Joseph Atwill claims to have proof that Jesus didn’t exist and was just invented to repress the Jews. We get our conspiracy theory hats on
Passionate atheists are a special breed. They are, for the most part, keyboard warriors – but then, their zealous energy is spent in arguing the non-existence of something. It must be difficult to base a group around a lack of faith, but they make a good fist of it, and prominent figures like Richard Dawkins are never far from controversy. Sure, when us regular non-believers question the existence of Jesus no one cares, but when a researcher specializing in the New Testament comes out and says that he has proof not only that Jesus didn’t exist, but that he was invented by the Romans in the 1st century in order to make the Jews fall in line and hail Caesar, well then people pay attention.
Biblical scholar Joseph Atwill is saying just that, and had organised an event in London to announce his findings. What would we find? Baying crowds of angry Christians, denouncing him a heretic? Well, not quite.
There were a lot of goatees on show, apparently the go-to look for atheists
When I walked in and chose my seat, Conway Hall, a rather inglorious location for such a potentially momentous announcement, was slowly filling up to the sounds of strange, alien-sounding lounge music. The whole scene had an eerie cult feeling to it, though if it were a cult, it would have a surprisingly varied member profile: the several dozen listeners were part old, part young, many with various foreign accents. I saw a few that came in with books to be signed, while others seemed to have their eyebrows raised before even stepping in. There were a lot of goatees on show, apparently the go-to atheist look. I scanned the room, but there was no sign of any murderous hooded monks waiting in the wings to stop the conspiracy coming to light.
Though I was hoping for a dramatic back-and-forth, most of the listeners – including a young Jewish man in a Kippa, strangely enough – seemed to be in full and enthusiastic agreement with Atwill and the second speaker, British academic Kenneth Humphreys. They applauded them onto and off the stage, they cheered on cue, and they laughed wholeheartedly at Humphreys’ sneer at Christians’ “pathetic replies” in the debate over the existence of God.
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This Jesus doesn’t even look real
Outside Conway Hall, Joseph Atwill’s work has been attracting a very different response, not in the least because Atwill had appointed himself an academic without having an actual degree in the field. Theological scholar Joel L Watts called the theory bogus, while amateur historian and writer Thomas Verenna wrote a long and detailed post about everything that’s wrong with Atwill’s hypothesis, advising potential listeners to “bring a disposable bag so you can properly rid yourself of the dung that undoubtedly will be thrown at you during the presentation”. So what’s the evidence he’s basing this theory on?
Basically what Atwill noticed is a certain parallel between the life story of Jesus as told in the New Testament – down to the choice of adverbs sometimes – and that of Titus, as told in 1st century Jewish Roman historian Josephus’s book Wars of the Jews. Some of the parallels he points to – places they both visited, things they both said, keg parties they both attended and so on – really are strikingly clever. But personally I’d rather write it off as good literature with recurring themes than read into it evidence of anything greater. After all, many religions were influenced by each other and by events in society. Both Jesus and Krishna are said to have been born to virgins, but surely no one is claiming that’s a sign of intricate plotting?
Mostly though, you can’t help but wonder what exactly the implication of this theory might be. That miracles don’t really exist was clear to most rational people well before Atwill’s claim to fame was published. What difference does it make, then, whether Jesus was a real person or not, beyond an academic curiosity? (Not that there’s any harm in pursuing those – just that they usually don’t find themselves on the Daily Mail). Faithful Christians will hardly see the scales fall from their eyes as a result, while atheists wouldn’t really care whether Jesus existed or not. I mean, if God doesn’t exist, why should it matter whether Jesus was a real man with no special powers or not a man at all?
The theory could show that what people hear from their leaders shouldn’t be taken as, well, gospel
As it turned out, I wasn’t the only one asking this. Atwill himself, in his lecture, concluded that his purpose is to open people’s eyes to the ways in which the establishment was and is studying us to help it create obedience, what he calls “weaponized anthropology”. His objective is to help create citizens who are more aware, more sceptical – citizens who fight back. This sentiment was echoed by the crowd as well. Two fellow listeners, young men who were ardently discussing 9\11 conspiracy theories when I walked up to them, told me they had come to the event because they thought Atwill’s idea was interesting and they wanted to hear more. The theory itself sounded plausible enough to them, but they readily admitted that it doesn’t much matter whether or not Jesus was real: this was about plots, and another example of the ruling class’ deceitful methods of gaining power. For them, Atwill’s theory, assuming it’s true, has the potential of reminding people that what they hear from their leaders shouldn’t necessarily be taken as, well, gospel.
So was Jesus just a figment of the imagination of a laurel-clad Roman brain? The theory Atwill presented was reasonable; the presentation itself fluctuated between interesting and amateurish. I certainly left the event more impressed by atheist campaigners’ ability to eagerly argue about what they don’t believe in, but not necessarily knowing much more about the origin of Jesus. Incidentally, this is what their unquestionable leader and everyone’s favourite cranky tweeter had to say after posting a link to Atwill’s book and being accused of backing him:
@Roryshiner I didn’t BACK it, I tweeted it. It seems far-fetched to me but what do I know? I thought an expert might confirm or demolish it.
— Richard Dawkins (@RichardDawkins) October 10, 2013
Maybe it’s not a matter of what you know, Richard, but what you believe.
Featured image: Wikimedia Commons
Inset: Leah Gregg
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