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I think the evidence is just so overwhelming that Jesus existed, that it’s silly to talk about him not existing.

Bart D. Ehrman

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

Critical Inbreds Religious Thinking
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
You can’t believe something just because someone else desperately wants you to.
BART D. EHRMAN

Believe Desperately Someone Want
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
My students sometimes ask: what is a fundamentalist? I give them a very simple definition.
BART D. EHRMAN

Fun Giving Simple
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
[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
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
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
Jesus existed, and those vocal persons who deny it do so not because they have considered the evidence with the dispassionate eye of the historian, but because they have some other agenda that this denial serves.
BART D. EHRMAN

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

Fun Fundamental Mental
Different authors have different points of view. You can’t just say, ‘I believe in the Bible.
BART D. EHRMAN

Atheist Believe Views

I think the evidence is just so overwhelming that Jesus existed, that it’s silly to talk about him not existing.

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I think the evidence is just so overwhelming that Jesus existed, that it’s silly to talk about him not existing.

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