Excellent

This takes you through the evidence, how one can judge the likelihood of something having happened and gives in depth details on evaluating the information we have about Jesus. Historical, not theological. I really enjoyed listening to these lectures.

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My fellow reviews are laughable

These are academic lectures, presented by an academic - so of course he is going to go into the details of his research methods and present the necessary arguments and counter arguments of the various elements of the life of Jesus of Nazareth. He does it very well and I don't think we do get bogged down in academic rigour. Each lecture is 25 minutes not 50 so the topics are covered fairly briskly - I could have happily spent an hour learning about Apollonius of Tyana and the similarities between his life and Jesus, for example. But like all the topics it is covered succinctly and then moved on from. If you want a glossy life and times and what ifs of Jesus go watch a Discovery Channel documentary

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My most favourite audiobook

I have downloaded every course by Bart D. Ehrman, love his lectures so much. Very informative.

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Excellent Course

The course and presentation is clear and understandable even for the layman.

Bart divides the course up in applicable lectures, which makes it easy to follow, comprehend and not lose focus or interest.

I highly recommend this course!

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Who was Jesus?

Fascinating, detailed and well researched. Should be part of seminary. Absolutely worth listening to. The lecturer is clear and easy to hear, the contents easy to follow. No background knowledge necessary.

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older than the release date says, but interesting

The title details say it was released in 2013, but the final lecture reveals it was recorded before the year 2,000 - which is quite a difference! This won't include recent research.

Overall it's interesting and the performance is engaging, if repetitive in places. The speaker is likely right about his overall position that Jesus was an apocalyptic prophet and he gives a good overview of scholarship up to that point.

It is laughably US-centric in places (for example, talking about how 'we' have the death penalty, but it's much more 'humane' than crucifixion... when most countries do not have the death penalty or regard it as humane). He's also constantly stressing that just because the tales aren't historically accurate, is doesn't mean they aren't true in a theological sense, which I feel really only needed to be said once, or a handful of times at most. It's also a bit funny (as a philosopher myself) to hear him say he's not going to discuss the philosophical question of whether miracles could happen, then give the most famous argument against belief in miracles (David Hume's argument from the proportion of evidence and the definition of miracles and laws of nature) as the reason why historically you can't ever say there is evidence for a miracle, because the nature of miracles is such that there's overwhelming evidence against them happening. Like, sure, there are further discussions to be had, but that is David Hume's argument right there.

I probably seem more down on this than I am. I definitely learned some things. but the fact that this is a much older piece of scholarship than it presents itself as makes me unsure how much I should rely on it.

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An interesting concept, needs the visual element

What did you like most about The Historical Jesus?

This was a very interesting lecture, with lots of intriguing concepts. It was very balanced and for such a sensitive topic the author/reader managed to keep most of his personal bias out it, which for such a topic is a monumental achievement.

Who might you have cast as narrator instead of Professor Bart D. Ehrman?

Unfortunately the problem with the reader is that he is presenting in a visual medium and this is an audio recording. Irregardless the whole thing has ended up as a smooth finished product.

Any additional comments?

There is one or two chapters where the author/reader feels a little 'preachy' I urge listeners to try and cope with his presentation and push past these; it is well worth it in the end.

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4 people found this helpful

Brilliant

Delivers what it promises and more. The verbal style isn't perfect - at times hesitating or disjointed speech. But the content is fantastic, the lecturer passionate, and of course a leader in the field. His exasperation is at times palpable and entertaining.

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1 person found this helpful

A hit piece

Got about 3 hours in, but couldn't finish. I thought this was going to be based purely on facts, But instead 3 hours of what-ifs and hearsay. This should've been called "Jesus, What if?"

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Needed to Push Myself to Stick With It

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

I would recommend it as it was interesting but it took a while to get there as the author spends an awful lot of time discussing methods of historical research in terms of what is reliable and what sorts of parameters are used to decide the reliability of documents. This does become quite tedious at times

What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?

The information regarding other people involved in the story was interesting. The least interesting part although relevant, was the constant discussion of the historical method

Did the narration match the pace of the story?

The narration was repetitive to reiterate points which was alright but again sometimes a little irritating

Do you think The Historical Jesus needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

No, I think the author covered everything I anticipated based on the title and description

Any additional comments?

Good overall and glad I listened to it but at times I thought of fast forwarding or giving up entirely

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