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On the Historicity of Jesus
- Why We Might Have Reason for Doubt
- Narrated by: Richard Carrier
- Length: 28 hrs and 8 mins
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Summary
The assumption that Jesus existed as a historical person has occasionally been questioned in the course of the last hundred years or so, but any doubts that have been raised have usually been put to rest in favor of imagining a blend of the historical, the mythical, and the theological in the surviving records of Jesus. Historian and philosopher Richard Carrier reexamines the whole question and finds compelling reasons to suspect the more daring assumption is correct. He lays out extensive research on the evidence for Jesus and the origins of Christianity and poses the key questions that must now be answered if the historicity of Jesus is to survive as a dominant paradigm. Carrier contrasts the most credible reconstruction of a historical Jesus with the most credible theory of Christian origins if a historical Jesus did not exist. Such a theory posits that the Jesus figure was originally conceived of as a celestial being known only through private revelations and hidden messages in scripture; then stories placing this being in earthly history were crafted to communicate allegorically the claims of the gospel. Such stories eventually came to be believed or promoted in the struggle for control of the Christian churches that survived the tribulations of the first century. Carrier finds this theory more credible than has been previously imagined. He explains why it offers a better explanation for all the disparate evidence surviving from the first two centuries of the Christian era. He argues that we need a more careful and robust theory of cultural syncretism between Jewish theology and politics of the second-temple period and the most popular features of pagan religion and philosophy of the time. For everyone intent on defending a historical Jesus, this is the book to challenge them.
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What listeners say about On the Historicity of Jesus
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- NicE
- 17-03-15
Thorough explanation of the Christ myth
Beautifully written explanation of the argument that Christ was a mythical being who did not have an earthly life.
Dr Carrier looks at a wide range of evidence; the cultural background; other parallel religious practice; non Christian historical sources; New Testament evidence to bring forward this case.
Using Bayes Theorem to create a rigorous method for assessing each piece of evidence Dr Carrier comes to the conclusion that Christ is most probably a myth.
Throughout the book Dr Carrier attempts to be as accommodating to the opposite case (historical Christ). Actually, it seemed fairly obvious to me that the actual case for historicity was even less strong. I certainly learned a great deal more about the ideas and concerns of early Christians and why they chose to write stories about a person who never existed.
Dr Carrier reads his own book very well. This certainly added to the experience for me.
I would heartily recommend this book to anyone who has a genuine interest in finding out about the origins of Christianity. Be prepared to listen to it more than once!
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9 people found this helpful
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- Jack
- 14-03-16
Even more convincing than I thought it would be!
Superb in all respects... looking forward to the debate that should ensue.
Bravo Dr Carrier.
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7 people found this helpful
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- kindle reader
- 22-04-16
The definitive work on the subject
A challenging topic that's masterfully and rigorously tackled by RC a must for all true history buffs
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6 people found this helpful
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- Ian
- 17-02-16
Oh my lord
What does Richard Carrier bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?
He's such a dweeb (said with affection)
Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?
Be ye warned, this is a really scholarly book. The gist of the book is as much an exercise in historical method as it is in historical content.
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4 people found this helpful
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- Simonas
- 12-10-15
Rational, logical, open-ended
A bit heavy with references to scripture (probably easier to understand in book form) but still possible to understand. Some parts are very reference heavy, so it may be hard to understand what is said, but otherwise well paced look into the history of christianity and it's surrounding culture of that time.
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4 people found this helpful
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- Marcus Dageryd
- 21-06-19
The new Bible of its namesake field of study
This tome is very well argued, with a clear, analytical and honest language that strikes a perfect balance between the clarity of academic writing and an otherwise everyday, approachable style. It is delivered expertly. As to the content of the book itself, it is a watertight, comprehensive overview of the evidence pertaining to the historicity of Jesus, complete with a preceding overview of the background facts necessary for the reader to know in order to follow the arguments. It employs Bayes' Theorem, as the preceding volume Proving History conclusively proved must be used as the methodology for determining the probability of truth for any hypothesis in the field of history, to evaluate the probability that a minimal hypothesis of historicity for Jesus is true, given the state of evidence we have (both existing and suspiciously missing evidence) and the background facts surveyed in the earlier chapters, and concludes - that is, calculates, via Bayes' Theorem - that the probability that Jesus existed as a historical person realistically should lie around 0.08%. The 'a fortiori' estimate of the probability, that is, the probability arrived at by in the case of every piece of evidence considered, being absurdly generous towards historicity as far as one could plausibly be, is roughly 32%. That however, is far from a realistic number, as I agree with the author's more realistic estimates of the probabilities involved - all very well argued in each case. The scholarship and citation thereof (I have the paper copy of the book as well) is excellent, showing that each step along the way is well founded in the research in the field, or, where the author disagrees with the current consensus, that is very soundly defended. In summary, this tome is an outstandingly well piece of research, an major leap forward for its field, and should be considered mandatory reading for anyone interested in the study of the historicity of Jesus. Not only so because it is erudite and thorough, but because it is the so far only work in the field that (correctly) uses Bayes' Theorem to analyse the question, which, as the previous volume Proving History conclusively proved, is necessarily the only logically valid method available to the field. Thus, this work is the only one of its kind, being the first and at the time of writing only attempt at using the only correct method to examine the question at hand. I would recommend it to anyone interested in the field! Reading Proving History is not mandatory to understand How Bayes' Theorem works - that much is covered in this volume - but a reader curious to know Why it is the only valid method here ought to start there.
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2 people found this helpful
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- Mr
- 31-10-16
Logical and enlightening,highly recommended
I was a Christian for ten years and I know my Bible pretty well. Listening to this made me feel like I was learning the meaning of the verses for the very first time! I haven't listened to Proving History yet which this book seems to be the application of the method he wrote about in his previous book. This book "On Historicity Of Jesus" starts with an explanation of the logical methods, then moves through several arguments about religion in ancient times, then begins a long survey of the Bible, and ends with a very well articulated conclusion.
This audio book would be of most value to people familiar with the Bible but would probably be accessible to someone who's never read it.
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2 people found this helpful
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- Anonymous User
- 19-01-19
Indeed we might have reason for doubt
Infact including all the evidence presented by Carrier in this book we might have every reason to rule out that Jesus ever lived on earth as a person.
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1 person found this helpful
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- John Murphy
- 25-10-18
A rational examination of the myth of Jesus.
A decent, if synical, view on the existence of Jesus. An interesting use of Basal Theory in a historical context. As an audio book, it became difficult to follow due constant reference to previous chapters.
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- MR DAVID R TUCKER
- 24-08-16
Hugely important!
I love this book. In audible it is narrated by the author Richard Carrier so one gets even more of the sentiment and nature of the man. I didn't start reading with a view either way on the Historicity of Jesus but I now agree with the author that an historical Jesus is extremely unlikely. I like how, in conclusion, Richard Carrier guides the reader on how to reassess the conclusion if she decides on different probabilities.
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