Agreed, you should also subscribe to Jeffery Daugherty, aka ''The Christian Whistleblower'' on YT...His stuff parallels with Prof. Ehrman. He's a former Pentecostal Preacher for 20 years under Jimmy Swaggart's tutelage and also was one of his right hand Men in his Church, claims over 100,000 hours of Bible Study, and has TONS of amazing info Ehrman hasn't 'discovered' yet, so with the combo of knowledge from those 2 Guys...you are armed to the teeth to take on any traditional ''Christian'' out there, who believes the Bible is the inerrant word of ''god''. Do I agree 100% with EVERYTHING Jeffery says? Of course not, for example he's open to having some fringe guests on his show once in a while, and he's perceived by some as a bit arrogant in his delivery sometimes, etc., but for the most part he's amazing and quite erudite as well.
Whether you're Christian, atheist, agnostic, Jewish ... whatever, I think this is a relief to everyone knowing the idea of eternal torture is a fiction.
Andrew Wells you're absolutely right about that. Heaven and hell were one of the first things i researched on my road to atheism. It's a beautiful realization.
@J D It's a little more complicated than just not having original copies of the NT. He studied them in great detail in their original languages, and came to the conclusion they are man made literature.
@J D /// His thinking goes a lot deeper than that. Remember, he was a born again Christian for many years before he found reason to change. One of the problems is the bible itself. Contradictions, discrepancies and errors. (Jesus, Interrupted) Also see "Caesar's Messiah" There is reason to believe that Jesus was "literature, not history". See "Antiquity Unveiled".
When I was 7 someone told me about nature of hell. ..i didn't eat for days.. I became a good serious christain.. But as I matured I read a lot then I became agnostic and atheist now I'm beautiful and free
I did the same (being raised protestant) but went to the root of Christianity instead which is Orthodoxy. And now I would say to you that I also dont believe in the same God that you don't believe in.
Kindle has made me look much less gaudy! in my book collection.
4 года назад
Professor Ehrman has freed me from the fear of Hell. I can look to a 'deep sleep' rather than the fear imbedded in the 'what if?'! Thank you Professor!
as human you should not be an atheist or anything because of another human. what your are should be a determination from with in from your own research or you are not human but only a weak minded sheep
Piccolo_sun - Using other people’s research is a start which motivates us to question and to search for more. Question everything as a true skeptic, and not be afraid to ridicule that which is ridiculous, and not many things are more ridiculous than middle eastern mythology.
Erhman has an opinion. Evangelical nonsense exists only in the minds and actions of an anti-Christ like Erhman and his fans. His schtick is impressive the same as Marilyn Manson. Hate a Christian - Get rich!
It is always a joy to listen to Professor Ehrman. As soon as the pandemic ends and we can get back to our lives, as soon as they can ship the book from the US to Chile, I will order my copy and devour it, as I have done with many books by Ehrman.
And right into Hell... He Tickles your Ears and you WANT TO BELIEVE... I know for a FACT he's WRONG... but LIGHT CAME INTO THE WORLD and you prefer Darkness... so very sad...
CLC in Florida You have zero evidence for your assertions. There has never been a verified case of anything supernatural. If you have evidence, I’m all ears, but I have a feeling you’ll most likely attempt to use the New Testament, a collection of books that we have ZERO original copies of and are rife with contradictions and nonsense.
Your average ""Christian's"" mind can't understand that MODERN ""Christianity"" would be UNRECOGNISABLE to Jesus himself. Churchianity and Jesus have little connection.
This is a good point, it's only in our minds that the Christianity 2000 years ago is much the same (at least in spirit) as it is now. Having done post-grad Theological studies (though I certainly haven't ascended to Ehrman's level), I've found the 66 books to be amorphous, fraught with difficulties, contradictions, and controversies. The everyday believer is blind to a lot of the difficulties due to trying to force the 66 books into a cohesive and authoritative whole. It's also funny how most Fundagelicals embody what Jesus is criticising in a lot of his outbursts against the Pharisees.
