Scholarship
Did Jesus Exist?
Critical historical source affirming Jesus’ existence and crucifixion.
- Author
- Bart D. Ehrman
- Publisher
- HarperOne
- Tradition
- Historical Jesus scholarship
Citation
Bart D. Ehrman, Did Jesus Exist?: The Historical Argument for Jesus of Nazareth, HarperOne, 2012.
Where this source is used
- Jesus never existedHistorians across belief, including the agnostic scholar Bart Ehrman, agree that Jesus lived and was crucified under Pilate. The open question is who he was.
- Jesus was a MuslimJesus submitted wholly to God, but the earliest records show a Jewish teacher who spoke of himself and his death in ways the Qur'an later denies.
- Jesus was not crucifiedJesus' crucifixion is recorded within years by his followers and later by hostile Roman and Jewish writers; no historical record before the Qur'an says otherwise.
- The crucifixion of JesusPaul's early sources, the movement's beginnings in Jerusalem, hostile Roman and Jewish writers, and the embarrassment of a crucified Messiah all point to a real execution under Pilate.
- The reliability of the New TestamentPaul's letters preserve a summary of belief from within a few years of Jesus' death, the Gospels were written within living memory, and the text can be recovered with confidence.