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You can’t believe something just because someone else desperately wants you to.

Bart D. Ehrman

Sometimes Christian apologists say there are only three options to who Jesus was: a liar, a lunatic or the Lord. But there could be a fourth option – legend.
BART D. EHRMAN

Christian God Jesus
There are few things more dangerous than inbred religious certainty.
BART D. EHRMAN

Critical Inbreds Religious Thinking
The search for truth takes you where the evidence leads you, even if, at first, you don’t want to go there.
BART D. EHRMAN

Firsts Truth Want
Everything we hear and see we need to evaluate—whether the inspiring writings of the Bible or the inspiring writings of Shakespeare, Dostoevsky, or George Eliot, of Ghandi, Desmond Tutu, or the Dalai Lama.
BART D. EHRMAN

Bible Everything Inspire Intelligence People Unique
In terms of the historical record, I should also point out that there is no account in any ancient source whatsoever about King Herod slaughtering children in or around Bethlehem, or anyplace else.
BART D. EHRMAN

Children Jesus Kings
The problem then with Jesus is that he cannot be removed from his time and transplanted into our own without simply creating him anew
BART D. EHRMAN

Creating Jesus Problem Transplant
Far and away the most changes are the result of mistakes pure and simple slips of the pen, accidental omissions, inadvertent additions, misspelled words, blunders of one sort or another.
BART D. EHRMAN

Accident Another Blunder Omisison Pure Simple Slip Word
A fundamentalist is no fun, too much damn, and not enough mental.
BART D. EHRMAN

Fun Fundamental Mental
Traditionally in Christian circles, Judas in fact has been associated with Jews. Of being traitors, avaricious, who in fact, betray Jesus, who are Christ-killers. And this portrayal of Judas of course also leads then to horrendous acts of anti-Semitism through the centuries.
BART D. EHRMAN

Associated Betrayal Christian Circle Jesus Lead
My students sometimes ask: what is a fundamentalist? I give them a very simple definition.
BART D. EHRMAN

Fun Giving Simple
In fact, most of the changes found in early Christian manuscripts have nothing to do with theology or ideology.
BART D. EHRMAN

Christian Mistake Simple
No other author, biblical or otherwise, mentions this event. Is it, like John’s account of Jesus’ death, a detail made up by Matthew in order to make some kind of theological point?
BART D. EHRMAN

Account Death Kind Mention Theological
Different authors have different points of view. You can’t just say, ‘I believe in the Bible.
BART D. EHRMAN

Atheist Believe Views
I have such a fantastic life that I feel an overwhelming sense of gratitude for it. . . . But I don’t have anyone to express my gratitude to. This is a void deep inside me, a void of wanting someone to thank, and I don’t see any plausible way of filling it.
BART D. EHRMAN

Fantastic Gratitude Life Someone Wanting
[P]eople need to use their intelligence to evaluate what they find to be true and untrue in the Bible. This is how we need to live life generally.
BART D. EHRMAN

Life Live Needs Writing
Did he say both things? Could he mean both things? How can both be true at once? Or is it possible that one of the Gospel writers got things switched around?
BART D. EHRMAN

Around Both Possible Switch Thing True

You can’t believe something just because someone else desperately wants you to.

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You can’t believe something just because someone else desperately wants you to.

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