C Fletcher most Christians simply follow the gospels and Jesus moral instruction therein. You will find very little if any moral contradiction between the four books in that regard. Most discrepancies come from silly geographical locations changing depending on the book and stuff like that, but don’t actually effect Jesus’s story of salvation and moral instruction.
The best view of death in my opinion is from the Greek Philosopher Epicurus .....I do not fear death for when I exist death does not, and when death exists I do not.
Professor Ehrman, please allow me, or someone else, to help improve your audio/video quality. You are too important to the discussion for poor media quality. Please hire a media professional. As a former theist, I would love to be your guy. But regardless, the audio quality is so poor in your virtual interviews it needs to be addressed. Try an AudioTechnica AT2035 at the least. And for video, connect a Sony A6000 (cheap now, like $300) to your computer. The audio/visual content needs to be as quality as your message. Thanks, Jake
Hell is a bad translation of sheol (grave), Gehenna (valley of Hinnom where city trash was burned) and Hades which was used to translate sheol in Greek (without the pagan baggage attached), and tartarus once which is the Greek for the underworld/abyss where the fallen angels are kept in darkness since the times of Enoch which was never meant for humans and may be where things went off track. Some of my first videos on my channel are about this. See also the astounding video "The lake of fire located" which is completely separate.
I agree with Ehrman that Christ taught of a Judgement, physical resurrection and the annihilation of the lost. I disagree with his statements that the Old Testament does not include support for a spiritual after life. His interpretation of Samuel and the witch of Endor seems totally off. While the mainstream view of Israelites was of the dead being unconscious in the grave, there were influences from Egypt and surrounding nations who believed in disembodied spirits, which apparently King Saul and the witch of Endor subscribed to. The passage clearly depicts a "shade" of spirit arising, not a physical body. Passages in the Psalms also depict spirits "flying away" when the body dies.
Yeah, there are quite a lot of mentions in the OT of people, Israelites included, consulting the dead from beyond the grave through 'obot' and 'yidonim', i.e., mediums and spiritualists. There was clearly a belief in a continued spiritual existence after death. And though Ehrman talks about reading Samuel 28 "carefully", it's pretty clear that the event involved a 'seance' rather than a physical resurrection of Samuel.
I’m looking forward to reading this book. Regarding this interview, I was put off by the host’s constant mention of the “pandemic”. Dr. Ehrman’s work is a strong-enough topic that it needs no tie-in to other social issues.
I'm no Christian apologist, but I can think of two references that Jesus made to hell, both in the gospel of Matthew. The first is Matthew 5:22 - " . . . anyone who says 'you fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell. Then there's Matthew 25:41 - "Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels". Admittedly I know nothing of the original Greek - it's entirely possible that would provide more insight.
Darn it. Now I am going to have to buy the book and bump it to the top of my reading list. Don't you have any consideration that I have plans? Why do you insist on writing yet another must-read book?
I thought the life was in the Blood. Did not Abel's blood cry out to the lord? The Blood sacrifices that were done to cover Sin. He talks about the Breath but from what I have read I think its the Blood. Also Jesus talking to Moses and the other Prophet Elijah on the mountain. Jesus talking to the thief on the cross- you will be with me today in my kingdom I think he is not covering a lot of things and I'm only bringing up a few.
....Then why did Jesus say "This night you will sup with me in paradise " to the thief on the cross beside him. And what on earth did Jesus mean when he promised "eternal life" to his disciples?
I appreciate that he mentioned nuclear weapons, there are a ton of them floating around, with people of various reputability, and if we ignore this state eventually we will stop being lucky.
Check the loose cannon nations which have not signed the nuclear non-proliferation treaty. South Sudan was already in a nuclear weapons free zone when it achieved independence. It lacks the funds and infrastructure to create that capacity. The others should be considered terrorist states.
Brilliant analysis yet again by Dr. Ehrman. As a follower of Jesus of Nazareth myself, and an ordained United Church of Christ minister, I have wrestled with these things, including the issues around Heaven and Hell, and ceased believing in Hell for some decades, since Jesus' emphasis was always on the Resurrection of the BODY in LAST DAYS and that the evil would simply be destroyed. Scripture bears out Dr. Ehrman's points well - BOTH the Hebrew and Christian Testaments.
