The

Case for the Real Jesus

Investigating Current Attacks on the Identity of Jesus, the claimed Messiah

In addition to Holy Blood, Holy Grail referenced by DM, Vobos contact Nick Peters affiliated with Dr.
Michael Licona suspects DM has also been influenced by Rev. Alexander Hislops book titled The Two
Babylons based on DMs April 30, 2014 Facebook post on theories regarding Jesus speculated bloodline.
From DMs postings and comments, Vobo suspect Acharya S or D. Murdocks book titled The Christ
Conspiracy has also influenced him. Given that Dan Brown used Holy Blood, Holy Grail as his novel
background source material in writing The Da Vinci Code, this book may have influenced DM as well.
These books are:

The Two Babylons: Or The Papal Worship Proved to be the Worship of Nimrod and His Wife (Second
American Edition) by Rev. Alexander Hislop (1807-1862) (New York: Kiuzeayx Brothers, Inc., 1959)
The Christ Conspiracy: The Greatest Story Ever Sold by Acharya S (Adventures Unlimited: 1999). The
authors name is actually is D. Murdock.
Holy Blood, Holy Grail: The Secret History of Christ, The Shocking Legacy of the Grail by Michael Baigent,
Richard Leigh and Henry Lincoln (Delacorte Press: 1983)
The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown (Anchor: 2009)

To investigate claims made by these authors and books, consider the following:

The Case for the Real Jesus: A Journalist Investigates Current Attacks on the Identity of Christ by Lee
Strobel (Zondervan: 2007)

CHALLENGE: Are scholars discovering a radically different Jesus in ancient documents just as credible
as the four Gospels?
Scholars Gary Habermas, J. Wallace, Craig Evans, Philip Jenkins, Ben Witherington III, and Darrell Bock
answer, No. Ben Witherington III, said, It is always more likely that those sources that come from
eyewitnesses or those who were in contact with eyewitnesses will provide us with the best data about
an ancient person than documents that were composed several centuries later.1
Questions to consider:
If Jesus' divinity was an invention of the church in the early fourth century, how does a person explain all the
references to a divine Christ in literature written before that time?
What did Christians believe and when did they begin believing it? What took place before the Council of
Nicaea was held in AD 325? Is the best evidence of early Christianity arrives from people in the debate at the
time? Were there second- and third-century texts written before the Council at Nicaea ever happened? Had
the four Gospels highlighted at the Council of Nicaea been established and recognized in a sizable number of
Christian communities for more than a century before Nicaea? Did all sides deal with the four Gospels? Did
the vote at Nicaea affirm and officially recognized what was already the Churchs prevailing view?

A. H. M. Jones writes that most of the attendees of the Council of Nicaea were pastors, Many could boast of
the proud title of confessor, having endured imprisonment, torture, and penal servitude for the sake of their
faith. Many of the bishops at Nicaea were veterans who suffered persecution under Emperor Diocletian.2 Is it
reasonable to think they would quietly allow Constantine to change their faith for which they had already
suffered and were willing to die for?

1 Witherington, III, Ben, The Gospel Code: Novel Claims About Jesus, Mary Magdalene and Da Vinci (Downers Grove,

IL: InterVarsity Press, 2004), 32.

2 Jones, A. H. M., Constantine and the Conversion of Europe (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1978), 131.

bestfactualworldview.com

Continued on the back of this sheet.

The Case for the Real Jesus: Investigating Current Attacks

Some resources out of many are:

Topical sheet with the title Unscholarly Big Guess of Baigent, Leigh, and Lincolns Holy Blood, Holy
Grail? The sheet presents The Real Da Vinci Code 2005 documentary host Tony Robinson asking Holy
Blood, Holy Grail primary co-author Michael Baigent a question regarding his claim Jesus Christ married
Mary Magdalene and produced offspring. The sheet also lists resources responding to The Da Vinci Code
by Dan Brown and Holy Blood, Holy Grail by Baigent et al.
The Historical Jesus: Ancient Evidence for the Life of Christ by Gary R. Habermas (Joplin, MO: College
Press Publishing Company: 1996)

CHALLENGE: Have new explanations refuted Jesus Resurrection?

Scholars Paul Copan, Ronald Tacelli, Gary Habermas, Michael Licona, Andreas Kstenberger, and Justin
Taylor answer, No. Just two resources out of many are:

The Case for the Resurrection of Jesus by Gary R. Habermas and Michael L. Licona (Kregel Publications:
2004)
The Case for Christ: A Journalists Personal Investigation of the Evidence for Jesus by Lee Strobel

CHALLENGE: Were Christian beliefs about Jesus stolen from pagan religions?
Scholars J. Komoszewski, M. Sawyer, Daniel Wallace, Ronald Nash, Edwin Yamauchi, William Lane Craig,
Gary Habermas, Michael Licona, Amy Orr-Ewing, Tom Wright, Patrick Zukeran, Daniel Morais, Michael
Gleghorn, and J. Gresham Machen in the following resources answer, No.
A question to consider is:
Early Christians, who lived in a pagan culture, were influenced by paganism and sometimes used the same
terms and motifs as their pagan neighbors in describing their beliefs. That said, was the success of Christian
faith impossible for pagans to ignore, which is why some of them sought to borrow Christian ideas, or at least
terminology, in their rituals and practices?

Some resources are:

Was the New Testament Influenced by Pagan Religions? by Ronald Nash accessible on the Christian
Research Institutes (CRI) Equip.com website.3 See enclosed topical sheet on this reference.
Did Christianity Borrow from the Mystery or Pagan Religions? by Patrick Zukeran (6 April 2008),
Daniel Morais, and Michael Gleghorn (18 June 2008) accessible on the Probe Ministries website.4 See
enclosed topical sheet on this reference.
A Refutation of Acharya Ss book, The Christ Conspiracy5 by Dr. Michael Licona accessible from his Risen
Jesus website. Dr. Liconas responds to Acharya Ss rebuttal with Licona Replies to Acharya: Part 2.6
See enclosed topical sheet on this reference.
Myths? A Response to the Arguments Against Jesus Historicity by David E. Anderson (2011). Note
former atheist author's money prize offers to anyone who can substantiate "parallel" claims. See You
Could Win $1000! Zeitgeist and Christ-Myther challenges posted on his King David 8 website at
<kingdavid8.com> after typing, win $1000 in the search field and selecting links. The types of evidence
he allows are stories where these things happen, provided they are generally believed to be pre-Christian;
pre-Christian images clearly showing these details; and information from scholarly sources, such as
university-level scholars, peer-reviewed journals, or mainstream mythology books or websites.

3 Nash, Ronald, <equip.org/articles/was-the-new-testament-influenced-by-pagan-religions/#christian-books-4>.
4 Zukeran, et al., <probe.org/the-pagan-connection-did-christianity-borrow-from-the-mystery-religions/>.
5 Licona, Ph.D., Michael, <risenjesus.com/a-refutation-of-acharya-ss-book-the-christ-conspiracy>.
6 Ibid, Licona Replies to Acharya: Part 2, <risenjesus.com/licona-replies-to-acharya-part-2>.