Ancient Tablet Evidence of Jesus Myth?

[cardero]

Ancient Tablet Evidence of Jesus Myth?


An ancient Hebrew tablet is creating a stir after certain scholars identified it as containing a pre-Christian account of the awaited Jewish messiah's death and resurrection after three days. If this artifact is genuine, from the era claimed, and actually says what is asserted, the discovery clearly demonstrates that the idea of a messiah, savior or divine redeemer dying and rising after three days existed decades before the alleged advent of Jesus Christ. This dying-and-resurrecting motif is one of a number that various writers and scholars have claimed demonstrate Jesus to represent not a "historical" personage but a mythical concept found in religious ideologies and mythologies long prior to the so-called Christian era.

(full story here)

What do members think? Smoking gun, genuine article, misrepresented fraud, non-threatening artifact?

[Willamena]

Whether an actual person or not, Jesus Christ is most useful as a myth, anyway.

[cardero]

Originally Posted by Willamena

Whether an actual person or not, Jesus Christ is most useful as a myth, anyway.

I agree but I think Superman also serves a useful purpose as a myth but I did not think that DC offices are in any danger of having to close their business doors.

[Father Heathen]

Christians have never allowed facts and evidence to get in the way of their faith before, so I don't think this discovery will matter much.

[cardero]

Originally Posted by Father Heathen

Christians have never allowed facts and evidence to get in the way of their faith before, so I don't think this discovery will matter much.

The author of the article has also anticipated this.

Acharya S. said... Thanks, David. That's why I headed off that unscientific assessment by saying that it is not prophecy but a blueprint used by the creators of the Christ myth, a contention I have made in detail in my several books.

But, of course, I am well aware of the "No, it's not" retort when blind believers are confronted with scientific analysis. It's all they have in their last resort.

[stephenw]

Non threatening artifact. There'll probably be an hour long special on the Discovery channel in a year or two starring a mysterious black-market antiquities dealer, straight after a re-run of the one about Jesus' tomb.

[Ringer]

I guess I'll have to wait until the experts give us their opinion. My guess is that it will have no significant impact on Christianity either way. For my sake, I hope it's not the real deal. If Jesus and his death/resurrection is based on mythology and not actual events, as Paul would say, my faith is in vain and I should be pitied above everybody else. But for now, I'm putting my trust in Paul and the Bible...

1 Corinthians 15:3-8: "For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born."

[Father Heathen]

Originally Posted by Ringer

I guess I'll have to wait until the experts give us their opinion. My guess is that it will have no significant impact on Christianity either way. For my sake, I hope it's not the real deal. If Jesus and his death/resurrection is based on mythology and not actual events, as Paul would say, my faith is in vain and I should be pitied above everybody else. But for now, I'm putting my trust in Paul and the Bible...

Well, the fact that the whole Christ fable is a derivative amalgam of older pagan myths is not exactly breaking news.