Musings on biblical studies, politics, religion, ethics, human nature, tidbits from science
My response to Cornelis Hoogerwerf’s post on Γεγραμμένα, Misquoting Albert Schweitzer, has raised the question of the intended meaning of Schweitzer’s words in relation to historical probability, common sense, and more. Cornelis has said my own explanation of S’s words is wrong; I attempted to explain why I disagreed. But rather than leave the discussion … Continue reading “Schweitzer in context”
Without citing any instances to support his claim, Bart Ehrman charged “mythicists” as sometimes guilty of dishonestly quote-mining Albert Schweitzer to make it sound as if Schweitzer supported the view that Jesus was not a historical person. Ehrman’s unsubstantiated allegation has been repeated by Cornelis Hoogerwerf on his blog (without any acknowledgement to Ehrman); Jona … Continue reading “Albert Schweitzer on the Christ Myth Debate”
Baptist Pastor and Professor of Biblical Studies Jim West posted the following recently: Jim is a faculty member of the Quartz Hill School of Theology that advertizes itself as an academic institution designed to train believers for more effective ministry, both in and out of the church. QHST affirms that each believer is a priest before … Continue reading “Inviting Jim West to read Schweitzer”
In the previous post, I promised to discuss a group of scholars who changed the perspective of biblical scholarship. I was referring to those whom we commonly group into the religionsgeschichtliche Schule. In English we call this the History of Religions School. The German term, religionsgeschichtliche, implies a secular, critical-historical approach toward religion. The reputation … Continue reading “The Memory Mavens, Part 11: Origins of the Criteria of Authenticity (3)”
A week ago James McGrath posted Earl Doherty as Christian Reformer in which he expressed a point I have been making for some years now and especially since Thomas Brodie “came out” as not believing that there was a historical Jesus. Approvingly citing Matthew Green, McGrath writes if mythicism did turn out to be true, … Continue reading “James McGrath and I Finally Agree on Mythicism”
following on from the previous post . . . . What is wrong with living with doubt and uncertainty as to the historicity of any figure of the past? Unless one is a fundamentalist or ideological nationalist whose very identity depends upon the literal certainty of past figures and events, what is wrong with simply … Continue reading “And the Mysterious Unknowns of Other Historical(?) Figures”
This continues the little “It’s absurd to suggest that most historians have not considered the strongest case for mythicism” series inspired by the unbearable lightness of the wisdom of Professor James McGrath. The previous post saw how Professor Larry Hurtado’s source for the comprehensive rebuttal to all arguments mythicist, H.G. Wood’s Did Christ Really Live?, in … Continue reading ““It is absurd to suggest. . . “: The Overlooked Critic of Mythicism (+ A Catalog of Early Mythicists and Their Critics)”
Brodie’s final chapter* is essentially an attempt to justify religious faith or belief. How can one believe in the New Testament (or God)? (This is the final post on this book: the complete series is archived here.) He begins by suggesting it is quite possible to believe the New Testament’s message “as a parable”. One … Continue reading “Making of a (Christian) Mythicist, Act 5, Scene 4 (To Believe or Not to Believe the Parable) — Conclusion”
Come writers and critics who cauterize with your pen . . . You’ve spoken too soon, the wheel’s still in spin . . . . . . Mythicism is compatible with Christian faith. That is certainly the argument of Fr Thomas L. Brodie in chapter 20 of Beyond the Quest for the Historical Jesus: Memoir … Continue reading “Making of a (Christian) Mythicist, Act 5, Scene 2 (Staying Christian With a Symbolic Jesus)”
Continuing the series on Thomas Brodie’s Beyond the Quest for the Historical Jesus: Memoir of a Discovery, archived here. Chapter 17 A MARGINAL JEW: RETHINKING THE HISTORICAL JESUS — THE MONUMENTAL WORK OF JOHN P. MEIER Thomas Brodie selects for discussion John Meier’s work, A Marginal Jew, as representative of the best work that has … Continue reading “Making of a Mythicist, Act 4, Scene 6 (Two Key Problems with Historical Jesus Studies)”
. Chapter 11 The Dominican Biblical Institute . This hurts. It becomes personal. From my outsider perspective I understand that the Dominican Biblical Institute (DBI) was founded by Thomas Brodie (though he has an oblique way of explaining this in Beyond the Quest), so when I turn now to the DBI’s website to see what … Continue reading “Making of a Mythicist, Act 3, Scene 4 (The Dominican Biblical Institute, and Its Research)”
Chapter 3 While teaching a class in Trinidad during the late 1960s Thomas Brodie found himself repeating a line he had heard from an experienced Dominican teacher in Rome, Peter Dunker: the biblical account of Abraham was a story, a powerful meaningful story, but not historical. His students challenged him. What did he mean by … Continue reading “Making of a Mythicist, Act 1, Scene 2”
What did Paul — or any of the earliest Christians — mean when they called Jesus “Christ”? I mean before the Gospels were written. If the idea of Christ for earliest Christians and Jews of their day meant a conquering Davidic king, how do we explain why early Christians referred to Jesus as “Christ” and … Continue reading “Christ among the Messiahs — Part 1”
Here they come. The advance warning was R. Joseph Hoffmann‘s Mythtic Pizza and Cold-cocked Scholars. He promises that within a week (apocalypse coming!) we will see on his blog “three essay-length responses to Richard C. Carrier’s ideas: The first by [R. Joseph Hoffmann], the second by Professor Maurice Casey of the University of Nottingham, and … Continue reading “Fight Club! Historical Jesus Scholars Take On the Christ Mythicists!”