IGExpandingPanda

This would depend on whether or not Rook is perceived as actually representing TJP. This has been my problem with interacting with Rook. He tends to align him self with "scholarship". Someone who doesn't know any better might easily mistake his position for that of TJP. Hell, I'm not even sure at this point.

To be honest I don't know many of these people other than Richard Carrier and a few others.

It may be Rook is paining an accurate picture of the general consensus of TJP. It may not. But either way he is acting like a representative which may have a negative impact on how people perceive the seriousness of the project.

I don't have an issue with the general position that Jesus did not exist. In fact I welcome anyone who will go out of their way to explore any valid hypothesis. I don't actually care if he existed or not. My concern would be applying personal bias to such a project.

Toto

Most of the academics in the Jesus Project think that there was a historical Jesus. If Rook is claiming otherwise, report him to his boss.

thedistillers

What does it have to do with the existence or the non-existence of Jesus? The profound effect the bible has had on our culture remains a fact if Jesus didn't exist.

If Jesus existed, he wasn't a military commander like Alexander the Great; he was a mere preacher. Historically speaking, that's insignificant. The fact that so many people subsequently cared about what has been said and written about him for theological reasons doesn't increase his importance as an historical figure. Maybe I'm wrong, but anyway that's how I see it.

I don't see why historians would bother to make a 5 year "project" about his existence, unless there is a theological motivation. :huh: Really, if Christianity would have died one century ago, would this project exist.

IGExpandingPanda

What about Shakespeare? The profound effect he had on our culture had little to do with the plays he performed but rather with those who sat in the audience and pirated his work. Historically speaking Shakespeare was insignificant. It's not like he was a military commander or anything. In fact like Jesus there are those who question whether he existed.

Here's the deal, the profound effect Shakespeare had on our culture wasn't so much the plays he performed but rather with the writings that came afterward. If Jesus existed, same situation. If the man existed it was his ability to turn a good parable that was his claim to fame.

I don't totally disagree, there are those who are interested for theological reasons. You have those who believe, and those who want to believe in disbelief.

youngalexander

Regrettably, Rook is not incidental to TJP as far as I am concerned.

Amen

Steven Carr

Why does it seem that no early Christians asked Paul to expound on the preaching of Jesus?

How can Paul write a huge book on theology (Romans) without ever directly referring to anything Jesus preached?

Why do Hebrews, James, Jude and 1 Peter all miss out anything Jesus preached?

Why does 1 Clement never refer to preaching of Jesus?

Paul does refer to some people preaching :-

Romans 10
How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent?

So where is there any space for the preaching of Jesus in Romans 10?

To say Jesus was a mere preacher is like claiming that Joseph Smith was a mere preacher.

Both claims seem wrong at first sight.

Perhaps you could show how Jesus being a preacher explains what we find in Paul, Hebrews, Jude, 1 Clement etc.

Toto

Tom Verenna / Rook Hawkins has vanished from the Jesus Project web site.

And the atheismsucks blog, which seemed to have a mission of pursuing him, has closed up shop.

Google tom verenna rook hawkins for a lot of unreliable speculation

IGExpandingPanda

Yes, I asked Rook if he was dismissed from the project but I didn't get an answer.

Frank Walton still does the atheismsucks blog. The last entry was Saturday, March 07, 2009. The closing shop was released I think may 2008, though the page says 2008. Either way he's still updating it. He must have changed his mind.

maryhelena

Does anybody know anything about this new yahoogroup - It is now on the Articles and Forums page of The Jesus Project.

From the yahoogroup page...

Quote:

BECOMING A MEMBER The Mythicists' Forum is open only to those who deny the historicity of Jesus of Nazareth. Evidence of being a mythicist must be available to the list-owner before he can approve your membership. Such evidence can be in the form of an affirmation, or can alert the list-owner to a place (on the web or in print) where your view on this matter is to be found.

aa5874

Jesus of the NT cannot be compared to Shakespeare.

Jesus wrote nothing.

Now, if you are just assuming Jesus existed, then his historicity is irrelevant.

So, you must be referring to the authors of the Jesus stories, they are the ones, for sure, that turned a good parable.

And further Jesus of the NT based on church writers had a negative effect until Constantine. It was Constantine that SAVED Jesus and Jesus believers from a life of hell on earth.