Did Jesus Exist?

[JesusHChrist]

Doesn't matter if such a guy existed. He was not a god nor the son thereof.

I do rather like the idea of ripping the legs out from under the entire mythology.

The evidence for a historical Jeebs is paltry. Except for me of course. I'm a living, breathing Jeebs. Right here, right now.

[Ryantology]

Doesn't matter if such a guy existed. He was not a god nor the son thereof.

I do rather like the idea of ripping the legs out from under the entire mythology.

The evidence for a historical Jeebs is paltry. Except for me of course. I'm a living, breathing Jeebs. Right here, right now.

I do too, but in this case I don't know if it would matter. Look at how much of the Bible is already "metaphorical". Look at how many Christians already worship a God and Jesus whom they think is a kind, loving, and caring father figure. The characters in the Bible are nothing like that.

Proving that Jesus never existed might break off a few people, but I don't think historicity has a lot to do with it for most people. If science proving that Genesis is wrong about everything it says about creation doesn't kill the religion, this won't either. Christianity probably won't be killed in big strokes, it will die off gradually, as it has been doing.

[Undeceived]

Look at how many Christians already worship a God and Jesus whom they think is a kind, loving, and caring father figure. The characters in the Bible are nothing like that.

Of course they aren't. Which makes it all the more implausible that someone would invent them. The only person we can look up to is Jesus, who is everything you described: kind, loving and caring. Are you arguing that the Bible is fabricated and terrible at achieving its purpose (which I assume to be convincing people)? If that's the case, you cannot use internal evidence.

[Silver]

Of course they aren't. Which makes it all the more implausible that someone would invent them.

As a writer, I create evil characters or characters who have particular evil traits, and the characters are not always the antagonists.

[Darkstar]

Look at how many Christians already worship a God and Jesus whom they think is a kind, loving, and caring father figure. The characters in the Bible are nothing like that.

Of course they aren't. Which makes it all the more implausible that someone would invent them.

Maybe back in the day instilling fear in people was considered the most effective method. Take the ten commandments for example. A guy gets stoned to death for picking up sticks on a Sunday. That and hell, don't forget the brimstone.

[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.

[JesusHChrist]

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.

Probably a fair assessment, but at the least we know the character described in the stories and his various acts (famous, drawing huge crowds) isn't likely to have happened as described. If he existed at all, his antics were on a smaller scale.

There was no shortage of itinerant wandering magic men back in those superstitious times.

[Minimalist]

The only person we can look up to is Jesus, who is everything you described: kind, loving and caring.

Except you fuckheads insist that your boy jesus is the same as the murderous old yahweh and then there is that fucking 'holy spirit'...whatever that might be.

[JesusHChrist]

The only person we can look up to is Jesus, who is everything you described: kind, loving and caring.

Except you fuckheads insist that your boy jesus is the same as the murderous old yahweh and then there is that fucking 'holy spirit'...whatever that might be.

Yes, Jesus = Yahweh. The Yahweh of Numbers 31. The genocidal Yahweh. Yahweh the child killer.

Yahweh the child killer, means Jesus the child killer.

[Minimalist]

To be fair...they didn't invent that trinity shit until the 3d century. Jesus sort of "evolved" although I know they hate that word.