The B-Side Bible: The Hidden Tracks of the ancient world.
The B-Side Bible is a sharp, entertaining, and completely unvarnished dive into the hidden tracks, raw context, and overlooked history of the ancient world. The title is a nod to the mechanics of old vinyl records: while the A-sides are the polished, well-known mainstream hits that everyone recognises, the B-sides are the raw, experimental, and politically messy tracks that shaped the landscape of antiquity.
This podcast is a strict, objective post-mortem of ancient literature and cultural anthropology. We leave modern theology and moralising at the door to explore the original socio-historical context of the scriptures—examining why these texts were engineered, who they were actually written for, and what they meant to the people living under the shadows of the Babylonian and Roman empires. From bizarre prophetic performance art and fringe characters to strategic political propaganda and ancient text-editing battles, The B-Side Bible pulls back the curtain on the deep cuts of history.
### About the Host
Mark Kerrigan holds a Bachelor of Education and a Master’s degree in Theological Studies. With over twenty years of experience as an educator, Mark excels at breaking down complex, rigorous academic research into engaging, accessible, and fascinating narratives. He is a multi-disciplinary creator under the Narranimate Studios banner, hosting both The B-Side Bible and the Forgotten Urban Histories podcast. Mark is also a versatile author, having written two speculative fiction novels as well as two children's novels. Across all his projects, he combines his background in education, narrative world-building, and historical criticism to strip the varnish off the past—delivering it exactly as it was: loud, accurate, and completely off the record.
The B-Side Bible: The Hidden Tracks of the ancient world.
The Gospel of Thomas
Use Left/Right to seek, Home/End to jump to start or end. Hold shift to jump forward or backward.
In this. the first episode of season 2 of "They Didn't Teach That at School," podcast author and presenter Mark Kerrigan B.Ed, M.TheolSt delves into the discovery and significance of the Gospel of Thomas, an apocryphal text comprising 114 sayings of Jesus, found in Nag Hammadi, Egypt, in 1945. Unlike the narrative-driven canonical gospels, the Gospel of Thomas emphasizes mystical and Gnostic themes, promoting self-knowledge and personal enlightenment. The episode explores the historical context of early Christianity, highlighting the differing visions of key figures like James, Peter, and Paul, and the rise of the orthodox church, which established a unified set of beliefs through councils and canonical criteria, ultimately shaping the dominant form of Christianity.
