Why I Am Not A Christian: Is Bart Ehrman a Christian?
A lot of people wonder why I am not a Christian? Is Bart Ehrman a Christian…is a very popular question. Just now – fifteen minutes ago – I came to realize with the most crystal clarity I have ever had why I am not a Christian. Of course, as most of you know, I have not called myself a Christian publicly for a very long time, twenty years or so I suppose. But a number of people tell me that they think at heart I’m a Christian, and I sometimes think of myself as a Christian agnostic/atheist. Their thinking, and mine, has been that if I do my best to follow the teachings of Jesus, in some respect I’m a Christian, even if I don’t believe that Jesus was the son of God….or that he was raised from the dead, or even that God exists. In fact, I don’t believe all these things. But can’t I be a Christian in a different sense, one who follows Jesus’ teachings? Fifteen minutes ago I realized with startling clarity why I don’t think so. Why I Am Not a Christian This afternoon in my undergraduate course on the New Testament I was lecturing on the mission and message of Jesus. We have spent the semester so far (we’re about halfway through) talking about the Jewish and Greco-Roman background of the New Testament and then, mainly about the Gospels. I’ve given lectures on each of the four canonical Gospels – two on John – and students have written short papers on them and had discussions on them, including two papers/discussions on other, non-canonical Gospels (the Gospel of Peter and the Gospel of Thomas). Now that we have seen how the Gospels have portrayed Jesus (each of them in a different way) we have moved to the historical question: what can we say about what the historical man himself,Jesus of Nazareth, actually said, preached, and stood for? We will also have sessions on what we think we can say about what Jesus really did and what events actually led up to his death. Jesus, a Jewish Apocalypticist In today’s lecture, I wanted to introduce, explain, and argue for the view that has been dominant among critical scholars studying Jesus for the past century, that Jesus is best understood as a Jewish apocalypticist. I warned the students that this is not a view they will have encountered in church or in Sunday school. But there are solid reasons for thinking it is right. I tried to explain at some length what those reasons were. But first I gave an extended account of what Jewish apocalypticists believed. The entire cosmos was divided into forces of good and evil, and everything and everyone sided with one or the other. This cosmic dualism worked itself out in a historical dualism, between the current age of this world, controlled by forces of evil, and the coming age, controlled by the forces of good. This age would not advance to be a better world, on the contrary, apocalypticists thought this world was going to get worse and worse, until literally, in the end, all hell breaks out. Godly Intervention & Judgment But then God would intervene in an act of cosmic judgment in which he destroyed the forces of evil and set up a good kingdom here on earth, an actual physical kingdom ruled by his representative. This cataclysmic judgment would affect all people. Those who had sided with evil (and prospered as a result) would be destroyed, and those who had sided with God (and been persecuted and harmed as a result) would be rewarded. Moreover, this future judgment applied not only to the living but also to the dead. At the end of this age, God would raise everyone from the dead to face either eternal reward or eternal punishment. And so, no one should think they could side with the forces of evil, prosper, as a result, become rich, powerful, and influential, and then die and get away with it. No one could get away with it. God would raise everyone from the dead for judgment, and there was not a sweet thing anyone could do to stop him. And when would this happen? When would the judgment come? When would this new rule, the Kingdom of God, begin? “Truly I tell you, some of you standing here will not taste before you see the kingdom of God come in power.” The words of Jesus (Mark 9:1). Jesus was not talking about a kingdom you would enter when you died and went to heaven: he was referring to a kingdom here on earth, to be ruled by God. Or as he says later, when asked when the end of the age would come, “Truly I tell you, This generation will not pass away before all these things take place.” https://ehrmanblog.org/why-i-am-not-a-christian/ | |||||
July 10, 2023 I am happy to announce that I will be doing a new course, Why I Am Not a Christian: How Leaving the Faith Led to a Life of More Meaning and Purpose. I explain it all below, but as spoilers: it is July 23, it will involve four talks and a Q&A, and it is free. You can sign up for it at bartehrman.com/lifeafterfaith
