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

Bart D. Ehrman

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
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
In Matthew, Jesus declares, “Whoever is not with me is against me.” In Mark, he says,“Whoever is not against us is for us.”
BART D. EHRMAN

Jesus Mark Mean
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
A fundamentalist is no fun, too much damn, and not enough mental.
BART D. EHRMAN

Fun Fundamental Mental
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
In the entire first Christian century Jesus is not mentioned by a single Greek or Roman historian, religion scholar, politician, philosopher or poet.
BART D. EHRMAN

Christian Jesus Zero
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
[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
His name never occurs in a single inscription, and it is never found in a single piece of private correspondence. Zero! Zip references!
BART D. EHRMAN

Correspondance Found Inscription Name Single
I don’t know anyone who is a responsible historian, who is actually trained in the historical method, or anybody who is a biblical scholar who does this for a living, who gives any credence at all to any of this.
BART D. EHRMAN

Credence Know Living Responsible Trained
You can’t believe something just because someone else desperately wants you to.
BART D. EHRMAN

Believe Desperately Someone Want
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
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
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
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

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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