So it has been a while since I’ve hit the blog. I have to apologize to those who were awaiting my intended projects, particularly the one on women in ministry, which I still intend to do. But I just needed a mental break. Mostly I just focused on studying Greek. That and relaxing.

So I’m going to start back up here with one simple, but exciting observation. For those interested in NT studies and early church history, I have just noticed that Amazon has added the “Search Inside” feature for Ehrman’s edition of the Apostolic Fathers in the Loeb Classical Library. So we can search through both volumes one and two for Ehrman’s translation, not to mention view every page in the book, three pages at a time (and you can, of course, get around that by searching for the next page you’d like to read and go the next three pages, etc. . . . the things you learn as a graduate student). I doubt that the search can handle searching through the Greek, but at least its something! For example, if we search for “baptism” in the first volume, we find nine references, including this one from Second Clement: “As for those who do not keep the seal of their baptism, he says: ‘Their worm will not die nor their fire be extinguished; and they will be a spectacle for all to see.’” And Ehrman puts in a following footnote: “Isa 66:24; cf. Mark 9:44, 46, 48.” It’s always fun to find quotes from the Apostolic Fathers that mention worms. As a matter of fact, it says there are three references to worms in volume one of the Fathers.

Just a month ago, they didn’t even have an image of the cover (which I know because it was on my Christmas wish list). More interesting observations are on their way. I am sure you’ll wait with bated breath.