At this point, it’s been demonstrated thoroughly that the stylometric analysis within “Christ Before Jesus” is rather worthless. Not only is it based on flawed methodology, and virtually impossible to replicate (in fact, even running Stylo with their settings, and with the texts they suggest, their results could not be replicated), the readings and interpretations…
If I am to be honest, it was with this section that I lost all hope in this book. One of the things I’ve tried to do with this work, and these authors, is to err on the side of being as fair as possible. I’ve attempted to give the authors the benefit of the…
At this point in the critique of Britt’s and Wingo’s argument in “Christ Before Jesus,” I think it should be clear that we can generally ignore their stylometric analysis for a host of reasons, starting with the methodology being inherently flawed, to the actual results lacking the necessary data we need to fully analyze them….
One of the arguments that Britt and Wingo frequently come back to is the argument from silence. We’ve already discussed this previously, but another point we have to take into consideration is that we have few early Christian writers in general. Dealing with Acts specifically, Britt and Wingo attempt to build an argument that maybe…
I don’t want to suggest that Britt and Wingo are being dishonest in their research, or at least I didn’t when I started this critique. Just like I wouldn’t say most modern apologists are doing such. But regardless of their intention here, the outcome is the same. On page 232, I think this really comes…
Chapter 8 is where we finally get into the data, and the supposed evidence for many of the claims that are made throughout Christ Before Jesus. Since many of the claims made through the book rely on these results, it becomes important to see if they check out. And as a note, there are claims…
When I decide to study a subject, I get a bit obsessive. Part of the reason for that is because I once was a Jesus myth theorist, and I fell for many of the conspiracies that surrounded that. I was burned before by subscribing to an idea that I was ignorant about. I don’t want…
If you’re making things up in your study, it’s probably not wise to bring that to attention. Yet, that’s exactly what Matthew Britt and Jaaron Wingo do in their book, “Christ Before Jesus.” This is the third part of my critique of their book, and in this article, we examine some additional potential concerns they…
What makes a good methodology? Well, the first step is to have a clear methodology. And it probably pays to understand the topic. For Matthew Britt and Jaaron Wingo, authors’ of “Christ Before Jesus,” they lack in both departments. This is part two of my critique their work. One of the things that gave some…
Can stylometry prove Jesus, or even Paul, didn’t exist? Short answer, no. Yet, that is a main focus in the book, Christ Before Jesus, a work that tries to further the Jesus Myth case. As a former mythicist, someone who accepted the conclusion that Jesus was a mythical figure, the argument was rather intriguing as…