my book_smoke & mirrors_ is out on oxford scholarship online. i have many feelings, mostly good! this was a difficult write for many reasons. so i hope you find something useful in it if you read it.

Hosted by Gavin Newsome and Ezra Klein

#BREAKING: Sinclair says it will air a one-hour tribute to Charlie Kirk on its ABC-affiliated stations in the time slot that is usually occupied for "Jimmy Kimmel Live." The special will air on Friday, per a Sinclair spokesperson.

Preview of the announcement:

Took my kids to the Kpop Demon Hunters sing along today. Sold out and kids standing in their chairs singing and dancing. Absolute madness.

Nothing like getting the kids up at 5 am for a flight and getting a flat 3 minutes away from the airport and the tow truck is so late we miss our flight. No other flight options. Now driving from IL to NC today…

My daughters are obsessed with the KPop Demon Hunters movie and soundtrack. Send help.

I wonder what series of events led to this rule being implemented

Swamp milkweed is blooming and the monarchs are loving it!

My royal catchflys are blooming! They’re my favorite and the hummingbirds love them.

Hurray for the Riff Raff tonight at Old Town School if Folk Music.

Great mail day. Very happy to have this re-press of one of my favorite 90s albums.

New blooms in the garden today- hoary vervain.

New blooms in the garden today- hoary vervain.

Meadow Geranium and Kalm’s St John’s Wort blooms from the garden

Sign added to the garden with the wild bergamot and fairies.

My yard is officially registered as a monarch waystation! I’ve replaced all the invasive plants and flowers over the last few years with milkweeds, flowers, and shrubs for the butterflies and bees. We’ve had a number of monarchs already this year!

I wrote up a small post about Eusebius's Palestinian identity & hope to spread the stories of those experiencing state-sanctioned violence in one of his less-studied texts: On the Martyrs of Palestine. Check it and the rest of the EOPalestine series out!

“The medium and the real are now a single nebula whose truth is indecipherable.” www.washingtonpost.com/immigration/...

James Felice’s new album arrived today. Playing all day. My favorite album of the year so far.

Very good day at the record store!

<coffin flop sketch ends> Youth Pastor Voice: you know who else didn’t stay where they put him after he died,

I’ll be in Boston to share “Christological Closure, Hidden Criteria of Authenticity, and the Quest for a Nonviolent Jesus” in the Historical Jesus section at SBL. Look forward to discussing how recent reconstructions of a nonviolent Jesus perpetuate (neo)liberal ideology and the status quo.

Today, @christycobb.bsky.social and I’s JSNT article dropped! Go read “The Rhetoric and Ethic of Translating and Representing Enslaved Persons in New Testament and Early Christian Studies” journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...

Some pics from our recent trip to Palermo (1/3)

Palatine Chapel in Palermo. Absolutely stunning

Considering just staying here in Palermo permanently.

After sitting on the runway for three hours, my flight has been cancelled.

Hoping the storms clear so we can fly to to Palermo for Friday's colloquium hosted by Marida Nicolaci on the Jewishness of Jesus since JP Meier. I'm excited to share my ideas on Christological closure and ways christology limits research on the historical Jesus, particularly on the nonviolent Jesus.

A fun thing about being a parent is that I now have strong opinions about the soundtrack to Moana 2.

Gun violence against Teslas will be the thing to get Congress to enact gun control laws. www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news...

Latest issue of the _JSHJ_ is out. My brief editorial is open access for anyone who is interested. Thanks to all contributors! brill.com/view/journal...

Very honored and excited to participate in this colloquium in Palermo next month on the Jewish Jesus since John Meier.

Somehow I just found this podcast on Robert Eisler, which looks at his life, including his theft of a codex and his imprisonment at Dachau and Buchenwald, and surveys his wide-ranging work on myth, werewolves, Josephus, and the historical Jesus. A fascinating figure in the history of scholarship.

I want to see this more than I want to go to Club Aqua.

Gayle Benson, the Saints owner who was just on the pregame talking about overcoming evil was actively involved in covering sex abuse crimes for the Catholic Church.

I hear they’re going to replace it with “Gamble Responsibly” along with a FanDuel code to boost your odds when you spend your life savings on a three leg parlay.

it’s not inverted; it is christianity. no religion, including christianity, is an essential good because no religion exists apart from people who practice. people are not essentially good. religion professors have been trying to get this across so hard.

Great pick up at the record store today.

Sean Rowe tonight at Judson & Moore in Chicago!

Being a Vikings fan is pain.

Important new volume of the Reallexikon für Antike und Christentum (RAC) and National Socialism.

Some more books I need to clear out. If you need them, whatever you can afford, even if it’s only shipping.

Afternoon walk on the Fox River. Red bellied woodpeckers and starlings out this afternoon.

Driehaus Museum in Chicago today for an exhibit on the photography of Frank Lloyd Wright.

Very cold sunrise this morning with the ducks.

I was told if I published this article on RH Lightfoot's use of German scholarship it would ruin my career before it started (as if a career in the field is a real option).Instead, I made connections that led to collaborations and new projects. Hasn't really been cited but opened doors for me.

I am out of space for books and no more room to stack more. Trying to emotionally let go and make space for new ones. If anyone’s working on Gospel of Mark or passion narratives, let me know. Would feel much better giving them to someone who will use them than trying to sell to a used bookstore

Received peer-review on a grant proposal: "Offers a relevant and hitherto not existing perspective in the field of Jesus studies" Very convincing and clear" "High academic quality" "Particularly timely" "Breaks new ground for a fresh perspective on the historical Jesus." Project was not funded.