Religion
In reply to the discussion: Ancient Confession Found: 'We Invented Jesus Christ' [View all]struggle4progress
(118,275 posts)modern psychological warfare?"
The speakers are Joseph Atwill, whose background is investing (he apparently made his money trading dot-coms), and Kenneth Humphreys, who has a masters in social sciences plus certificates in pedagogy and business studies
The general thesis of Mr Humphrey, that Jesus never existed, is not particularly striking or innovative anymore, and it is certainly not shocking in most circles -- though a quick look at Mr Humphrey's website will show that he is entirely unable to examine this (still possibly interesting) question, and related questions, with any careful rational detachment. Religious syncretism is worth studying, and interactions between religious doctrine and folklore deserve attention -- but Mr Humphrey is sadly unable to distinguish ax-grinding from scholarship, and predictable cherrypicking accordingly numbers among his major techniques
The general thesis of Mr Atwill, that Christianity is an imperial invention designed to subvert the rebellions of Roman Judea, has the advantage of novelty -- though, again, by now there is nothing particularly new or shocking in the mere claim that the Christian texts are forgeries. And, of course, it would be interesting could one show definitively any importation from Josephus into those texts: such an importation doesn't seem to me obviously impossible. But Mr Atwill's thesis that the texts themselves are of Roman origin, and that they represent a Roman attempt to create a religion whose followers would be subservient to Rome, conflicts IMO with too many contrary indications, in the texts themselves and in what we know about Roman reactions to Christianity, to merit more than about an afternoon's consideration. Unsurprisingly, the over-all reaction of the scholarly world to Atwill's thesis is that same silence which greets the Great Pyramidiots and other such cranks