AKMA At Bible Disco

In a moment of weakness, I agreed to talk on an Irish radio program called “Talking History.” They were looking for a Bible scholar to go with Prof. Helena Sheehan from the School of Communications, Dublin City University (I’m told she was once a religious, now an atheist) and Dr Brendan Purcell from University College Dublin; I asked whether there weren’t abundant Bible scholars right there in Ireland, but they didn’t answer the question. Maybe it’s my quaint American accent. I figure that if I do enough radio appearances, it increases the chance that I’ll get good at it someday, but in anticipation it feels as though I’m doomed to the eternal repetition of the futile.

I was disconcerted to learn that the station referred to the our talk as a “disco,” which I gather is a “discussion” (much as “convo” is “conversation”). The topics that have been proposed rest at a pretty basic level (“Bible: Who wrote it and where did it come from ie ….Was in inspired by the Holy Spirit or did it come from a range of Authors who were writing for multiple audiences?” “Status of the Bible today: Should it be viewed as mythology ie Greek or Celtic Civilization etc”). We’ll see how well I manage to address my disco partners, the presenter, the audience, and my own sense of impending predictable missing-the-point. (The show won’t be broadcast till December, I think, so for the time being you’ll just have to take my word on how it goes.)


Well, that was odd. Somewhere at the studio end, an electronic sound source was beeping continually, as though there were an open line (we know it wasn’t on my end, ’cos they called both the landline that runs to Princeton and my cell that’s directed through Chicago). They couldn’t track down the beeping today’s taping, so they’ll figure it out during the week and call me for a later interview that they’ll edit in.

Oh, and they added David Edgar to the lineup; I wish I could hear the other participants’ contributions so as to respond more precisely to the matters they raise, but I doubt that’ll be possible. More details as the story develops.