Did Jesus Exist?

[Mister Agenda]

Although there isn't contemporary verification, the Gospel's aren't nothing. They have contradictions and bad information, but there are nuggets that lean me more than 50% toward thinking the Christian religion is based on the teachings of an itinerant rabbi named Yeshua ben Yosef (or thereabouts) who wound up crucified by the Romans. The existence of John the Baptist is generally not disputed, and the story of Jesus's baptism is odd: it sounds like an explanation for why you should follow Jesus even though he was known to have been a follower of John the Baptist. A lot of the Jesus story sounds like it was made-up to match prophecies that were believed to refer to the messiah, but there are parts at odds with prophecy, and a completely fictional character wouldn't have a problem matching the prophecies nearly perfectly...but crucifiction as the means of his death doesn't match prophecy at all.

It's not nearly enough to be reasonably certain, but it's enough for me to think his existence is slightly more probable than his nonexistence.