Why are Paul's writings in the Bible?

[The Grand Nudger]

Another counterfactual, we know people invent seemingly embarassing stories, but whatever.  The idea that a fictional superhero story wouldn't "go there" is absurd.  It did go there.  Regardless of whether there were a real boy, it went there.

Jesus mythicists think if they can erase a historical Nazareth, they can erase the historical Jesus.  The gospel of John acknowledges the problem with this exchange:

Philip: "We have found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write, Jesus of Nazareth..."

Nathanael: "Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth?"

Later in John 7:2 he has people say, "Hath not the scripture said, That Christ cometh of the seed of David, and out of the town of Bethlehem, where David was?"

So everyone knew the Messiah was supposed to come from Bethlehem (Micah 5:2): "But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.

Mark and John ignored it, but Matthew and Luke tried to fix the Nazareth problem by making two entirely different stories about the Holy Family's side trip there.  If you're making up a superhero story you stick with Bethlehem and never mention Nazareth at all.   But they couldn't do it because the name of the damn sect was the Nazarenes.

Yes, the gospels (and the ot, and the ot and nt in combo) have alot of narrative discontinuity.  So does every other kind of fanfic. If I recall correctly, this was one of the things that chris hitchens found most compelling about the narrative.