I couldn't agree more. I am a Catholic and believing in Hell has done me so much damage. Being Catholic has turned my image of God. He is an angry old man who gladly sends people to hell for being human.
As a Bible believer...Jesus said, when He returns WILL HE FIND “Faith”. Many will be deceived! Wow, this sounds like Blasphemy as Christ also spoke about Lazarus the begger who dies and is in comfort with Father Abraham and the Rich man waking up in Hell begging for a drop of water. There’s only one ☝🏽 Way to the Father and that’s by accepting Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. I implore everyone..Read the Scriptures for yourselves!!! 🙇🏻♀️🙏🏽🔍🔥🕊
I did read the scriptures and Jesus prophesied the arrival of the kingdom of God to Earth within the lifetimes or his disciples and other priests. Apostle Paul also echod this idea. Jesus's prophesy FAILED. He died, his apostles died, Apostle Paul died and the kingdom of God never arrived. Jesus was WRONG. This can be clearly read in the Synoptic Gospels and the authentic letters of Paul. Sadly, Christians have never read their Bibles and continue to believe the imaginary ideas of later Christians, stolen from other religions, and taught by the church, which continued to exercise power and control over the masses and eventually become supremely rich $$ from the gullibility and ignorance of people. They continue to indoctrinate their children into lies generation after generation after generation. SAD! Gladly religion is now in serious decline around the world, yes, even in the US.
What happens after we die? If we do not have souls and if we do not continue as individuals after death, and if we do in-fact cease to exist, then we can ask ourselves "what happened *after* the last time I didn't exist?", The answer to that is "I was born". And then we must ask, "Will there be life-forms born in the universe after I die?", The answer is yes. And so we can conclude that your ceasing to exist will be followed by the same thing that came after the last time you didn't exist: the birth of a completely new organism. This will go on as long as there's life being born in the universe. So you might say "what about after the heat death of the universe?"... After that, there simply is not any more experience until there's an experience that somehow comes to exist once again.
Not a Chump Read the New Testament instead; that way you’ll have access to the exact same information he wrote about in his book. Do you believe he is superior in his analytical discernment than you?
Bart Ehrman is spot on and level headed. He’s well versed in his studies. While he disagrees with the beliefs of religious people he respects their right to believe as long as their practices don’t hurt others.
It would be interesting to see how many mainstream or fundamentalists believers would react to a simple timeline of when (and why) new theology entered the Christian tradition.
Her line of questioning, "considering the pandemic", is odd. Pandemic or not, an agnostic atheist's view of life after death shouldn't change, why would it? Edit: after listening to this all the way through, Terry sounds completely tense and this isn't her best interview, far from it. Maybe she's just stressed due to the pandemic. It's unfortunate.
But we were taught that just before he expired, JC said to one of the thieves "tonight you will walk with me in paradise" (IIRC). If this is wrong, then a christian can't believe the gospels which are the foundation of his faith. So if he or she can't believe that why should he believe any of the nonsense he's fed in church?
The NT gospels are fictional stories written by unknown authors who wrote stories that have no authenticity to them. Written long after Jesus supposedly lived, they wrote stories putting words into the character's mouth for purposes of getting more converts. They had no way of actually even knowing what was said or done. It is all tall tales just like the stories made up about all the other human invented gods. They all had such stories which you wouldn't believe. It is funny that you latch on to these as if they are somehow "special" or "real." LMAO
Its referring to paradise on earth . Jesus was giving theif a hope for future resurrection. The comma was in wrong place in kjv . Jesus was dead for 3 days so how can you be with jesus that day . Truly I tell you today , you will be with me in paradise
Even as late as the Nicene Creed of 325 CE is there no mention of either Heaven or Hell - or, for that matter, any Immortal Soul to endure either. Rather does the Creed hold to an Expectation of Resurrection, General Judgment of the Quick and the Dead by a returned Jesus, and "the Life of the Ages to Come" (et vitam venturi saeculi). The introduction of an indestructible entity (Immortal Soul) capable of surviving the dissolution of the body can allow for Individual Judgment (with its concomitant reward/punishment) immediately upon death - obviating the return of the no-show Jesus.
