Originally Posted by TedM

My position is that miracles may or may not be possible, and that it is possible that historical evidence could be produced which would cause me to strongly favor belief in them. I didn't look at your specific example, as it doesn't interest me enough.

Originally Posted by aa5874

Your position is illogical as soon as you admitted that miracles may or may not be possible.

You really don't know if there could be historical evidence for miracles.

Originally Posted by TedM

Just curious:

What early documentation would to you be both convincing and reasonably expected, as evidence of the truth of the gospel claims -- miracles and all?

Note that while one might say that if thousands of perfectly preserved documents were found in dozens of different places in support of the gospels would be 'convincing', it is not 'reasonably expected'.

Please do not indicate what you find 'UNconvincing' or 'UNreasonable'. This isn't a critique of what we have. I want to know what historical document scenario -- if any -- would be enough to convince folks that the gospel stories really happened 2000 years ago.

Your answer might be of the form "I would be convinced if ....."

Originally Posted by Grog

Another one--a cache of early documents that point clearly to a figure significantly similar to the Jesus of the passion narrative to accept that it is likely he was the founder and inspiration of this new religion. For example, correspondence between a Roman governor and the emperor asking for guidance on how to deal with this Jewish noncomformist upstart. Or the discovery of early notes, aramaic writIngs, letters, possibly squirreled away due to persecution. A passing reference in a neutral writing. Even if Paul, as a second hand witness, had authenticated details of Jesus' biography, even that would give me reason to believe that this figure probably.

Originally Posted by TedM

Thank you Grog. I appreciate the response. Some of us can believe unlikely things without proof, but with strong evidence. Others can't.

Originally Posted by Atheos

Grog described evidence that would be sufficient to make it plausible that an actual historical person named Jesus existed and was the founder and inspiration of a new religion. That's a far cry from believing that this individual also turned water into wine; healed blindness, palsy, leprosy, etc.; walked on storm-tossed water; raised people from the dead; rose up from the grave himself and floated off into the clouds.