Steveawiggins
MY BLOGS
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Sects and Violence in the Ancient World
http://sawiggins.wordpress.com/
A blog that tries to find intelligent things to say about religion and related subjects.
LATEST ARTICLES ( 4565 )
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Candid Camera
Early on in the pandemic, various meeting leaders—whether Zoom or Teams—asked participants to put on their cameras. The point was that, missing seeing other... Read more
Posted on 04 June 2021 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY -
Whose DNA?
The name Francis Crick will forever be associated with the discovery of the double helix of the DNA molecule. Indeed, he co-won a Nobel Prize for that... Read more
Posted on 03 June 2021 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY -
Post-Literate?
Who would’ve thought that publishing could be a scary industry in which to work? Apart from the constant changes, that is. Or maybe the changes are the... Read more
Posted on 02 June 2021 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY -
Watching The Witch
Good things often come in small packages. I’ve read a couple of Brandon Grafius’ books before, and I’ve had The Witch on my reading list since I found out... Read more
Posted on 01 June 2021 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY -
The Heart of Memorial Day
The Memorial Day will be a somber one for the many people who’ve lost someone due to Covid-19. Even as those who know that science can help to bring a... Read more
Posted on 31 May 2021 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY -
Buried Truths
I owe a lot to fossils. Growing up just a block from a fossil-laden river in western Pennsylvania, as a kid I’d go fossil hunting with my brothers. They... Read more
Posted on 30 May 2021 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY -
The Persistence of Forgetfulness
It has happened twice this past week. Maybe you’ve noticed, but probably I’m presuming too much. Last Sunday and Thursday past, there were no posts on this... Read more
Posted on 29 May 2021 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY -
Fragility
Who doesn’t like a play? Since I’ve been reading many lengthy novels this year I like to intersperse them with some shorter pieces of literature. Many of us... Read more
Posted on 28 May 2021 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY -
Come Together
When’s the last time a commercial made you cry? Well, made you cry for joy? A colleague sent me this commercial for chewing gum that left me nearly... Read more
Posted on 26 May 2021 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY -
Outside Subjects
As an erstwhile biblical scholar—the lines of time separating things are sometimes not easily discerned—I have to keep reminding myself to pay attention to thos... Read more
Posted on 25 May 2021 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY -
Kafkaesque
Although it’s a bit early—it’s never really too early—I just finished a banned book. One of the main reasons I do annual book challenges is to help keep myself... Read more
Posted on 24 May 2021 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY -
Is This Contact?
And speaking of the X-Files—but ah, I shouldn’t jest! In fact, I strongly advocate avoiding the ridicule response when a claim seems outlandish. Read more
Posted on 22 May 2021 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY -
Out There
Do you see them?While recently re-watching an X-Files episode, I noticed something odd. A quick online search revealed that I wasn’t the only one to notice... Read more
Posted on 21 May 2021 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY -
The Slippery Slope
Maybe you store your data on an external drive. Tech companies want you to put everything on the cloud, but I like to know where my data are. The problem is... Read more
Posted on 20 May 2021 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY -
Perhaps You’d Like…
Back in the early days of the internet I recall wondering how it could be used for research. I was teaching at Nashotah House at the time and knew of no... Read more
Posted on 19 May 2021 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY -
Nihil Obstat
Intolerance within religions has been on my mind lately. Every religion has a history and the study of that history demonstrates that religious leadership... Read more
Posted on 18 May 2021 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY -
The Unholy Trio
Culture has a powerful prophylactic component. People don’t want to be seen questioning authority and accepted “truths.” This is especially the case as they... Read more
Posted on 17 May 2021 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY -
Feeling Bookish
It does my soul good to attend a used book sale. I recently attended one while on a visit to Ithaca. Everyone was wearing a mask. Read more
Posted on 16 May 2021 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY -
You Have the Right to Remain
It’s strange sitting in a meeting where you’ve written a book on the topic under discussion and nobody knows about it. This is one of the problems of publishin... Read more
Posted on 15 May 2021 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY -
Shunned
Belonging is important for our species. As much as some of us may be introverts, we still need other people. Given the wide divisions of human interests and... Read more
Posted on 14 May 2021 POLITICS, RELIGION, SOCIETY
