Misquoting Jesus with Bart Ehrman Love Thy Stranger: The Radical Origins of Western Compassion
12 snips
Feb 24, 2026 Bart Ehrman, New Testament scholar and bestselling author, discusses his research and new book Love Thy Stranger. He explores ancient ethics, Jesus’ Hebrew prophetic roots, and how apocalypse thinking intensified moral urgency. He traces the shift from neighborly love to care for strangers and early Christian institutions like hospitals and orphanages.
AI Snips
Chapters
Books
Transcript
Episode notes
Greek Roman Religion Separated Worship From Ethics
- Greek and Roman religions separated worship from ethics, so moral codes were developed largely by philosophers and social norms rather than divine commands.
- Bart Ehrman explains gods focused on ritual favor, not neighborly behavior, so ethics arose outside formal religion in that world.
Israelite Religion Made Ethics A Divine Obligation
- Ancient Israelite religion tied law and ethics to one God, producing divine imperatives for behavior within the community.
- The Torah and prophetic writings command care for the poor, widows, and orphans as obligations from God.
Preorder The Book To Join The Free Companion Course
- Pre-order Bart Ehrman's book Love Thy Stranger to access a free two-lesson companion course with live Q&A.
- Ehrman says pre-purchasers can dive deeper into surprising historical claims like Christians inventing hospitals.
