Did Jesus Exist?
Or is Christianity a hoax, an ancient example of fake news?
Recently, a reader chastised me for writing a story about the early Christian movement.
According to this person, Christianity was a hoax, the product of different groups who had created a messiah out of their imaginations. There was, claimed the writer no proof that Jesus, Mary, Joseph, the apostles, or any other “Christian character” ever existed. The version of Jesus offered in the New Testament “is a complete fraud and a hoax.” It was time, concluded the author, that “Christians grow up.”
Whew.
I must admit that my first inclination was to simply ignore the comment: in my experience, people who hold strong views about religion are unusually resistant to argument. Folks believe what they believe, and you are unlikely to rattle a deeply-rooted opinion.
But, as I pondered this, I wondered if moving on in silence was the most useful response to the experience. As it turns out, this is a question that sits squarely in my area of expertise. I am a historian of the Later Roman Empire and the Early Church. And while I have no expectation that a reasoned response to this reader will have much effect, there is value in clearing some of the underbrush and placing a few points on the record.
