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How the Gospels Became History

Jesus and Mediterranean Myths (Synkrisis)

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Did the early Christians believe their myths? Like most ancient—and modern—people, early Christians made efforts to present their myths in the most believable ways.

In this eye-opening work, M. David Litwa explores how and why what later became the four canonical gospels take on a historical cast that remains vitally important for many Christians today. Offering an in-depth comparison with other Greco-Roman stories that have been shaped to seem like history, Litwa shows how the evangelists responded to the pressures of Greco-Roman literary culture by using well-known historiographical tropes such as the mention of famous rulers and kings, geographical notices, the introduction of eyewitnesses, vivid presentation, alternative reports, and so on. In this way, the evangelists deliberately shaped myths about Jesus into historical discourse to maximize their believability for ancient audiences.

This is the most compelling and thorough comparison of the gospels and Greco-Roman mythology to appear in the last 50 years.

©2019 Yale University Press (P)2023 Matthew David Litwa Bible Study Bibles & Bible Study Christianity Customs & Traditions Social Sciences Tradition Mythology Ancient History Middle East
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Takes a strange diversion early on to attack a trio of "mythicist" bible scholars, which seems sloppy and half-baked, and which sort of feels like almost obligatory virtue signalling to Litwa's academic peers (Hey guys, I'm on your team, so don't throw me in with those mythicist bums). But after that it opens up into an interesting and thought provoking discission of how the gospels compare to other historio-mythic writings of antiquity. I'll definitely revisit this audiobook again.

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