Allen Baird

The Biblical timeline of events can be classified and understood according to its relationship to six major empires from the ancient world.

The story of the Phoenix has classical versions and pagan counterparts. But what are its origins, and how did Christian poets shape its symbolism?

The Antichrist is an archvillain in religious horror. But what is the textual origin of the concept, and who has borne the title in history?

Classical hero archetypes aren’t limited to Homer but are also found in the Bible as part of the typical hero’s journey narrative.

In ancient Jerusalem, Gehenna, a place of gruesome child sacrifice, became synonymous with filth and fire, a picture of hell on earth and future punishment.

Prostitutes abound in biblical literature, taking part in horrific stories, heroic events, and apocalyptic prophecies. The Whore of Babylon has many coworkers.

Rudolf Otto, a German Lutheran theologian, proposed the revolutionary idea that holiness is not a ritual or rule but a unique and overwhelming religious experience.

Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God by Jonathan Edwards is the most infamous and frightening sermon of the First Great Awakening. But why?