In this course of lectures I explain how it all happened and discuss what the results were – for my scholarship, my understanding of Jesus, the New Testament and early Christianity. But also for me personally, on the social, emotional and professional level. The course consists of four 40-45 minute talks, to be followed by a long question and answer period. I will be covering topics I have never lectured on or written about and tell stories I have never publicly shared. My goal will not be to deconvert or convert anyone. It will be to discuss the problems of the Christian faith as I came to see them through a serious and sustained engagement. I will explain why, in the end, these problems led me to to leave the faith and how my move into agnosticism/atheism created emotional struggles and personal turmoil. But I will also explain why, in the end, my move away from faith led me to a happier, more satisfied, and more meaningful life. No one’s life is like any other’s. Each of us has to make decisions about what to think, what to believe, and how to live. My view is that these decisions should be made thoughtfully, not unreflectively. “The unexamined life is not worth living” (Socrates, in Plato’s Apology). I came to embrace that view already as a committed evangelical, and it ended up leading me in directions I never expected. My hope is not that this course will convince others to end up where I did, but it is to encourage others to follow a similar path, thoughtfully, honestly, and earnestly pursuing the questions of what to believe and how to live, to find a life of meaning and purpose. My courses are not directly connected to the blog, even though, of course, I always inform blog members of them (you can see a list at bartehrman.com. Normally there is a ticket fee, but this one is a freebie. If you’re interested, go to http://bartehrman.com/lifeafterfaith If you know of others who might be interested in such a course, please tell them about it. Here is a summary of the lectures I’m planning to give. Lecture One: My Escape from Fundamentalism: Reading the Bible Again for the First Time
In graduate school I felt compelled to change my views about the Bible and some of the major religious beliefs based on it. Not everyone goes that route. In this lecture I discuss why I moved away from a conservative evangelical form of belief to one I thought was more intellectually respectable and honest. Lecture Two: My Leaving the Faith: Going Where the “Truth” Leads You
But I came to realize that there are even more serious challenges to the Christian faith than the inerrancy of Scripture. The ultimate issue is the existence of God himself: no God, no Christianity. During my years as s a conservative Christian I could (and often did) recite numerous “proofs” for God. Later, as a liberal Christian I didn’t think God was susceptible of proof like a linear equation or law of physics. Like so much else of human life, faith wasn’t based on math or science. Even so, after a number of years, my faith in God began to crumble. I came to think there was no divine being in and over this world. Very few of my many biblical-scholar friends went that route or, to this day, agree with me. But I felt I had (and have) no choice. In this lecture I explain why. Lecture Three: The Traumas of Deconversion: Emotional, Social, and Eschatological (Think: Fears of Afterlife!)
In addition, there was a very serious religious issue. The fear of hell had long been driven into me. What if I left the faith and it turned out I was simply wrong. Was I in danger of eternal torment? In short, becoming an agnostic/atheist was a frightening prospect for me and at first I wasn’t sure if was worth it. When I made the leap, though, I quickly realized it was, despite the long term emotional and personal turmoil. In this lecture I explain why. Lecture Four: Is There Life After Faith? What Agnosticism/Atheism Means for Well-Being, Happiness, and a Meaningful Existence.
Would I have any reason to be concerned about the lives of others and not just about myself? My entire ethical existence had always been tied up in this view — Christ wants us to love others. But what would happen when I no longer believed Christ was the son of God, let alone that there was any God at all? Would I have any guidance at all for my life? Would I be cast to the winds with no moral compass? Would my life be random anarchy? More than that, how could there be any meaning in a world without God? If we are merely material creatures “in a material world,” with no divinely given purpose or destination, how can we have any goals, hopes, and ultimate aspirations? How can there be any meaning at all? On the personal level, would I become completely apathetic? A sensual cretin? A nihilist? Would I live in angst and deep despair? Once I became an agnostic/atheist, I realized all these fears were completely groundless. I actually came to appreciate and enjoy life more, to find deeper meaning in this brief existence, and to be even more concerned for the lives and well-being of others. I am more happy and content. How does that work? In this lecture I try to explain. [charitcta] Announcing a NEW (Free!) Course: Why I Am Not A Christian - The Bart Ehrman Blog | |||||
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