Bart D saysJesus says nothing about hell but if you look up, 'what has Jesus to say about hell'' it says guite a lot ,dividing the sheep from the goats ,the sinners from the non sinners ,''depart from me you cursed into eternal fire'' etc ,etc, you would think he would mention that at least, seeing as so many people believe it,(including google,) it says,' ''the teaching of the church affirms the existence of hell ,and it's eternity,'' even though it's mythology it's what they believe, prob mostly because of what Jesus said, (or is said to have said)
Bart, I respect you highly & enjoy your integrity, however...how do you explain: Luke 23:43 [Jesus tells the guy crucified next to him.] "Jesus answered him, "Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise." Ergo, AFTER they both DIE...they will LIVE in PARADISE? this is not an AFTERLIFE? huh? * Note: In Greek "Paradeiso," for Paradise came from the Hebrew or "Pardes," which was borrowed from the Persians in the 6th century BCE, meaning a beautiful garden or orchard, and is used in the Song of Songs 4:13, Ecclesiastes 2:5, and Nehemiah 2:8, and the Septuagint uses the word around 30 times, both of Eden, (Gen. 2:7 etc.) and of Eden restored (Ezek. 28:13, 36:35 etc.). So where is this Paradeiso Jesus and the other executed criminal went to after dying? Is that not an afterlife? John 14.2 [Jesus comforts his disciples after telling them he would be betrayed] "My Father's house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you?" Where is his father's house with may rooms? Cleveland? Didn't Jesus say his disciples could not go to where he was going [to prepare for them in God's house]? Matthew 17:3 [Transfiguration] "Just then there appeared before them Moses and Elijah, talking with Jesus." * Note: The transfiguration is also in Mark 9:4 and Luke 9:28 What? Where did Moses and Elijah come from? They died many centuries before Jesus. Luke 16:19-31 A guy who died went to the :Bosom o Abraham" and was have a conversation WITH Abraham, who died 2-millennia before him. How is Abraham talking to ANOTHER dead guy about his family. and there is no afterlife? Verse attributed to John (Who knew Jesus Revelation 2:7 "Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God." * Tree of life refers to Genesis 3:22. which means having an eternal life with God in paradise. Where is God's garden? Its obviously not on our planet or in our dimension. Paul an Influential, Religiously-Educated, Jewish Apostle from the Time of Jesus. Paul is a fellow Jew with the equivalent of attending a Jewish Rabbinical college. 2nd Corinthians 12:1-5, Paul writes: "I must go on boasting. Although there is nothing to be gained, I will go on to visions and revelations from the Lord. 2 I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the THIRD HEAVEN. Whether it was in the body or out of the body I do not know-God knows. 3 And I know that this man-whether in the body or apart from the body I do not know, but God knows- 4 was caught up to paradise and heard inexpressible things, things that no one is permitted to tell. *Note: He was caught up in the 3rd "Ouranos" meaning the visible heavens: the atmosphere, the sky, the starry heavens, and, or the spiritual heavens. Then the word Paradeison for paradise. So Paul equates the Hebrew Pardes with outer-atmospheric starry heavens-spiritual realm. Paul was an religiously educated Jew from Jesus' time, and your saying the Jews of this time had no conception for heaven? I am a theologian, and I love your work. Your a brilliant scholar. And there are many more scriptures I would ask you about. I understand what you are doing, which is bringing it back to its original Jewish concept...but dude, postexilic Jews definitely had a concept of heaven, it is also mentioned in many of their 2nd Temple, Intertestamental era books like the Apocalypse of Moses, when after the death of Adam, the Archangel Michael carries the body of Adam to be buried in Paradise, which is in the Third Heaven. Written centuries before Jesus, ca 300-500 years before Jesus. Lastly, this is NOT a Christian-only phenomenon to compensate for a disappointment in the kingdom not coming, but is also an ANCIENT JEWISH belief, still practiced today by modern Jews who sit Shiva to mourn for 7-days after a death, while the Nechama, the deceased person's soul is still with its body, it then leaves to endure the purification of Gehenna, or if they are Tzadiq, a saint, they go directly to be with God in heaven until their soul returns to its body on the day of resurrection. They voraciously study the Tanach, Targum, and Talmud, which is based off oral wisdom stories and theology going back to the time of Moses. The famous conversations between Hilel and Shammai took place before Jesus' birth. How do you reckon this? Gehenna is described as 60 times hotter than earthly fire in Berakhot 57b of the Talmud. The Talmud recorded the rabbinic statement of the 1st century sage Yochanan ben Zakkai: “There are two paths before me, one leading to Gan Eden (Paradise, Immortality) and the other to Gehinnom (Gihenna)." So the concepts of a soul going on to live eternally in paradise, or suffer in Gehenna was clearly believed by ancient Jews before and during the time of Jesus, separate from Jesus' influence. I will get the book...but so far I am not loving what your saying. Sorry.
