Ask the Atheist

Baloo,

Thank you for the question. I have a serious problem with the claims made by "documentaries" which support a very flawed hypothesis that Jesus was a composite of Egyptian myths. It is more probable to say that Jesus is a composite of Old Testament legends, like that of David, Solomon, Asa, Elijah and Elisah. The events of Jesus' life are not taken, in any way, verbatim from Egyptian myths, but rather stem from several sources. Many are taken from the Old Testament, for example the multiplication of the loaves is taken from Elijah's miracle of multiplying the oil and the bread yeast in Kings. The birth narratives in both Luke and Matthew come from the narratives of Abraham and Sarah's birth of Isaac in Genesis, as well as other patriarchal figures such as Solomon. The calling of the 12 disciples is written to mimetically be read as Elijah's calling of Elisha, and the 12 disciples symbolize the 12 tribes of Israel, and the 12 heads of the tribes found in the Torah, by which Moses had called to handle the tribes personal and family businesses so he would not be left to handle that, as well as the many other problems that came to him as head of a nation. The scene with Bar'abbas, the crucifixion, and the resurrection stem from Old Testament traditions found in Leviticus, Isaiah and Malachi. Even the name "Jesus" is significant.

For some references on this subject, I highly recommend the Messiah Myth, by Thomas L. Thompson. For a look at what the Gospels are, please read my brief introduction found HERE.

The best to you,

Rook Hawkins

Please help me get my resources so I can continue to historically show the inadequacies of the Bible and early Christians.
My wish list.