What can archaeology reveal about the Jewish community of ancient Rome?
Discover how scholars sift the gospels to uncover the authentic words of Jesus
For 40 years, Westar has brought leading religion scholars together to ask hard questions about the Bible and Christian history — and to share honest answers with everyone, not just other academics. No dogma, no agenda. Just careful research made plain.
As a public-facing organization, we are committed to sharing the results of scholarly research in accessible language through publications, events, and other resources. Westar works in dialogue with the public to foster critical thinking about religion.
Westar began in 1985 when Robert W. Funk invited 30 New Testament scholars to join him in the Jesus Seminar, a collaborative inquiry about the historical Jesus. Since its founding, Westar has held a series of innovative seminars on the origins of Christianity. But Funk’s founding vision was larger than scholarship for its own sake. His aim was to make religious literacy as ubiquitous as reading, writing, and arithmetic.
What does the Bible say about same-sex relationships? Did women have authority in the early Jesus movements? How was morality understood in the earliest Christian communities? These are urgent questions — because how we answer them shapes real debates in politics, culture, and daily life today. Westar exists to bring honest, rigorous scholarship to that conversation.
Bible Search & Rescue is an initiative of Westar Institute to make results and tools of academic biblical scholarship available to the general public.
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