Luke 23:43 [Jesus tells the guy crucified next to him.] "Jesus answered him, "Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise." Then why is it that in another gospel both robbers mocks him and there is no mention of him saying this to one of them?
There is a God but He does not want your worship. He wants you to learn to be like him just as your father of the flesh wanted for you as an infant. in eyes of God we are still infants in the womb because we have lots to learn from the mother He created seeded us into
I think you should be on retainer to sda theologians. I hope it’s not impossible to reinstate your faith, but whatever your loss must have been precious.
Yes, I was wondering when Bart would talk about his new books, please do a talk where we hear your voice only. The other speakers/interviewers adds nothing worthy of hearing their voice
You are avoiding Islam and Quran, intensionly or what ? Agnostic or Athiest why? Do you believe in afterlife ? STUDY Quran. Don't believe in it but what's wronge studying it
Regarding the afterlife, what about the appearance of Moses and Elijah with Jesus? Also, the ascension of Elijah in the OT shows there must have been an idea of continued existence, right?
Red Pill Veteran - I give credit to Bart for his years of hard work. No god has revealed itself to him, apparently, describing what is really meant in this scroll or that scroll. A god could simply interpret scripture for all of us, but it/they don’t by choice or because they are simply concepts. Yes, I thank Bart for Bart, just as I thank a surgeon for choosing his path. A god could have done the surgery, make her / his intentions clear and indisputable, or even prevent rapes, but no - Let’s recognize our heroes without belittling their efforts by suggesting that they couldn’t have accomplished anything without divine intervention from Thor, Neptune, or any other god concept.
That would be salvation actually. Why would you get mad at a God who told you he is everything that is good and when you reject him and choose not to love him you say “why do you have to put me in a place totally absent of good that doesn’t seem fair!” All the while it was your choice to reject the good for which all other goods stem from. A relationship with God is a choice and God loves you enough to let you make that choice all on your own.
to live for ever in the body is very possible using the knowledge of God our father science is the interpretation of that know so that we may understand it as Children of God.
One of the great things about the Bart Ehrman blog is that you get to ask questions of Bart. It's only $25 per year and all the money goes to help others. I love it! Great content and expanded info on lots of interesting topics.
isnt the spirit more like the breath, not the soul. Also, respectfully Dr. Ehrman, you can not pretend there is no mention of heaven. Where did Moses or Elijah come from when Jesus was on that mountain with the "some standing here who shall not taste death until they see the Son of Man come with power. And after 6 days, He took them up the mountain." Or John 10. "....so that where I am, there you may be also." The scripture teaches a 1000 year period, when the Saints are in heaven before coming back to earth, with the Saints, in the New Jerusalem at the end of the 1000 years for the second resurrection and final judgement.(Rev. 20) Also, why suppose Paul got it wrong with that one verse which is not required to be interpreted as you say? Sure, people read Paul that way, but how convenient you presume to know which way Paul meant it, despite the context and previous language regarding "the OR this (earthly) body". a It seems to me that Paul, the Phaeisee of Pharisees, most zealous would believe in the resurrection of the dead on the last day and considering his mastery of the OT, i.e. Job Ezekiel, Jeremiah etc., he spoke of a new body recieved upon Jesus return, on the final day! Much more likely. Revelation seems to stick to a pattern that the earth will end after the 6th milennium. Hence the correlation of the 6th day of creation. And the Beast, number of a man, dominion, 666.
