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A primer on Biblical canon formation, retrospective on what we’ve covered so far, and introduction to the upcoming season. Episode 85 Transcription: https://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/episode-085-river Bonus Content: https://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/bonus-content Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/literatureandhistory

After 300 CE, Manichaeism spread quickly from its origins in modern day Iraq and Iran. Recent archaeological discoveries have finally allowed us to learn about it firsthand. Episode 84 Quiz: https://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/episode-84-quiz Episode 84 Transcription: https://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/episode-084-manichaeism Bonus Content: https://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/bonus-content Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/literatureandhistory  

The Nag Hammadi Library, Codex Tchacos, and Berlin Codex, as they came to light in the twentieth century, radically changed our understanding of early Christianity. HarperOne Nag Hammadi Scriptures https://harperone.com/9780061626005/the-nag-hammadi-scriptures/ Episode 83 Quiz https://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/episode-83-quiz Episode 83 Transcription: https://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/episode-083-gnosticism Bonus Content: https://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/bonus-content Patreon https://www.patreon.com/literatureandhistory

Learn the basic tenets and early history of Zoroastrianism, one of the most important and widespread religions in the ancient world, and possibly earth’s oldest living monotheism. Episode 82 Quiz: https://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/episode-82-quiz Episode 82 Transcription: https://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/episode-082-zoroastrianism Bonus Content: https://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/bonus-content Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/literatureandhistory

One of the most spectacular pieces of writing in the world’s religious texts, Revelation influenced generations of writers and theologians. Episode 81 Quiz: https://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/episode-81-quiz Episode 81 Transcription: https://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/episode-081-revelation Bonus Content: https://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/bonus-content Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/literatureandhistory Write Large Podcast: https://www.writlarge.fm/

The later epistles of the New Testament show early Christian theology expanding and evolving in the Ancient Mediterranean. Episode 80 Quiz: https://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/episode-80-quiz Episode 80 Transcription: https://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/episode-080-the-general-epistles Bonus Content: https://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/bonus-content Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/literatureandhistory

Possibly the most influential theologian in history, Paul codified and clarified Christianity as it emerged into the diverse world of the Eastern Mediterranean. Episode 79 Quiz: https://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/episode-79-quiz Episode 79 Transcription: https://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/episode-079-the-pauline-epistles Bonus Content: https://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/bonus-content Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/literatureandhistory

The story of Christianity’s first missionaries is a sweeping , intercontinental narrative, filled with danger, strange encounters, and the hope for a better future. Episode 78 Quiz: https://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/episode-78-quiz Episode 78 Transcription: https://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/episode-078-the-book-of-acts Bonus Content: https://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/bonus-content Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/literatureandhistory  

Matthew, Mark, Luke and John are the heart of the New Testament. And today, historians and Biblical scholars know more about them than ever before. Episode 77 Quiz: http://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/episode-77-quiz Episode 77 Transcription: http://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/episode-077-the-gospels Bonus Content: http://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/bonus-content Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/literatureandhistory

The Roman client king Herod (c. 73-4 BCE) ruled Judea for thirty years. Learn about his rule, and the political and religious climate of Judea just before the birth of Christ. Episode 76 Quiz: http://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/episode-76-quiz Episode 76 Transcription: http://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/episode-076-judea-under-herod Bonus Content: http://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/bonus-content Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/literatureandhistory

A retrospective on the material we’ve covered thus far as we head into Early Christianity and Late Antiquity, plus some announcements. Episode 75 Transcription: https://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/episode-075-dusk-and-starlight Bonus Content: https://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/bonus-content Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/literatureandhistory

Marcus Aurelius’ Meditations show an intelligent emperor coping with the realities of an empire buckling under its own weight. Episode 74 Quiz: http://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/episode-74-quiz Episode 74 Transcription: http://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/episode-074-marcus-aurelius Bonus Content: http://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/bonus-content Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/literatureandhistory

Apuleius’ The Golden Ass is Ancient Rome’s only novel to survive in full – a strange, often disturbing fairytale that had a huge influence on posterity. Episode 73 Quiz: http://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/episode-73-quiz Episode 73 Transcription: http://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/episode-073-the-golden-ass Bonus Content: http://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/bonus-content Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/literatureandhistory

Juvenal’s Satires, produced some time in the decades around 100 CE, mercilessly mock some of the more colorful aspects of Roman life. Episode 72 Quiz: http://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/episode-72-quiz Episode 72 Transcription: http://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/episode-072-bread-and-circuses Bonus Content: http://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/bonus-content Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/literatureandhistory

Statius’ Thebaid, Books 7-12. Six hundred years after Aeschylus, Statius once again brought the Theban epic to a thunderous conclusion.

Statius’ Thebaid, Books 1-6. This epic is hardly ever read or taught these days, but in 100 CE, it was as famous as anything in the Roman world. Episode 70 Quiz: http://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/episode-70-quiz Episode 70 Transcription: http://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/episode-070-romes-forgotten-epic Bonus Content: http://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/bonus-content Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/literatureandhistory

Petronius’ Satyricon is a contender for history’s first novel, a picaresque filled with sex, misadventures, and details about daily life. Episode 69 Quiz: http://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/episode-69-quiz Episode 69 Transcription: http://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/episode-069-romes-comic-novel Bonus Content: http://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/bonus-content Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/literatureandhistory

Seneca’s Phaedra (c. 50s CE) is the story of an illicit passion, a stoic cautionary tale and simultaneously vivid character study. Episode 68 Quiz: http://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/episode-68-quiz Episode 68 Transcription: http://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/episode-068-love-means-sin Bonus Content: http://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/bonus-content Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/literatureandhistory

Seneca’s Thyestes, probably written around the 50s CE, is one of the most horrifying and influential plays ever written. Episode 67 Quiz: http://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/episode-67-quiz Episode 67 Transcription: http://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/episode-067-jaws-dripping-blood Bonus Content: http://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/bonus-content Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/literatureandhistory

Stoicism, starting with Zeno in 300 BCE, was a popular philosophy by the lifetime of Seneca, perhaps even making its way into the New Testament. Episode 66 Quiz: http://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/episode-66-quiz Episode 66 Transcription: http://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/episode-066-seneca-stoicism-st-paul Bonus Content: http://literatureandhistory.com/index.php/bonus-content Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/literatureandhistory