Westar and Jesus Seminar. What are they?

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1 Westar and Jesus Seminar What are they?

2 Robert Funk Distinguished biblical scholar and seminarian With his wife, Charlene Matejovsky, founded the Westar Institute in 1985 First project: The Jesus Seminar

3 Mission To foster collaborative, cumulative research in religious studies. To communicate the results of the scholarship of religion to a broad, non-specialist public.

4 Mission Funk held biblical scholars responsible for failing to disseminate the results of their scholarship and argued that the work of the scholarship should be in the public arena.

5 Fellows Scholars with advanced degrees in religious studies or related disciplines; some are ordained ministers. Associates Anyone who is willing to pay $45/year

6 Some prominent Fellows Karen Armstrong Marcus Borg* John Dominic Crossan Tom Sheehan John Shelby Spong Walter Wink* *deceased

7 Some prominent detractors N.T. Wright Pat Robertson Biblical literalists Many current clergy

8 Jesus Seminar Renewed quest to uncover the historical Jesus Earlier quests Hermann Samuel Reimarus David Friedrich Strauss Albert Schweitzer

9 Why a renewed interest in the Historical Jesus? The growth of academic religious studies independent from seminaries The discovery of new documents, e.g. the Dead Sea Scrolls, Qumran( ) the Nag Hammadi library, Egypt (1945)

10 Member of the Jesus Seminar Marcus Borg Canon theologian, Trinity Episcopal Cathedral, Portland, Oregon

11 Consensus of views Scholars voted on the authenticity of sayings of Jesus Used colored beads to form a weighted average red: That s Jesus (3) pink: Sounds like Jesus (2) gray: Well, maybe (1) black: There s been some mistake (0)

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14 The Five Gospels Report Dedicated to Galileo who altered our view of the heavens for ever Thomas Jefferson who took scissors and paste to the Gospels David Friedrich Strauss who pioneered the quest for the historical Jesus

15 Other Westar Projects Completed Seminars Paul Seminar ( ) Christian Origins ( ) Acts of the Apostles ( ) Active Seminars Seminar on God and the Human Future Christianity Seminar

16 Seminar reports are published in book form from Polebridge Press and other publishing houses; or as articles in the Westar journal, The Fourth R.

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19 Ongoing Annual meetings Two 4-day meetings per year Invited keynote speakers

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21 Ongoing Annual meetings Two 4-day meetings per year Invited keynote speakers Panel discussions

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23 Ongoing Annual meetings Two 4-day meetings per year Invited keynote speakers Panel discussions Discussion of Seminar papers

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25 Spring 2014 Meeting, Santa Rosa Damned Nation (Kathryn Gin Lum) Top 10 archeological discoveries related to Jesus (Milton Moreland) Stratigrapy of Christian origins (L. Michael White) Rethinking Judaism in the Ancient World (Jodi Magness) The Christianity Seminar s Spring 2014 Meeting report

26 Jodi Magness (b. 1956) The Kenan Distinguished Professor for Teaching Excellence in early Judaism, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. Professor in Archaeology and History of the Syro-Palestinian area.

27 Jodi Magness, University of North Carolina. jodimagness.org

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31 Jesus Seminars on the Road Some past topics

32 Sptirg 2015 Q' g on the Road February6-7 Sarasota, Florida DavidGalston,John C.Kelly Religionwithout God February Norwell, Massach usetts Arthur Dewey,RobertJ. Miller tesus from Cradle to Grave April Brevard,North Carolina PaulJones,PerryKea Making Senseof the Bible Normal,lllinois StevePatterson,Rub6nDupertuis The Other Bible Aprif Ann Arbor,Michigan JoannaDewey,BrandonScott First-Century JesusMovements Birmingham,Alabama Presenters TBD Jesusin the lst & 2lst Centuries March 6-7 Billings,Montana Presenters/Prog ram TBD April Albert Lea,Minnesota Presenters TBD Jesusin the lst & 2lst Centuries March lrvine,california Milton Moreland,Rub6nDupertuis Program TBD May 1-2 Washington,DC DavidGalston,BrandonScott Program TBD

33 More information