This is all very fascinating. One question though if Jesus believed he was supposed to rule God’s Kingdom on earth, why didn’t he do anything to defend himself at his trials?
Jesus needed to the ransom for mankind so we have a hope to live forever in paradise earth. Jesus is the second adam . If adam and eve obeyed there would be no death and pain and this earth would be that beautiful garden. But in future Gods kingdom will replace all earthly kingdoms . Daniel 2:44 when that happens the earth will be turned into paradise and righteous people will inherit. Death will be no more . Revelation 21:4. Pure worship of jehovah will be restored
I think Revelation is not the despair Terry Gross makes, it's great literature! First sci-fi! The 4 horsemen, great imagery, used as a documentary title on corporate power, or the Pale Horseman by William Cooper, great images, scary fun! It's when Fundamentists misuse it, literalize it, etc. But Remote Viewing might explain a lot of it, lol, sorta true but only vaguely.
So let me see if ive got this right, Bart thinks that Jesus's teachings on the final judgement and the apostles teachings (who got their theology and teaching from Jesus) are all wrong. Sounds like Bart is being very selective...... Again.....
I was a little disappointed that you didn't consider Vedic literatures and philosophy. The 7 swargas (heavens) and 7 patalas (hells) are a fundamental aspect of a complete worldview that is as old or older than Mesopotamia. However, I have read several of your books and consider you a great Christian saint! You convinced me that Jesus actually existed (beyond mere literature). God bless you, sir, and see you in the Vedic Ocean, which awaits you. You have graduated from Judeo-Christianity.
As James White put it, this man has dedicated his career to casting doubt on any claims or beliefs about Jesus, but now thinks we can pronounce definitively on what Jesus did and didn't believe about the afterlife.
Just before watching this video, I watched: Michael Shermer with Bart Ehrman - Heaven and Hell ..... in neither interview, does Bart Ehrman quote a single Bible verse.
0:11 "The pandemic has made death a presence on a scale most of us aren't used to." If she's insistent on selling sensationalism by the pound, the least that Terry the peddler can do for her customers is to remove her weighty thumb from the scale.
As always, Bart's comments are informative and interesting. Although I am not an atheist, I do find Bart's atheism to be a sane and thoughtful approach to living without belief in God. Atheists have always been of intense interest to me. One of my favorites was Christopher Hitchens. I wonder what an encounter between these two would have been like, comparing their thoughts on religion and history of mankind. Unfortunately, we will never see that video on RU-vid.
2//// Check out 'wordofgord' here on YT. He is a Canadian medium who contacted Hitchens after his death. He says he was "gobsmacked" that he was still conscious and alive.
please visit jw.org and get accurate bible based information, much of what he says is true. certainly closer to truth than the churches of christendom. or the non christian religions for that matter. but no need to stop believing in the bible or the god of the bible. it’s only those who claim to represent the bible that are to blame for such teachings as hell fire, immortality of the soul, all good people go to heaven plus many more unscriptural teachings.
Hello professor, I’m curious if Jesus did not believe in an afterlife as in soul travel as you say what did Jesus mean when he told the thief on the cross today he would be in paradise with him?
If you want to learn about God, why would you listens to a man who says he doesn’t even exist. Listen to someone who claims to know him. Read the Bible for yourself.
Clayton Jackson I understand where you’re coming from. There’s a historical view that he teaches, and I learn from that. He is not my instructor for the divine however.
Ehrman does not find any issue with Quranic preservation and transmission in the first place which is one of his primary arguments against christianity so there's nothing much for him to argue with islamic scholars. However I would love to see him having discussion with likes Shabbir Ally, Adnan rashid, Ac brown etc
Didn't Jesus say to his disciples after he had been crucified not to touch him as he had not yet risen to the Father? Where would that be of he didn't believe in Heaven?
