Note: This is an edited version of a homily given at Farm Church on Oct 21,
2018. Right: Francis Ferdinand Maurice Cook, “Head of an Apostle (Blind Bartimaeus),” 1962 (https://artuk.org/).
We have, from time to time, used the sermon time of our Farm Church gatherings to learn more about one of us, in the spirit of “biography as theology.” I’ve had the pleasure of interviewing several of you for this. Today it’s my turn, for two reasons.
One is that this month is the 30th anniversary of the publication of my first book. Binding the Strong Man was/is a commentary on Mark’s gospel—long before political readings of the Bible were cool. I feel gratified to have helped pioneer what is now an expansive field in biblical studies called “imperial-critical studies.” The commentary has had a good run, and is still widely used in seminaries and by preachers, especially during Lectionary Year B. Countless people have told me it has changed their perspective and deepened their faith. Continue reading ““The Feast of Bartimaeus: Celebrating an Old Tome, a New Home, and a Sacred Story,” by Ched Myers”
Ched Myers 