Alter on The Resurrection: Take Two

Conversation Side Conversation
21

Great to hear from you!

In the preface to my text, and also, in the acknowledgment section, I attempted (hopefully I was successful) to explain how and why I researched and wrote the book The Resurrection: A Critical Inquiry. In addition, there is my bio located on my homepage. So, hopefully, I too, have been transparent.

Insofar as his [Licona’s] methodology is concerned, he definitely carries on a healthy conversation [Ch. 6 Weighing the Evidence] with Gerza Vermes, Michael Goulder, Gerd Ludemann, John Dominic Crossan, and Pieter Craffert. But, let me mention:

  1. On page 468ff he discusses the Minimal Facts Approach = historical bed-core. Respectfully, in Volume 2, I demonstrate that this strategy is fallacious, and it is refuted.

  2. Licona pens: "Our approach will be to weigh hypotheses using only the historical bed-rock. This will serve to eliminate the weaker hypotheses.

  3. If the historical bed-rock is fallacious, so too, will be his conclusion.

  4. One weakness with Mike’s methodology is that he does NOT conjoin the strongest aspects of the five naturalistic hypotheses that he examines.

  5. By conjoining the strongest aspects of the five naturalistic hypotheses that he examines [employing McCullagh’s Best Evidences strategy = Scope, Power, Plausibility, Less Ad Hoc, and Illumination], it “could” be found superior to the "Resurrection Hypothesis [RO]. This topic is addressed in an issue in my Volume 2.

  6. The RH (p. 583]: “Following a supernatural event of an indeterminate nature and cause, Jesus appeared to a number of people, in individual and group settings and to friends and foes, in no less than an objective vision and perhaps within ordinary vision in his bodily raised corpse.”

  7. The entire foundation of this definition is based on the Gospel resurrection narratives, Acts 1, and 1 Cor 15: 1-19. If those accounts are false [as solid as quick-sand], so too is the RO. Of course, entire books, dissertation, journal articles, etc. have been written on this topic.

And, yes, Prokofiev is awesome. In my opinion, he does not receive the recognition that he deserves: lyrical violin concert #1 and his incredible 3rd piano concert, and I could go on. We were blessed with his musical output.

Take care

Mike

1 Like