John Dominic Crossan: Paul & the Fictional History of Luke-Acts

Homebrewed Christianity

Dr. Tripp Fuller | Theologian, Philosopher, Minister

Religion & Spirituality, Christianity

4.6 • 612 Ratings

🗓️ 21 March 2025

⏱️ 75 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In this episode, I am joined by renowned biblical scholar John Dominic Crossan for an exploration of the relationship between Paul and Luke in early Christian texts. Crossan provocatively challenges traditional understandings by arguing that Luke-Acts presents a deliberately modified version of Paul's mission to make Christianity more palatable to Roman authorities. Through detailed textual analysis, Crossan reveals how Luke downplays Paul's apostleship, reimagines his conversion, and strategically portrays Jews as hostile while depicting Romans as receptive. The discussion weaves through complex topics, including the Jerusalem Council, Paul's missionary strategy targeting "God worshipers," and the broader political implications of religious accommodation to the empire. With his characteristic blend of historical insight and contemporary relevance, Crossan ultimately suggests these ancient dynamics remain instructive today, as the merging of religion and politics continues to threaten not just democracy but "our soul." Perfect for listeners interested in biblical criticism, early Christianity, and the intersection of faith and power. To access all 5 of Crossan's lectures, submit questions, and join future live streams, head here to join the class. You can WATCH the conversation on YouTube John Dominic Crossan, professor emeritus at DePaul University, is widely regarded as the foremost historical Jesus scholar of our time. He is the author of several bestselling books, including The Historical Jesus, How to Read the Bible and Still Be a Christian, God and Empire, Jesus: A Revolutionary Biography, The Greatest Prayer, The Last Week, and The Power of Parable. He lives in Minneola, Florida. Previous Podcast Episodes with Dom & Tripp Paul & Thecla Ask JC Anything Diana Butler Bass & John Dominic Crossan: The Resurrection of Jesus Brian McLaren & John Dominic Crossan: The Message of Jesus & the Judgement of Civilization Brian Zahnd & John Dominic Crossan: God, Violence, Empire, & Salvation Why the Biblical Paul is Awesome Christian Resurrection & Human Evolution The Cross & the Crisis of Civilization The Coming Kingdom & the Risen Christ The Parables of Jesus & the Parable of God How to think about Jesus like a Historian the Last Week of Jesus’ Life Jesus, Paul, & Bible Questions Saving the Biblical Christmas Stories the most important discovery for understanding Jesus The Bible, Violence, & Our Future Resurrecting Easter on the First Christmas From Jesus’ Parables to Parables of God Render Unto Caesar on God & Empire Join Dom Crossan at ...Theology Beer Camp | St. Paul, MN | October 16-18, 2025 3 Days of Craft Nerdiness with 50+ Theologians & God-Pods and 600 new friends. A Five-Week Online Lenten Class w/ John Dominic Crossan Join us for a transformative 5-week Lenten journey on "Paul the Pharisee: Faith and Politics in a Divided World."This course examines the Apostle Paul as a Pharisee deeply engaged with the turbulent political and religious landscape of his time. For details and to sign-up for any donation, including 0, head over here. _____________________ Hang with 40+ Scholars & Podcasts and 600 people at Theology Beer Camp 2025 (Oct. 16-18) in St. Paul, MN. This podcast is a Homebrewed Christianity production. Follow the Homebrewed Christianity, Theology Nerd Throwdown, & The Rise of Bonhoeffer podcasts for more theological goodness for your earbuds. Join over 80,000 other people by joining our Substack - Process This! Get instant access to over 45 classes at www.TheologyClass.com Follow the podcast, drop a review, send feedback/questions or become a member of the HBC Community. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hello, everyone. This is Tripp, and I'm here with John Dominic Crossing.
0:07.4	And today, as part of our Linton class, we're going to be looking at Paul and Luke in their relationship.
0:16.2	And if you have not watched the lecture that this is based on, then you're in the class, go to the resource page.
0:24.2	If you're not, go to crossingclass.com, join up.
0:28.2	There's five different lectures.
0:29.9	You can enjoy them and then send in questions like a whole bunch of them that we got.
0:35.8	And I've hopefully successfully put them all in under 240 characters, Dom,
0:41.5	and organize them in the structure of your lecture.
0:46.6	So we're going to have a bunch of fun.
0:49.3	But how are you doing?
0:50.7	And like, is there a particular way you want to kind of like frame the conversation,
0:56.9	knowing all the different questions people submitted?
0:59.8	Well, the first thing, as you can see, is I have a green halo.
1:03.9	That's because of St. Patrick's Day.
1:06.6	So you should, everyone should have a green halo for St. Patrick's Day, at least some kind of a low.
1:11.4	All right.
1:12.4	Could you for a moment put up the background that is behind me, the virtual background without
1:17.5	me in the way and as big as you can?
1:20.9	This is with great gratitude to Sarah, an image taken in northeastern Romanian, Probertan Monastery. In the narthics, they have images of the
1:33.1	seven ecumenical councils and pride of place goes, of course, to Nicaea in 325. I want you to look at that
1:42.4	and keep it in mind throughout today.
1:45.0	There's a couple of words about it.
	...

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