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If you have enjoyed Bede's Library, you can order my book, The Genesis of Science: How the Christian Middle Ages Launched the Scientific Revolution (US) from Amazon.com or God's Philosophers: How the Medieval World Laid the Foundations of Modern Science (UK) from Amazon.co.uk. |
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For my latest thoughts on science, politics, religion and history, read Quodlibeta
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Did Jesus Exist?
Contents
- Modern Historians on the Jesus Myth
- Proponents of the idea that Jesus never existed complain real historians never take their ideas seriously. Christopher Price has trawled through a pile of books to find comments by professional academics to find out what they think.
- A History of Scholarly Refutations of the Jesus Myth
- We are often told by Jesus Mythologists that their work has never been refuted. This is not actually the case and serious scholars have occasionally taken the trouble to debunk the myth that Jesus never existed. As this survey by Christopher Price shows, the Mythologists have been refuted many times in the past and have rarely answered the original challenges to their position.
- The Myth that Jesus Never Existed
- This light-hearted article serves as an introduction to the question that atheists never tire of asking - did Jesus really exist? We also look at why almost no reputable scholar takes the idea that Jesus never lived seriously and have a go at using the methods of the Jesus Mythologists to prove another famous figure never was.
- Replying to Earl Doherty: i) Doherty's use of the Epistle to the Hebrews (and Part 2);
- ii) Doherty and the Apostolic Tradition;
- iii) Doherty on Christian use of the Hebrew Bible;
- iv) Doherty's use of the phrase 'According to the flesh';
- There is no need to take all Jesus Mythologists seriously, but Doherty is an exception. He has written a book and has a large website devoted to his particular take on the idea. While he has complained that the Society of Biblical Literature has refused to engage with his ideas, we are happy to oblige. Christopher Price subjects his book and its theories to the kind of serious criticism that Doherty has been asking for.
- An Evening with GA Wells
- The grandfather of today's Jesus Myth movement came to visit and I went to meet him. Here are my impressions on the talk he gave to the Cambridge Humanist Society in 2003.
- Christianity and Paganism
- A lot of bandwidth has been taken up in the examinations the alleged parallels between Christianity and various forms of paganism. Guest writer, Justin Martyr, a professional classicist, casts an experienced eye over all of this and explains why the arguments about archetypical heroes and Homeric epics all fail.
- Links to Jesus Myth and Historical Jesus sites
- The internet gives everyone a platform and no idea is without a supporter or three. The Jesus Myth has plenty of proponents, a few of whom have something sensible to say and many of whom do not. We review the Jesus Myth web sites as well as those who have taken the trouble to provide a rebuttal. If you know of a site that I should review then please contact me here.
- Books for and against the Jesus Myth
- Books on the Jesus Myth are still quite rare and there is no monograph I know of that is devoted to attacking it. However here are some reviews of those books that put forward the idea in all its forms in the first place. If you know of a book that I should review then please contact me here.
