James the Just
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| James "the Just," the acknowledged brother of Jesus, was
the most important early church leader, and according to the Book of
Acts, the apostles were under his authority. His life and writings
are well known-one New Testament epistle bears his name. It is the
earliest surviving Christian document. His martyrdom was retold for
over five centuries; even Jewish sources recalled the event. His
traditional burial place was a landmark of the faith, and recently a
burial box with his name inscribed was recovered. Hundreds of
churches were named after James, yet today he is illusive and
unknown. |
| Join professor and church historian Brent Walters as he discusses
what role James and the family of Jesus played in the apostolic age.
You will be astonished at what archaeologists have identified as
their relics. Is it possible that James was the son of Mary and
Joseph and that Jesus had other siblings? The New Testament affirms
this was the case, so why does most of Christendom reject the
biblical record? Since James wrote before the conversation of the
gentiles, his epistle provides the most critical data about the
earliest years of the church. It's time to reopen this chapter of
church history to see what we've been missing. |
About the Teacher
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Brent Walters
By the time Brent was 18 he had acquired 1,000 volumes of
ancient Christian literature. Now (at a more mature age), his
library numbers 85,000 pieces. This includes books, critiques,
documents, articles and journals, some of which can only be found in
elusive, exclusive libraries. This is indicative of Brent's hunger
for knowledge. Trained in Philosophy and Theology at SJSU and Boston
Theological Seminary, he currently teaches in the Comparative
Religion Department at San Jose State University. He prefers the
undergraduate classes on the Bible, church history and Western
religion because he likes the idea of teaching in a secular school
to a wide variety of students with different beliefs and faiths. For
Brent, the idea of questioning one's faith is the key component to
faith. |
| He's a firm advocate of questioning to learn, not
necessarily to challenge. "Belief is something you have to be
convinced of, that you have evidence of," says Walters.
"If you don't understand its foundations, how can you possibly
understand what you believe in?" |
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