Why I Don't Buy the Resurrection Story (2000)

Richard Carrier

Foreword (read this first) [ 6K ]

Introduction [ 7K ]

Section 1. The Event is not Proportionate to the Theory [ 9K ] (introduces this section's argument)

1a. Even Granting the Existence of the Supernatural, This First Point Holds: The Event is Not Proportionate to the Theory [ 6K ]
1b. No Miracles Today Implies None Then [ 9K ]
1c. A Message for All Would be Sent to All, and No Infallible Being would Entrust Fallible Minions as Couriers [ 8K ]

Section 2. The Evidence Casts Suspicion on the Event being a True Resurrection

[This section is mostly about the possibility that Jesus didn't actually die; I omit most of it in the interest of brevity. -- Brian Holtz]

2j. How Do We Account for the Rise of Christianity? [ 22K ]

Section 3. The New Testament Casts Suspicion on Jesus Actually Appearing After Death [ 4K ] (introduces this section's argument)

3a. Paul's Vision [ 12K ]
3b. Was There an Early Tradition of Physical Appearances? [ 8K ]
3c. What About the "Hundreds" of Eye Witnesses? [ 5K ]
3d. Could the Original Gospel Have Been of a Spiritual Rather Than a Physical Resurrection? [ 8K ]
3e. What Do 'Pneumatikos' and 'Psychikos' Mean? [ 11K ]
3f. Does an Empty Tomb Entail a Physical Resurrection? [ 14K ]
3g. Appearances in Matthew and the Late Addition to Mark [ 6K ]
3h. Appearances in Luke [ 5K ]
3i. Appearances in John [ 11K ]
3j. What Good are "Anonymous" Eye-Witnesses Anyway? [ 5K ]
3k. Was Luke a Learned Man? Would That Even Matter? [ 13K ]
3l. Concluding Remarks in Support of the Unreliability of the Gospels [ 8K ]

Section 4. Addenda to This Essay [ 3K ]

4a. The Two Lamest Arguments Ever Made [ 7K ]
4b. "Lord, Liar, or Lunatic?" [ 12K ]
4c. The Fact of Changed Lives[ 5K ]

Copyright 1998, 1999, 2000 by Richard C. Carrier. Copying is freely permitted, provided credit is given to the author and no material herein is sold for profit.