This is the first episode in a series of speculations and alternate histories. This time: what if John the Baptist was bigger than Jesus? What if Paul had split to form his own independent movement?

Gil Kidron and I announce a brief course about the prophet Isaiah. This will be conducted in two sessions in January 2024. Emnail me for more information.

In this bonus, Bernie Maopolski of Fan of History (https://shows.acast.com/history) invites me onto his "Whats New In History" segment. We discuss my ideas about how Bible scholars have it all wrong about the mathematics of the growth of Christinaity in the Roman Empire, and how I have corrected their errors. I also have some announcements about my final episodes, and about my forthcoming book of the show.

In this bonus, I continue my collaboration with Steve Guerra of the "History of the Papacy" show (https://www.atozhistorypage.com/), and Scott Mcandless of the "Retelling the Bible" podcast (https://retellingthebible.wordpress.com/). In this show we revisit Scott’s show on Abraham's three mysterious vistors. I also have an announcement about the final episodes in my main narrative, and a forthcoming book.

The revolt of Bar Kosiva against Rome failed, as had the Great Revolt. The Roman punishment destroyed almost all the many blooms living in the mighty jungle that was Second Temple Judaism. Only two species escaped the immolation: rabbinic Judaism, and Christianity. The imperial punishment also destroyed the Jewish wing of the church incorporate, leaving the franchise to follow its own path. With a shout-out to the great Rabbi Akiva.

The Temple's destruction also destroyed all the many varieties of Second Temple Judaism, save for the emerging rabbinic movement, and the nascent Christian movement.

In this bonus, Gregg Gassman of the Popeular History Podcast (www.popeularhistory.com) and and I discuss Peter, Paul, and Clement. Gregg is a Catholic, and I was brought up in the Anglican tradition. So we have some differences about Peter, as you will soon hear. We also try to work out where Clement fits in the papal succession.

Only two of Abraham's heirs survived to the year 200 CE/AD: rabbinic Judaism, and the imperial church incorporate. My final epiodes explore how that happened.

In this collaboration with Steve Guerra of the History of the Papacy show (https://www.atozhistorypage.com/), and Scott McAndless of the Retelling the Bible podcast (https://retellingthebible.wordpress.com/2021/09/15/5-19-me-myself-and-manoah/), we discuss Scott's episode "Me, Myself, and Manoah".

In this bonus, I launch a new mini-series. My co-hosts are Steve Guerra of the History of the Papacy show (https://www.atozhistorypage.com/), and Scott Mcandless of the Retelling the Bible podcast (https://retellingthebible.wordpress.com/). In these bonus episodes, we will discuss one of Scott’s re-tellings. In this show we revisit Scott’s show on Joshua and the day the sun stood still.

In this bonus, John Brooks of the “Pod Only Knows” podcast interviews me about the genesis and making of my show. I think it turned out pretty well. This episode formed the last show of John’s former podcast, “Hard to Believe”. It is published here with his kind permission. With his new podcast, “Pod Only Knows”, John is off to fresh ventures, along with Dr. Kelly J. Baker. They are both from the serious world of religious studies. In their new show, they take a sometimes serious, sometimes irreverent, and always curious, look at the way religion shows up in our world. Kelly and John invite other people from the wide and wild world of religious studies to talk to them about why and how they do what they do and why their work matters to us all.

Irenaeus died around the year 200. In his final decades, pagan intellectuals first turned their sights on the Christians. The first was Celsus. Christians counter-attacked with more apologies. They also produced homilies, such as the 2nd letter of Clement. Fans also produced some fanciful acts and gospels of the various disciples, and two biographies of the young Jesus: the Paidika, and the Protevangelium of James. I finish with a look at two accounts of local persecutions during the period, in Lyon and Scillium. Did they actually happen?

Gil Kidron and I discuss how a small rural priest called Mattathias started an insurgency against Judea’s overlords, the mighty Seleucid kingdom, heir to the empire of Alexander the Great. His descendants became rulers of the tiny region. They are known to history as the Maccabeans. In this period, we see the emergence of two political or social groups. First, the Sadducees, or Tsadokites. Second, the Pharisees.

After Irenaeus rescued Paul from the Marcionites and Gnostics, Paul’s letters were honoured and uncontroversial documents, testaments to a great missionary and theologian. Martin Luther weaponised them to attack the established church, and so birthed the Protestant movement. In the 1970s, the New Perspective on Paul movement tried to rescue Paul from Luther. I also finish up my discussion of the Acts of Paul, and make an assessment of Paul’s real significance to Christianity.

The Conspirinormal podcast people kindly invited me onto their show. The hosts Adam Sayne and Serfiel Stevenson have generously allowed me to publish our conversation here.

In this bonus episode, Steve Guerra of the History of the Papacy podcast and I continue our look at some of our favourite moments in the Old Testament or Tanakh. First, Steve investigates the unfortunate incident of Dinah and the Hebites. Then Garry shows a little-known side to Joseph's rule in Egypt.

During the middle of the 2nd century, Paul was rescued from the Marcionites and Gnostics. He was elevated from honoured missionary to master theologian. I also discuss the Acts of Paul and his acolyte Thecla.

The imperial church of the late 2nd century was bedevilled by external competitors -- Gnostics, Marcionites, Montanists – and vexed by internal division over the nature of Christ. Was he man, god, or both? The church brought forth fighters to defend its corporate markets. These were the heresy hunters. Justin Martyr and Hegesippus the Holy were early soldiers. Bishop Irenaeus of Lyon was the greatest of these warriors. His works was enormously influential. For a start, he decisively moved the church away from its reliance on the Jewish holy books as divine authorities, and towards a new holy canon. In his greatest work, “Against Heresies”, Irenaeus produced an encyclopedia of the church’s enemies. He invented the concept of heresy, incorrect belief. This was a concept unknown to the ancient world. Irenaeus used the concept to set up clear borders between the church incorporate and its rivals.

Steve Guerra of the History of the Papacy podcast and I turn a quizzical eye on Mel Gibson's movie The Passion of the Christ.

Steve Guerra from the History in the Papacy podcast and I concluded our series on the Twelve minor prophets of the OT some time ago. That was a fake-out. We managed to rope in a real expert to conclude our mini-series. Let me introduce Prof Kip Swinney.