The B-Side Bible: The Hidden Tracks of the ancient world.

If you read ancient biblical literature, a specific mathematical rhythm keeps hitting the script. The rain falls for forty days in Genesis. Moses vanishes onto Mount Sinai for forty days. Israel wanders the desert for forty years. Jesus starves in the Judean wilderness for forty days. Through a modern, Western lens, it looks like a bizarre coincidence—or a divine obsession with a digital stopwatch...

Long before Christianity settled into creeds and councils, it was a field of competing ideas — and some of the most striking came from the movement we now call Gnosticism. In this episode, we trace the rise of the Gnostics: the teachers who shaped it, the world that produced it, and the ideas that set them apart. We explore their dualistic cosmos, their vision of a flawed material world, the role...

For nearly two thousand years, Judas Iscariot has stood as Christianity’s ultimate betrayer. But one ancient text — discovered in Egypt and finally brought to light in the early 21st century — tells a different story. In this episode, we explore The Gospel of Judas , an early Gnostic text that repositions Judas not as the villain, but as the one disciple who understood Jesus’ true mission. We exam...

If there’s a celebrity among numbers, it’s 666. It shows up where you least expect it: on horror posters, in guitar solos, on stolen highway signs, on novelty merchandise, and even in cheeky bus timetables. Whole marketing campaigns have timed releases to it, bands have built careers around it, and newsrooms can’t resist a headline that sneaks it in. For some, 666 is spooky; for others, it’s a win...

Mark’s Gospel is short, raw, and famously ends in silence — no nativity, no resurrection appearances, no triumphant conclusion. So how did this rough first draft of the Jesus story survive when flashier Gospels came along? In this episode, we explore the surprising reasons Mark’s Gospel made the final cut. From apostolic name-dropping and Gentile appeal to performance-ready storytelling and possib...

Zoroastrianism was founded by the prophet Zoroaster around 3,500 years ago in ancient Persia. This religion has profoundly influenced the spiritual landscape of the world, and today, we’ll be uncovering its rich history, key figures, and sacred texts. In this episode, we’ll take a detailed look at the rise of Zoroastrianism. We’ll explore how it flourished under the mighty Persian empires, from th...

In this episode, we’ll trace the journey of St. Nicholas—a 4th-century bishop from Myra—to the global legend we celebrate today. Along the way, we’ll explore the extraordinary life of Nicholas of Myra, the legends that shaped his saintly reputation, and how these stories evolved into the mythos of Santa Claus. Don’t forget to check out my other episodes of “They didn’t teach that at school”. Avail...

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 an...

In the grand finale of our first series, we explore the early days of Christianity, focusing on the Jewish Christian sect, the transformative influence of Paul of Tarsus, and the significant but often marginalized role of women like Mary Magdalene. Join us as we uncover hidden stories and challenge conventional narratives, shedding new light on the foundations of one of the world's largest re...

In today’s episode we are going to look at the various flood mythologies from some of the world’s religions. Floods have been a part of human history since time immemorial, and across different civilizations and religions, we find remarkable stories of deluges that reshaped entire landscapes and changed the course of humanity. In fact, of all the countries in the world, Japan stands out as one of...

Today’s episode will begin by focusing on everyday life in Roman Occupied Judea. We are going to look at how people lived, the influence of Roman occupation on the populace and what led to Pontius Pilate making his fateful decision to execute Jesus of Nazareth. From there we will delve into sedition, rebellion and the tumultuous events that led to the catastrophic destruction of Jerusalem in 70CE....

Today’s episode is part Two of a two-part podcast. In the previous podcast we looked at 5 of 10 distinct archaeological artefacts in history that corroborate with texts found in the Old Testament. In this week’s episode of Ancient Artifacts, we will examine the other 5 artifacts. The artifacts  we will investigate today are: The Pool of Bethesda The Tel Dan Stele The Mesha Stele The Cyrus Cylinder...

Today’s episode is part one of a two-part podcast. In this podcast we are going to look at 10 distinct archaeological artefacts in history that corroborate with texts found in the Old Testament. In this week’s episode of Ancient Artifacts, the 5 artifacts we will investigate are: The Amarna Letters:  The Kurkh Monolith:  The Siege of Lachish Reliefs:  The Siloam Tunnel:  and The Black Obelisk of S...

 In chapter 19 of the Book of Acts of the Apostles, we encounter an unusual event that took place in the city of Ephesus. According to the biblical account, the Apostle Paul had been preaching and performing miracles in Ephesus, which threatened the livelihood of those involved in the occult and magical practices. Many people who practiced magic arts and sorcery were deeply impacted by Paul's...

In this episode of "They Didn't Teach that at School" we delve into the Jewish/Babylonian wars and examine a little known tactic used by King Nebuchadnezzar II against the Jews. We also look at the aftermath of the war and the effect it had, not only on the Jewish people, but on their neighbours as well.  Support the show

Our first ten podcasts are going to focus on the Bible and we are going to discover some incredible things that you probably didn’t know. I intend to get behind the scriptures and discover who they were written for, why they were written and what they say about the civilisation that wrote them. For our very first podcast, we're diving into the captivating realm of ancient Hebrew cosmology. It...