Were things still cordial between you after the debate? And yet, there I was, committed to debating Bart Ehrman. Thanks for posting Dr. Bart. Paul spoke to the Athenians at the Ahora about the “unknown” god. As many of you know, this past October I had a public debate with Robert Price on the question of whether Jesus actually existed. No mention of a Jesus of Nazareth, or an earlier earthly residency anywhere. – Discussion of debate by Matt Dillahunty, Dr. Richard Carrier, David Fitzgerald and Kristyn Whitaker Hood join hosts Sean Fracek and Jason Lawson: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dGBouQbYpqM And I couldn’t possibly put up with Dr. Price’s…explanation of his views?…a second time. You can, if you want, imagine a scenario in which Jesus was given some kind of decent burial. I don’t think we know what would have happened at Jesus’ trial before Pilate. Instead of forcing the Scripture through the rigid ideas of fundamentalist inerrancy Ehrman should have adopted a more nuanced position like the one codified in the Chicago statement. By all accounts Ehrman decidedly won the debate. Unfortunately, he cannot make a compelling case that mythicism is probable. But isn’t Romans 13:1-7 widely thought to be a later interpolation? The differences in the stories come from the fact that we’ve had different experiences, different cultures. I practiced managing the time for giving each answer so I wouldn’t have to rush. If you would like to ask a question, simply ask it in your comment. Midwestern is a Southern Baptist institution. Today I will go into a full analysis (or what I think of as full at least) of the debate, with some (hopefully constructive) criticism on both sides and my two cents… Both questioned the dating of Quirinius' census, which is reported in Luke's gospel. No one is good but God.” And the Prices over on the other side explain this away as well. Maybe someone has. Joseph of Arimathea). To continue reading, subscribe now. 4.25 stars: There is a lot detail packed into this epic debate. And got basic facts wrong. I really don’t think he said that. You are correct, of course, to say, “We do not know, and cannot know.” Nonetheless, it seems fair to say, based on the ancient sources you reference, that it’s not only plausible that Jesus’ body was left on the cross but also that it’s probable that’s what happened. His scholarship was leading people away from the Christian faith and sowing seeds of doubt in the minds of many others; he needed to be answered. No he doesn’t mumble he just (as Dr. Ehrman said) never repeats himself. Paul was a Greek-speaking Jew. He himself never claimed to have seen Jesus in the flesh, but he claimed Jesus had spoken to him, asked why he was persecuting Jesus’ followers–followers of what? -James was no biological brother of Jesus. And no, don’t know the book yet! Me neither. Same mentality, different ends. He keeps honing in on small niggling points and might-have-beens, trying as best as he can to distract people from the fact that his client is guilty–of being a really bad argument based on little more than wishful thinking. Remember, he received his Gospel from no man, but only from Christ himself. And Sheffield (like you) has a massive ego that he's assuaging so now he can go to other folks and say, "But I debate Bart Ehrman," as if this makes him the next James White or Dan Wallace. Evidence to the contrary (1 Cor 15:8). Nobody has ‘proven’ all life on earth is the result of evolution as described by Darwin. For his speaking fees and scheduling possibilities, please contact him directly using the contact form by access of the button on the left. Of course “brother” has a double meaning, depending on context, literally or figuratively, today and 2000 years ago. He wants to avoid facing that by calling it uncivil to prove he lied and made mistakes. At UNC he has served as both the Director of Graduate Studies and the Chair of the Department of Religious Studies. Licona did say that scholars have offered some solutions, yet he… The people at the meeting were amazingly welcoming of me (even though I take a position they disagree with) and I had a very good time. They don’t want an improved understanding. Which verse were you referring to? God already had a son (Jesus), so that Paul and his church followers would become “brothers of the Lord”. Nor can he claim that because, e.g. (Life of Jesus, Critically Examined, p. 89)”. For example, Mark 5:41 He took her by the hand and said to her, “Talitha koum!” (which means “Little girl, I say to you, get up!”). While most fair-minded individuals would have to admit that your case for the historicity of Jesus is far more compelling than Price’s (or anyone else’) case for mythicism, it still seems to me that most historicists (including you) still have a strong tendency to blur the distinction between what is plausible and what is probable. That’s it in a nutshell. But they’re only trying to disprove Jesus. It’s not likely, but my take on the gospel stories is that most of them are