I found Bart Ehrman some 20 years into deconstructing. I wish I’d had his perspective when I was younger. I first started deconstructing during and after my first cover to cover read of the Bible in my teens (late 80s early 90s). The inconsistency, incoherence, and clear ulterior motives throughout are what first made me start doubting the Southern Baptist, Christian faith I was raised in (indoctrinated into). I knew that much of it did not make sense objectively, nor did different parts of the bible work with each other at all. Rather, the book is a patchwork that can be easily cherry picked based on bias.
For the uninitiated, Bart Ehrman is a Biblical scholar who began his career as a serious Christian and deconstructed in the process of study. I already considered myself an atheist by the time I found Ehrman, and I relate to him because reading the bible was the catalyst to my deconstruction.
Ehrman has helped put meaning to the seemingly meaningless parts of the bible for me.
Revelation for example is incoherent, even with careful reading at first. But Ehrman sheds great light on this subject. Here is a newer Ehrman talk on the subject.
I also enjoyed this lecture (also on Revelation). If you are interested and new to the subject start here. He dives deeper and starts from the beginning on this one but it is long.
No new Exchristian community is whole without some links to Bart, imo.
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Thanks for posting this. The conservative christians in my rural area are obsessed with Revelation as they see it ‘unfolding before their very eyes.’ I am familiar with other broad interpretations of Revelation, from it being a typical 1st century style of prose ranting against Rome to it being a dying man’s syphilis fever dream, though appreciate the deep dive these lectures afford.
Probably won’t be able to open anyone’s mind to the possibility that the end times are not happening right now ‘just as Revelation predicted’ but it will be nice to have a few solid contrary references to throw out when it’s being discussed around me.
The conservative christians in my rural area are obsessed with Revelation as they see it ‘unfolding before their very eyes.’
Just as it has been for the past two thousand years.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unfulfilled_Christian_religious_predictions
I’ve only read one of his books, but I definitely have others in my wishlist!
Yeah, same here. I was 10 years into deconstructing and read Forged, then saw him on Paulogia like a year later. Said “oh hey I should read some of this guy’s books. He’s fantastic!” And then I found my copy of Forged again. 🤦 I am very bad at remembering names.
I really enjoy how he takes things that were drilled into me by repetition and deconstructs them academically. It’s mindblowing. Really fundamental ideas that were shouted into me since I was a toddler, like the authorship of the gospels, just fall apart.
