ATHEIST BELIEVES Jesus of Nazareth Really Did Exist: Bart Ehrman

......When talking with Atheists, they almost always say, well "YOU DON'T HAVE ANY EYEWITNESS TESTIMONY," from someone outside the New Testament Documents--therefore Jesus IS JUST A MYTHICAL man. They call themselves, and are refereed to as mythacists. But if you look closely at the mythacist requirement for eye witness testimony from someone outside the New Testament documents--it can be very easy to debunk this requirement.
......1) There are 10 Historical Records, from people outside the Bible, that mention MY JESUS, but it is claimed that they were not eye witnesses to Jesus or his followers--this claim is mostly true, however their may be one exception--more on that in a moment.
......2) Having 10 historical records, from 2000 years ago, is actually a plethora of data--not a lack of it.
......3) Most people who record HISTORICAL EVENTS--do so AFTER THE FACT, and WERE NOT THERE TO WITNESS THE EVENTS--that is why its called HISTORY, or a Historical Record.
......4) However, in this case--it was possible for at least one person to interview eye witnesses of both Jesus, and his apostles. JOSEPHUS: BORN 37AD--died 100AD, Recorded the death of James the brother of Jesus, and Head of the Jerusalem Church, as the authorities had him thrown off of the temple, then stoned, then finally clubbed to death, since he did not die after hitting the ground. SO Josephus--was in a position to interview EYE WITNESSES OF JESUS--including his apostles, AND ALL THESE EVENTS JUST LIKE LUKE DID in the Gosples.
......5) So, they could INTERVIEW witnesses WHO KNEW SOMETHING ABOUT THESE EVENTS, OR READ REPORTS ABOUT THE EVENTS, CONTRARY TO YOUR CLAIMS. It happens all the time. The undeniable fact is--YOU HAVE PEOPLE (outside the Bible) MENTIONING, AND CORROBORATING THE New Testament Documents. Now if Jesus is just a myth, as has been claimed in this thread--then THERE SHOULD BE NO MENTION BY ANYONE OF A JESUS AND HIS FOLLOWERS, much less corroborate the NT documents.
......6) How do I know this is the case---Lets see--Bart Ehrman--who is the leading New Testament Scholar--and not a believer--SAYS THAT THE JESUS OF THE BIBLE IS A REAL HISTORICAL FIGURE. @mOcY. Now what does Bart Erhman base his conclusions on--the actual, credible, historicity of the New Testament Documents, and the Historical Record available to us today.
...... THE FOLLOWING IS A RESPONSE TO MY TALKING ABOUT JOSEPHUS, AND HIS DESCRIPTION OF THE KILLING OF JAMES THE BROTHER OF JESUS. THE ATHEIST CLAIMED "The Jesus quote is a forgery admitted even by all church scholars." In the writings of Josephus--he mentions Jesus and his followers in two separate passages.
RESPONSE: A very blatant incorrect statement from you,
...... AND Once again--YOU DID NOT READ MY POST. I did not talk at all about the Jesus Passage. I talked about the JAMES THE BROTHER OF JESUS PASSAGE--more on that in a minute. BUT BACK TO THE JESUS PASSAGE AND WHAT SCHOLARS BELIEVE. I QUOTE: "In the estimation of James Dunn, there is "broad consensus" among scholars regarding what the Testimonium would look like without the interpolations.[5] According to Dunn's reconstruction, the original passage likely read:[5][86]
...... "Now there was about this time Jesus, a wise man. For he was a doer of startling deeds, a teacher of such men as receive the truth with pleasure. And he gained a following both among many Jews and many of Greek origin. And when Pilate, at the suggestion of the principal men amongst us, condemned him to the cross, those that loved him at the first did not forsake him. And the tribe of Christians, so named from him, are not extinct at this day."
...... So--you can have all the best parts removed--all the supposed interpolations. And it still talks about MY JESUS--and fits with the New Testament Documents--PRAISE JESUS. NOW THE JAMES PASSAGE: QUOTE: Modern scholarship has almost universally acknowledged the authenticity of the reference to "the brother of Jesus, who was called Christ, whose name was James"[13] (τὸν ἀδελφὸν Ἰησοῦ τοῦ λεγομένου Χριστοῦ, Ἰάκωβος ὄνομα αὐτῷ) and has rejected its being the result of later Christian interpolation.[14][98][1][15][18] Moreover, in comparison with Hegesippus' account of James' death, most scholars consider Josephus' to be the more historically reliable.
...... Two Quotes from Bart Ehrman--the most famous New Testament Scholar alive today--and NOT a believer in God---Is Jesus of Nazareth a historical figure?
1) QUOTE: Despite this enormous range of opinion, there are several points on which virtually all scholars of antiquity agree. Jesus was a Jewish man, known to be a preacher and teacher, who was crucified (a Roman form of execution) in Jerusalem during the reign of the Roman emperor Tiberius, when Pontius Pilate was the governor of Judea. Even though this is the view of nearly every trained scholar on the planet, it is not the view of a group of writers who are usually labeled, and often label themselves, mythicists. Ehrman, Bart D.. Did Jesus Exist? (p. 12). HarperOne. Kindle Edition.
2) QUOTE: I agree with Schweitzer and virtually all scholars in the field since his day that Jesus existed, that he was ineluctably Jewish, that there is historical information about him in the Gospels, and that we can therefore know some things about what he said and did. Moreover, I agree with Schweitzer’s overarching view, that Jesus is best understood as a Jewish prophet who anticipated a cataclysmic break in history in the very near future, when God would destroy the forces of evil to bring in his own kingdom here on earth. I will explain at the end of this book why so many scholars who have devoted their lives to exploring our ancient sources for the historical Jesus have found this understanding so persuasive. For now I want to stress the most foundational point of all: even though some views of Jesus could loosely be labeled myths (in the sense that mythicists use the term: these views are not history but imaginative creation), Jesus himself was not a myth. He really existed. Ehrman, Bart D.. Did Jesus Exist? (p. 14). HarperOne. Kindle Edition.