embellishments of what really happened, not outright fabrications. Jesus is the core of Christianity. Bart, do you ever bring up Jungian Archetypes and the ‘monomyth’ in these discussions? Strauss said: “when we find details in the life of Jesus evidently sketched after the pattern of these prophecies and prototypes, we cannot but suspect that they are rather mythical than historical. Even Mark Goodacre and Craig Evans couldn’t do that; especially Evans who performed terribly at the debate. Any concerns that his book is coming out just before yours? Richard Carrier does what accuses the interpreters of Tacito and Suetonius to do, manipulating the data much more than what is explicitly there. -Where does Paul make it clear that Jesus was a living breathing human? Matt Dillahunty was the debate mediator. It is the tradition found in Matthew, Mark, and John and it is the tradition given us by an actual eyewitness, Paul.”. Got bored with it because i could not get all of what he was saying. Hence, those who debate Christians frequently appeal to Ehrman's works. This kind of immature ad hominem criticism is why Bart Ehrman won’t debate him. Here are some of things he claimed, “Ehrman even admitted in this debate that some historical persons are invented in the Gospels (e.g. Christ himself! Richard Carrier November 29, 2018, 7:34 pm I proved, with evidence, that Ehrman lied. Price loves to imagine various possibilities; at times, he can make a plausible case for reading the evidence in a way different from mainstream scholars. a number of traditions can be traced to Aramaic sources. The writers made a point of proving Jesus was flesh and blood by making him eat fish. He didn’t seem to understand Bart’s position when making the Clark Kent analogy. This is a beginner’s guide to comprehend Ehrman, and the scholarly response from Christian apologists to debunk his attacks against Historic Christianity. Twice! Why did Bart Ehrman really leave Christianity? We know that very similar stories have been told by widely separated people who had no contact with each other at all. Held at College of the Holy Cross, Worcester, Massachusetts on March 28, 2006. Bart Ehrman debates James White on Did the Bible Misquote Jesus? -I’ll never let go because the evidence is so obvious. Last night I gave you a little teaser about the debate I attended between Kyle Butt and Dr. Bart Ehrman. I’m not a mythicist, but I think there are more and less intelligent ways to argue mythicism. Browse 60+ years of magazine archives and web exclusives. I had committed to a public debate with the prominent agnostic New Testament scholar Bart Ehrman. Additionally, he already had several public debates under his belt. It made me think that Price may have got some of his ideas from him. I do believe that Bart won tge contest though. It’s not likely, and I tend to think Crossan was right. My favorite book by him was The Incredible Shrinking Son of Man. You’ll never convert the diehards but I thought you made the case for historicity succintly and well. Thank you for returning to my favorite subject. Thank you for taking the time to clarify this. In Galatians, Paul identifies James as the Brother in the first chapter, it is not necessary to repeat his qualification in the same letter. They choose very clever counterpoints that superficially appear *correct* and do so under the guise of scholarship. And got basic facts wrong. Over the next five months, I dedicated no less than 50 hours a week to preparing. to establish Paul’s usage of archon independent of the passage about Christ having been crucified by the rulers (archons) of this age. Nobody has ‘proven’ climate change deniers are wrong. Answer–he wouldn’t have needed or sought baptism–unless he never had any such idea of himself. White’s post-debate report of the debate is HERE, which is a good listen.Here is part 2 of White’s review of the debate. Christians have no idea how weird and different Paul’s mythical beliefs really were. Question: you use Romans 13:1ff. There’s still a lot of other questions to answer about him, but Carrier, having decided there was no Jesus, never addresses any of these. Paul wrote about the event of Christ’s death, burial and resurrection, only disclosed to him by a vision from the heavenly Christ. Dr. Bart Ehrman’s works could rattle the faith of naïve Christians. William Lane Craig speaks at Gracepoint Berkeley Church on The Work of Bart Ehrman. A look inside CT’s reporting and what it means for Christian witness and evangelism. This an interesting debate between two excellent scholars who come to two very different conclusions. Gray Distinguished Professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Clear that Jesus was a zombie similar stories have been told by widely separated people who had no contact each! Your blog and work very much, even as a Christian myself of histrocity vs. mythicism is the reason was! Be Born of a Jesus of Nazareth, then where did those Aramaic sayings come?! 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