theLAB

The Logos Academic Blog

Read, Write, Run, Pray: A Scholar’s Approach to 2021

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Photo: Tavis Bohlinger

The New Year began for those of us in the UK with a new lockdown fresh out of the gates. We are like toddlers struggling up the steps to the top of a slide only to arrive at a higher, scarier ascent. Where did the slide go?

On Monday morning, friends of mine returned to work (both online and in the office), only to be told that same evening that they could not leave their homes, nor could their children go to school the next day (after 2 weeks of Christmas break). For us scholars and pastors, finding time to study is never easy, but the pandemic makes it nearly impossible.

2021 begins on a low.

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Lockdown Diary: Prof John Barclay, Durham University

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Life in lockdown is exhausting. Planning, organising, and administering online teaching is sapping all the mental energy and time at the moment, while teaching is less rewarding than usual, without significant face-to-face interaction. (God so loved the world, that he did not Zoom us …).

Also the drama, frustration and anxiety caused by the news takes up so much mental and emotional space, that it is hard to think clearly and well. The result is that there is, for me at least, very little reading/research and no extended writing taking place at all.

On the plus side, the online world allows international interaction across continents without the hassle, pollution, and expense of travel. But if this goes on long, we will find ourselves with less and less to say to each other, and unable to make meaningful new scholarly relationships. An online conference is not a patch on the real thing!

John M. G. Barclay is the Lightfoot Professor of Divinity at Durham University.

The Covid Vaccine has 666 Written All Over It…and Why that Doesn’t Matter According to Revelation

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by Matthew L. Halsted, PhD

In an article published last week on theLAB, COVID-19 and The Mark of the Beast, I claimed that the mark of the beast (666) is most likely not a physical or visible mark (Rev. 13:16). The biggest objection I received from readers had to do with this very point: how could the mark be non-physical and invisible if having the mark was what allowed people to “buy or sell” things (Rev. 13:17)? Wouldn’t the mark need to be visible in order to do that? Furthermore, isn’t there enough evidence that the vaccine is the “number” of the beast, including a bill currently before the House of Representatives (6666) and the very letters “C-O-R-O-N-A” themselves?1 These are good questions, and I think a response would be helpful. But first, we need to start from square one and do some background work.

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COVID-19 and The Mark of the Beast

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Watching the news a few days ago, I saw photos and videos of those protesting the COVID-19 quarantine on full display. I’m growing weary of how certain biblical texts are attached to certain political movements and demonstrations—texts that are, quite frankly, misused and misunderstood. Sadly, Christianity ends up getting misrepresented in the process.

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Reading Broadly or Deeply? Three Years inside the Mind of a Genius

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© Tavis Bohlinger

Suppose you step into the entrance of an enormous library.  Like many, you feel enchanted by the possibility of learning. A bibliophile, your soul thrills at such unfettered access to human knowledge. Even the smell of books delights the senses. Each volume represents some small bit of knowledge or experience in a given field; one writer’s obsession for years or even a lifetime. But which books should you choose?

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Academic Jobs in Biblical Studies and Theology: 4–24 March 2020

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Despite the current COVID-19 pandemic, jobs are being posted at teaching institutions around the world. This is a good sign, as the situation at some point must resolve, and life continue, not “as normal,” but “as new.” The past few weeks have seen new job postings introduced from Bavaria to New Zealand, California to Maryland. Happy hunting, stay safe.

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Logos Responds to COVID-19 with Thousands of Free Resources: the Remote Learning Library

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Logos has just created the Remote Learning Library in response to the COVID-19 crisis. Knowing that thousands of students are now restricted to studying from home, we are making thousands of resources freely available to faculty and students worldwide. Here are the details:

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