacre's brief quote he is introduced as being from Birmingham University which would make it at least a year old! If that is the case, it's a very much welcome one.

Well, the clip of me speaking, as well as a lot of the rest of the content, is taken from a BBC Scotland documentary broadcast on Easter Day 2004 and entitled Silverscreen Superstar. I blogged on it briefly at the time (Silverscreen Superstar, 15 April 2004). I didn't know about the new version, so I am interested to see how it pans out and whether they'll be using any more of me in it.

Gospel of Judas makes it onto Any Questions

I'll echo other bibliobloggers who have linked to the latest exciting news and publications on the Gospel of Judas in due course -- I've been very busy at work and play over the last week -- but this is just a quick mention that the Gospel of Judas even made it yesterday (I'm listening to the Saturday repeat while doing the housework) of Any Questions? on Radio 4. You always know when a NT / early Christianity story is big when questions find their way onto Any Questions?. You can listen to it streamed here, the question on Judas occurring about 25 minutes in (no download / podcast yet available for this programme). The encouraging thing was that the panel was well informed, and that the message clearly is getting through, that the Gospel is of great interest for the study of early Christianity, but sheds no light on the historical Jesus or the historical Judas. One of the panelists, John Selwyn Gummer, said that to treat it seriously as a source for the historical Judas would be like his writing now and claiming to be an eye-witness of the death of William of Orange, an enjoyable analogy, though not as good as Simon Gathercole's comment on Queen Victoria's CD collection.

Beyond Belief on Judas

Next Monday's Beyond Belief is advertising a programme on Judas:

Monday 27 March 2006
Judas

Not many babies are called Judas these days – and to be labelled such is considered by many to be a serious insult, suggesting unreliability and untrustworthiness.

But was the original Judas really as black as he's painted? Was he really a traitor or simply misunderstood? So, Judas: victim or villain?

I don't know who is on the programme yet. I haven't done a Beyond Belief myself for some time now. It's on Radio 4 on at 16.30 BST, and is always available for ages on "Listen Again" streaming afterwards.

Gospel of Judas on Sunday

The lead feature on this morning's Sunday programme on Radio 4 was on the Gospel of Judas. Simon Gathercole, Senior Lecturer in New Testament at the University of Aberdeen, was interviewed by Roger Bolton. You can listen here:

Sunday

The interview with Simon runs from about 9:10 to 13:30.

I can claim a little influence here. I had a long phone-call with the producer about the Gospel on Friday morning, expressed a little reluctance about the thought of driving in to Durham on a Saturday to do an interview, and recommended Simon, who did an excellent job, especially in explaining that the Gospel cannot tell us anything of interest about the historical Jesus and the historical Judas, which is always, of course, the angle the media are inclined to explore. Simon explained that the Gospel was written long after the living memory of the apostles, and that it featured anachronisms equivalent to our writing a document about Queen Victoria in which she comments on The Lord of the Rings and on her CD collection.

In the Footsteps of Jesus, Episode 4

The fourth and final part in the BBC Radio 4 series In the Footsteps of Jesus was broadcast earlier today, and it is available for listening on-line here:

In the Footsteps of Jesus: India

Click on the Listen to the Programme link. The transcript link is broken at the moment.