Freethought & Rationalism Archive

Adam · 01-06-2013, 04:11 PM

I have preserved my integrity enough never to post on aa's own thread The Myth Jesus Theory of aa5874 , so this from srd44 at Post #1231 has drawn me to start a thread:

Quote:

Originally Posted by srd44

aa's assertation that Jesus is in heaven sounds again like Schweitzer. And your {shesh's] position sounds alarmingly like that of Timothy [sic] Luke Johnson, whose book, The Real Jesus, tries to cut through the debate. His arguments, however, are very tenuous. -- a good read though .... I think

Whether it's fun to read or not, I don't know, but I expect it would be as specious as anything else I have read from Luke Timothy Johnson. His Catholic faith impels him to debase his rating as a scholar by taking whatever is the most conservative "scholarly" position he thinks he can get away with. Though I believe in the historicity of the New Testament, I can't stomach Johnson's dishonesty to scholarship in undermining source criticism of the gospels. I might disagree with Robert Price in everything else, but I agree with his review of Johnson's 1996 book:
The Real Jesus: The Misguided Quest for the Historical Jesus and the Truth of the Traditional Gospel
The title says it all. He is a fideist.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Price

It would seem that he has opted, as a matter of theology, for the traditional, "authorized" version of Christian origins, and so he allows himself in every case to be escorted to amenable conclusions, not by the data but by simple consistency with his traditionalist preferences. It is not so much a matter of scholarly opinion as it is company policy. He has abandoned the task of historical scholarship to serve as an ecclesiastical spin doctor. He has an institution and a party line to defend.

srd44 · 01-06-2013, 04:33 PM

Well said!

Adam · 01-07-2013, 09:41 AM

My apologies,
but I had intended that this be a thread in general commenting on writers not to be trusted. Another one similarly slanted (or sometimes just seeming unable to get the point) is Ben Witherington III. Yet he is rated along with Johnson as a top scholar.

How about the opposite side? Is there someone you likewise regard as insincere or clueless? I can't judge here, as so much seems ridiculous to me. Maybe Zindler, as too fervent to be taken seriously? Or is he just over-zealous?

outhouse · 01-07-2013, 11:15 AM

Ben to me definately fits the maxamalist side of the coin.

Extreme minimalist are just as bad, as they too, have deviated from plausibility.

Frank is more an atheist then a scholar.

Toto · 01-07-2013, 01:21 PM

Zindler is a polemicist. His academic training is is science, and also linguistics.

But so what? Read what he says and decide if you think he has a point or not.

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01-06-2013, 04:33 PM	#2
srd44 Junior Member Join Date: Jan 2013 Location: Houston, in body only Posts: 25	Well said!

01-07-2013, 09:41 AM	#3
Adam Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2011 Location: Dixon CA Posts: 1,150	My apologies, but I had intended that this be a thread in general commenting on writers not to be trusted. Another one similarly slanted (or sometimes just seeming unable to get the point) is Ben Witherington III. Yet he is rated along with Johnson as a top scholar. How about the opposite side? Is there someone you likewise regard as insincere or clueless? I can't judge here, as so much seems ridiculous to me. Maybe Zindler, as too fervent to be taken seriously? Or is he just over-zealous?

01-07-2013, 11:15 AM	#4
outhouse Veteran Member Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Auburn ca Posts: 4,269	Ben to me definately fits the maxamalist side of the coin. Extreme minimalist are just as bad, as they too, have deviated from plausibility. Frank is more an atheist then a scholar.

01-07-2013, 01:21 PM	#5
Toto Contributor Join Date: Jun 2000 Location: Los Angeles area Posts: 40,549	Zindler is a polemicist. His academic training is is science, and also linguistics. But so what? Read what he says and decide if you think he has a point or not.

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