History with DTS

Paul Weaver completed a ThM at Dallas Theological Seminary in 2003 and then followed God’s leading overseas. He spent eighteen years teaching at the Word of Life Global Bible Institute, thirteen of those years on the Hungary campus and five years at Word of Life’s upstate New York campus. For eight of the years he lived in Hungary, he was also the director of the Bible Institute. In 2021, Paul accepted an invitation to join the faculty at DTS in the Department of Bible Exposition.

In the classroom, Paul brings his international teaching experience and a range of interdisciplinary interests to his students. “I enjoy teaching theology and any book of the Bible, and I especially love the Gospel of Matthew and the book of Hebrews,” Paul says. “My specializations are in biblical archaeology and Bible exposition.” His interest in biblical archaeology is informed by his dissertation research on biblical archaeology in Corinth, finding insights that relate to the exposition of 1 Corinthians. Because “a lot of archaeologists at Corinth aren’t Bible scholars, and a lot of Bible scholars aren’t archaeologists,” Paul wants to be a bridge to connect the different disciplines and specializations, for the benefit of clear, accurate Bible exposition.

What’s one archaeological detail yet to be discovered that would be really helpful? “Extant writings about head coverings,” says Paul. “There are still a lot of questions about the use of head coverings at that time, so if we learn something more about that, it’ll give us better clarity and understanding of the backdrop to Paul’s command.”

Writing projects

As a writer and editor, Paul has published a seven-volume series of surveys on every book of the Bible. This project originated in his teaching in Hungary. “There wasn’t a lot of biblical studies material translated into Hungarian,” he says. “The need for translation was huge.” But another problem was securing the rights to translate and publish existing materials. So Paul said, “Why don’t we write the materials ourselves?” He invited faculty members from Word of Life and DTS—including Stanley Toussaint, Stephen Bramer, Thomas Constable, Ron Allen, and others—who had visited Hungary as lecturers. Paul brought all the individual contributions together, and framed each book in the series with an introduction to provide continuity. 

Podcasting

While teaching at the Word of Life Bible Institute in New York, Paul entered the world of podcasting. In the more than two hundred episodes of his podcast Learn the Word, he interviewed professors and guest lecturers from the school and other teachers and expositors. When Paul moved back to Dallas, he thought perhaps the podcasting work was done. “I didn’t presume DTS would want me to do anything that might take away from my teaching,” Paul remembers, “but within a few months here, Dr. Hillman (vice president for education) encouraged me to get back into podcasting. So I started a new podcast, Bible and Theology Matters, with a format similar to the Learn the Word.” With essentially no budget, and a staff of just Paul and his wife doing the recording and editing, Bible and Theology Matters has now built a library of over one hundred episodes, with a new episode released every week. Colleagues at DTS frequently contribute to the podcast, which explores many aspects of theology, Bible exposition, archaeology, and the Christian life. Special guests from outside of DTS on recent episodes have included Alistair McGrath and Rosaria Butterfield, and more episodes and guests are on the way.

Listen to Bible and Theology Matters on your favorite platform for podcasts

About the Contributors

Neil R. Coulter

Neil R. Coulter

Neil R. Coulter completed degrees in music performance and ethnomusicology from Wheaton College and Kent State University. He and his family lived in Papua New Guinea for twelve years, where Neil served as an ethnomusicology and arts consultant for Wycliffe Bible Translators. In 2015, he helped design and launch the PhD in World Arts at Dallas International University. He teaches doctoral courses in theory and ethnography at DIU’s Center for Excellence in World Arts. At DTS, he teaches about art, literature, film, and theology, and he is senior writer and editor of DTS Magazine. Neil is married to Joyce, and they have three sons.