A Christian Response by Stephen J. Bedard
One of the claims of Jesus Mythicists is that there was no historical Jesus. If you ask them why they believe this, they likely will respond with some variation of: “There is no historical evidence of Jesus’ existence.” Then people like me will point to sources such as the Gospels, Paul, and Josephus, among others. … Read More “What Do We Look For When Determining Historicity?” »
What if something is described only once in the Bible and there is no outside support for it? Does that mean we should assume that the described event is not historical? Jesus Mythicists are quick to discount events that are even mentioned multiple times in the New Testament. If it is not corrobarated by an … Read More “What If There is Only One Biblical Description of an Event?” »
One of the supposed sources for the virgin birth of Jesus is that of Alexander the Great. But what are the chances that the Gospel writers borrowed from the stories of Alexander? Dr. Mikel Del Rosario responds to these claims in this video. Make sure to check out his website.
In a previous post, we compared the so-called virgin births of mythical figures with that of Jesus. We saw that when looking at them carefully, they are nothing like what the New Testament says about Jesus. However, it is not just mythical figures that claimed divine parentage. There are historical figures who supposedly had some … Read More “Jesus, Other Historical Figures and Virgin Births” »
When I talk to Jesus Mythicists, I hear them tell me that they are just doing good history. The distance between the sources and the events, the presence of supernatural claims and the bias of the New Testament authors make them inadmissible as historical documents. Differences between the Gospels show that they are untrustworthy. The … Read More “What If All Historians Were Like Jesus Mythicists?” »
I believe that one of the best ways to respond to the idea that the Gospels are based on Greek myths and religion is to actually study the Ancient Greek culture. A great resource for that is Ancient Greece: A Political, Social and Cultural History. This was a textbook from a classics course and so … Read More “Ancient Greece: A Political, Social and Cultural History – Review” »
What would happen if the Jesus Myth Theory was true? What if Mythicists were correct that the sources we have for Jesus are not sufficient for us to hold to a historical figure? It would mean the end of Christianity as we know it. Although there are some who attempt to hold to a Christianity … Read More “What If the Jesus Myth Was True?” »
Jesus Mythicists claims that the evidence we have from the New Testament is not sufficient to demonstrate that Jesus existed. They have a whole list of reasons why they dismiss the New Testament as credible historical evidence. I’m not going to address those concerns now, although I have elsewhere on this site. However, my interest … Read More “Observations From Studying Ancient History” »
One of the the biggest problems with the Jesus Myth Theory is not just a misunderstanding of the Bible but a misunderstanding of how history was done in the ancient world. That is why I recommend A Companion to Greek and Roman Historiography. This reference volume is not written by Christians (that I know of) … Read More “A Companion to Greek and Roman Historiography” »
People often point out some of the differences between the Gospels when they are looking at the same events. Who did Peter deny Jesus to? What did the sign on the cross actually say? This is then seen as evidence for lack of historical credibility for the Gospels. I have done some work on this … Read More “The Gospels and Discrepancies in Ancient Histories” »
