The Gospel According to Jefferson

In tablet, scholar sees risen messiah as pre-Jesus theme

(NEWSER) - A new interpretation of a tablet written in 1st century BC questions the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the Times of London reports. One biblical scholar says the text conveys the story of an angel telling a dying Jew, killed by Romans 4 years before Christ's birth, that he will live in 3 days. More»

Researchers relied solely on biblical accounts

(NEWSER) - A medical journal has retracted an article about a miracle attributed to Jesus and apologized for publishing it. The paper in Virology Journal, titled ''Influenza or not influenza: Analysis of a case of high fever that happened 2000 years ago in Biblical time," speculated on the cause of a woman's fever cured by "our Lord Jesus Christ," using accounts in the Bible as its only supporting data, reports LiveScience . (The paper diagnosed the woman as having the flu, after ruling out bacterial illness and "demonic influence.") More»

US military firearms with coded messages raise issue of 'crusade'

(NEWSER) - A rifle scope commonly used by the US military is inscribed with references to the Bible. The scopes, made by Trijicon of Michigan, bear codes that refer to verses glorifying God and Jesus—even though the military, leery of being accused of waging a Crusade, bans proselytizing in Iraq and Afghanistan. The scopes are "probably the best example of violation of the separation of church and state in this country," said an activist who promotes separation of church and state. More»

Archaeologists discover home from biblical time

(NEWSER) - For the first time, archaeologists have found a house from the time of Jesus in the town of Nazareth. The small house, which consists of two rooms, a courtyard, and a cistern for water, is considered a typical home for the inhabitants of Nazareth, were Jesus is believed to have spent most of his life. The town is in what is now Israel. More»

(NEWSER) - Even the Bible isn't conservative enough for some conservatives. The mysterious "Conservative Bible Project" aims to bring the holy book back to its right-wing "roots" by routing out muddy translation and liberal "bias." That includes no more "gender inclusive" terms that "emasculate" Christianity and rethinking liberal words like "comrade" and "peace." Economic parables should be clarified to be "free market" lessons, and hell presented as scary as ever and not "downplayed," states the conservapedia.com site. More»