# Resolved: Jesus did not exist

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/resolved-jesus-did-not-exist/566230>\
**Category:** Great Debates\
**Created:** [January 3, 2011, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/resolved-jesus-did-not-exist/566230 "2011-01-03T16:11:53Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Showing post:** 61

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**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\
**Post date:** [January 5, 2011, 7:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/resolved-jesus-did-not-exist/566230/61 "2011-01-05T07:26:11Z")

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Responding to …

> [@ITR\_champion](#):
>
> You’ve mentioned the instances in the infancy narratives of Luke and Matthew; … Other than that, you haven’t given me any examples of obvious fabrications or errors, so I can’t tell you how I feel about them.

… Diogenes writes

> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#):
>
> I can give you plenty. I’ll do them one at a time. Let’s start with the contradiction in the dating of Jesus’ birth. Why do Matthew and Luke have their nativities ten years apart? Was Jesus born during the reign of Herod the Great or was he born ten years after Herod died during the census of Quirinus? Which is it?

I’d certainly consider the nativity dates to be parts of the “infancy narratives”, so wonder if Diogenes’ browser skipped a message or something.

In **Diogenes** ’ model, does he think a biographer would have accompanied Jesus and pestered him about birth details?? Some people would instead suppose that this kind of inconsistency _supports historicity_ … after all, it’s easy for _liars_ to get their stories straight.

(BTW, I clicked on the link to Cecil’s articles and found Our Leader’s articles on Bible dates and authorship useful. “Cecil” doesn’t seem to approve of the Exodus=Hyksos equation. I asked **Diogenes** about this before and got a response where the ratio of pontification to citation was infinite! I consider the question still open, but if **Diogenes** wants to take another shot, please consider a response with _only_ URL’s. … URL’s to archaeological fact, not more pontification!)

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