In another of a series of apostate moments designed, in my opinion, to drive books sales, Dr. Bart Ehrman, the James A. Gray Distinguished Professor of Religious Studies at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, recently stated the following in a Huffington Post article:
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| Professor Bart Ehrman |
"Many of the books of the New Testament were written by people who lied about their identity, claiming to be a famous apostle -- Peter, Paul or James -- knowing full well they were someone else. In modern parlance, that is a lie, and a book written by someone who lies about his identity is a forgery."
Since Dr. Ehrman delivers such a convoluted picture of the study of ancient biblical historiography, I feel that an examination of his comments are in order. It seems that Dr. Ehrman is continuing to take circumstances that most scholarly literary historians are well aware of and have adequately addressed over the years, raising certain issues to an overblown and disproportionate level, and building on many modern conspiracy theories that seem to surround the biblical texts in general. Ehrman builds upon the discredited foundation of his mentor Dr. Walter Bauer, whose theories of multiple Christianities first century AD have been handily refuted. For more information on this and a better understanding of the assumptions behind the scholarship of individuals like Ehrman, please obtain the book, "The Missing Gospels, Unearthing The Truth Behind Alternative Christianities" by Dr. Darrell Bock Nelson Books 2006.
In his written works Dr. Ehrman seems to be somewhat of a fatalist asserting that history can't be known for certain, even stating that the words and deeds of the historical Jesus may never be known because we don't have the original texts of scripture. If these arguments are not patently false, they are at least refuted quite adequately over the years, both in print and by debate. Of course I have addressed some of his assertions in previous articles HERE and HERE, but Dr. Ehrman continues to offer more and more sensational notions at every turn. It is that sensationalism that he often implores as he seeks to sell and promote books, through seeking to shake and disturb the faith of millions who have come to know and trust in the historical biblical narrative. It is for that reason primarily that I DO NOT ENDORSE UNC Chapel Hill Religious Studies as a place of consideration for biblical students seeking to received a fair, balanced religious education. It seems that one that corrects or challenges his arguments will probably fail his class and waste tuition funds.
Statements such as Dr. Ehrman's describe what scholars who study ancient literature call Pseudepigrapha (Gk: "falsely attributed")or literature written by a person other than whom the writing is ascribed. Similar to what we may call a "Ghost Writer" in modern times, Pseudepigrapha goes a step further when the author attaches or assigns a name of a popular or powerful figure, past or present, in order to establish credibility for the document among a target group of individuals. Dr. Ehrman's argument appears to be that the attribution of famous names was done to New testament documents in order to deceive the readers into believing and following practices which may not have been intended to be followed or that were not a part of the original message of Christianity as taught by those very same leaders. As we will see, he is among an ultra fringe shred of scholars who adopt this position in part because theories regarding this have been adequately refuted over the years. I believe Ehrman takes advantage of the new generation biblical critic who has never taken a look at this issue and assesses the bible and historiography ignorantly.
From A Historical Perspective, Did Pseudepigrapha Exist?
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