Search Results for: baptism jesus historic

3 ‘criteria for authenticity’ (“Fabricating Jesus” / Craig Evans contd)

In Fabricating Jesus Craig Evans writes: Some of the criteria used for supporting the authenticity of Jesus’ sayings apply in the case of his mighty deeds. (p.140) The criteria for authenticity that he cites in this context are: Multiple Attestation, Dissimilarity and Embarrassment. Elsewhere he lists additional criteria that he says are also useful for … Continue reading “3 ‘criteria for authenticity’ (“Fabricating Jesus” / Craig Evans contd)”

Spong on Jesus’ historicity: Paul’s contacts

I’ve responded to the first 3 of Spong’s stated reasons for believing Jesus was a historical character despite many of his analyses of the gospels leaving readers good cause to doubt this. They are listed in his new book, Jesus for the Non-Religious: Recovering the Divine at the Heart of the Human (2007). No “person … Continue reading “Spong on Jesus’ historicity: Paul’s contacts”

(revised) Spong on Jesus’ historicity: John the Baptist and the Crucifixion

Spong in his new book, Jesus for the Non-Religious: Recovering the Divine at the Heart of the Human (2007), lists four reasons that he claims leave no doubt about the historicity of Jesus: No “person setting out to create a mythical character would [ever] suggest that he hailed from the village of Nazareth . . … Continue reading “(revised) Spong on Jesus’ historicity: John the Baptist and the Crucifixion”

Bauckham’s Jesus and the Eyewitnesses. Chapter 16:Appendix

Appendix: Papias as Eusebius’s Source in Hist. Eccl. 3.24.5-13? At the end of chapter 16 Bauckham addresses the argument of Charles Hill that Eusebius paraphrased a section of Papias that discussed the gospels of John and Luke. Hill’s argument contradicts Bauckham’s by implication:

Bauckham’s Jesus and the Eyewitnesses. Chapter 15b

(forgive tardy responses to some comments on earlier entries — will get there soon) A Comparison with Luke-Acts Bauckham continues to search for ways to treat the Gospel of John’s witness motif as something other than a metaphor: He interprets the reference to “from the beginning” in Luke’s Prologue to eyewitnesses being “with Jesus” from … Continue reading “Bauckham’s Jesus and the Eyewitnesses. Chapter 15b”

Bauckham’s Jesus and the Eyewitnesses. Chapter 8

8. Anonymous Persons in Mark’s Passion Narrative I enjoyed Backham’s opening paragraph. Until reading this I had not had opportunity to discover some of the more detailed reasons scholars have wondered if the Passion Narrative pre-existed independently before being incorporated into Mark’s gospel. It is logical to conclude that if an author writes the bulk … Continue reading “Bauckham’s Jesus and the Eyewitnesses. Chapter 8”

Bauckham’s Jesus and the Eyewitnesses. Chapter 6

6. Eyewitnesses “from the Beginning” On page 114 Bauckham writes: If the Gospels embody eyewitness testimony, then some at least of the eyewitnesses must have been able to testify not just to particular episodes of particular sayings of Jesus but to the whole course of Jesus’ story. Broadly the four Gospels agree on this scope … Continue reading “Bauckham’s Jesus and the Eyewitnesses. Chapter 6”

Bauckham’s Jesus and the Eyewitnesses. Chapter 5a

5. The Twelve The role of named individuals in the formulation and transmission of traditions of Jesus’ words and deeds largely disappeared from the normal awareness of New Testament scholars as a result of the form-critical movement in Gospels scholarship in the early twentieth century. (p.93) Bauckham continues with Birger Gerhardsson’s dismissive tone of critics … Continue reading “Bauckham’s Jesus and the Eyewitnesses. Chapter 5a”

Jesus, the ideal Greek-Roman hero? (No embarrassment criterion here)

I pulled out again my copy of “Mimesis and Intertextuality in Antiquity and Christianity” (ed. by Dennis R. MacDonald) thinking to write a layman’s review of its collection of contributions but got sidetracked (again) on re-reading Gregory J. Riley’s chapter, “Mimesis of Classical Ideals in the Second Century”. Some of Riley’s work totally rivets me … Continue reading “Jesus, the ideal Greek-Roman hero? (No embarrassment criterion here)”

The nonsense of believing in a historical Jesus.

This post is a first draft of an argument I am formulating as I continue to read Majella Franzmann’s “Jesus in the Nag Hammadi Writings“, and is partly posted in iidb. We have NO primary or secondary historical evidence for Jesus comparable for our historical evidence for Julius Caesar (his own writing and references by … Continue reading “The nonsense of believing in a historical Jesus.”

Is there Evidence for Christianity before Constantine? (Or, Some Fundamentals of Doing History)

Is it necessary to have archaeological evidence to be reasonably confident that Christianity in some form existed prior to the fourth century? Some people think so, or at least they claim that the lack of archaeological evidence is reasonable grounds for doubting the existence of Christianity prior to Constantine. Let me explain why I believe … Continue reading “Is there Evidence for Christianity before Constantine? (Or, Some Fundamentals of Doing History)”

What Others have Written About Galatians – Alfred Loisy

The influential French theologian who was excommunicated by the Pope for his views, Alfred Loisy, concluded that there were two different “Pauls” authoring the main letters attributed to him. The reason Paul’s letters are generally considered “hard to understand” is because they intertwine two incompatible messages of the Christian faith. Loisy acknowledges that scholars of … Continue reading “What Others have Written About Galatians – Alfred Loisy”

Dying and Rising Gods? Scholars are Divided

Some argue…. Some argue that it is misleading to speak of “dying and rising gods.”65 Greece (Eleusis) and the East did know of dying gods; there were always two, usually an older female goddess and a younger male partner who dies. The older female mourns, and death is partially abolished, but Gerd Theissen argues that … Continue reading “Dying and Rising Gods? Scholars are Divided”

Where does John the Baptist fit in History? — The Evidence of Josephus, Pt 7

Continuing and concluding…..  Peter Kirby cites an argument for interpolation not from a source agreeing with the argument but rather from a source disposing of it. He quotes Robert Webb: A second argument is that the nouns used for ‘baptism’ in this text (βαπτισμός and βάπτισις, Ant. 18.117) are not found elsewhere in the Josephan … Continue reading “Where does John the Baptist fit in History? — The Evidence of Josephus, Pt 7”