“RESURRECTION – JESUS CHRIST”.

___________________

A Research Paper
Presented to
GLOBAL SCHOOL OF OPEN LEARNING
Professor. Christy Andrew
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In Partial Fulfilment
Of the Requirements for the Course
Christian Apologetics
M2160
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By
S. BILLY GRAHAM
[email protected]
May 16, 2024

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 TABLE OF CONTENTS

S.No Description Page No

1) Introduction 3

2) Description of the Objections 3

3) Analysis of the Objections 5

4) Christian Response 8

5) Conclusion 10

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 1. Introduction

The most important Christian event is the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Which has also been the target of the most attacks on Christian doctrines. Many

people have voiced grave concerns about the event’s legitimacy throughout the years.

Numerous explanation and arguments have been put up to refute the resurrection

event, and the attacks continue to grow to this current day. But since, nothing is more

central to the Bible then Jesus death and resurrection. It is our duty as Christians to

uphold this important concept. The main goal of this paper is to offer a thorough

examination of three of the numerous criticisms namely: The theory of the stolen

body, the theory of hallucinations and considering the purpose discrepancies in the

resurrection narratives found in the Gospels. This paper also attempts to address this

problem from the Christian response at the conclusion.

2. Description of the Objections:

A. The Theory of the Stolen Body:

According to the idea of the stolen body, the Body of Christ was taken from

the tomb by either followers of Jesus or another local person. This theory was the first

to be put forward after the discovery of the empty tomb, not the creation of a

contemporary skeptic1. Based to the Mathew gospel, the first century Jewish officials

disseminated the rumor Jesus followers had taken the body2. When Mary Magdalene

observed the empty tomb, she too quickly concluded that the corpse had been stolen.

1
Gary R Habermas and Michael R Licona, The CASE for the Resurrection of JESUS, 29–30.
2
Gary R Habermas and Michael R Licona, 92–94.

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 She did not think he had ascended3. In his writings Justin Martyr’s, the Jewish

establishment was still circulating the myth throughout his lifetime4.

B. The Theory of Hallucination:

According to the Hallucination explanation, the disciples and the

eyewitnesses were only experiencing hallucinations as a result of their emotional

distress. The definition of hallucination is a sensory experience in which there are no

external stimuli present, such as seeing people or things, hearing voices or smelling

smells5. David Strauss, a liberal scholar, promoted the hallucination idea in an effort

to refute the swoon theory that was maintained by Heinrich Paulus, Karl Venturini,

and others6. It is suggested that delusions, hallucinations and other similar naturalistic

events are the outcome of an ongoing hope for miracles, or in this instances, the

resurrection of Jesus Christ7.

C. Discrepancies in the Gospel:

Critics of the resurrection frequently use the purported inconsistencies and

discrepancies in the Gospel accounts to call into question the historical accuracy of

the writings8. Each of the Gospel writers presented the message in a different way,

and those who doubt the veracity of the event itself point to the variations in the

resurrection stories.

3
Gary R Habermas and Michael R Licona, 96–98.
4
Gary R Habermas and Michael R Licona, 95.
5
Michael R Licona, The Resurrection of Jesus - A New Historiographical Approach, 476–78.
6
Gary R Habermas and Michael R Licona, The CASE for the Resurrection of JESUS, 288–89.
7
Michael R Licona, The Resurrection of Jesus - A New Historiographical Approach, 303.
8
ANDREW LOKE, INVESTIGATING THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS CHRIST, 58–60.

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 3. Analysis of the Objections:

a) The Theory of the Stolen Body:

In his monumental work on the resurrection, N.T.Wright emphasizes that the

author of the gospels purposely included the account of the chief priests and Pharisees

stationed at the tomb towards the any suggestions that the disciples had taken the

corpse. He contends that since allegation of stolen bodies were already common at the

time, the early Christians deliberately sought to address this potential problem9. He

continue by saying that there is strong evidence to refute the stolen corpse argument,

including the disciple’s willingness to suffer and die in order to maintain their faith in

the risen Jesus. Early Church founder Eusebies remarks that it would be absurd to

believe that the disciples would create this entire things or that they would decide to

suffer and die in vain10.

The disciples had a lot to lose rather than anything of value in the world. When

they preached about the resurrected Christ, which is another intriguing point to

consider. Since they were truly devoted to their message even to the point of

martyrdom this is a strong evidence in favor of the committed what they said11.

Moreover, the conversions of James and the apostle Paul deal a devastating blow to

this idea. A Simple account of the disciples claims to have seen the resurrected Jesus

could not have persuaded Paul, a fierce opponent of the Church. The stunning

meeting with the rising Christ on the road to Damascus was the only things that

persuaded him. Similar to James, who was not persuaded of Jesus Christ prior to his
9
N T WRIGHT, THE RESURRECTION OF THE SON OF GOD, 404–6.
10
WILLIAM LANE CRAIG, THE SON RISES - The Historical Evidence for the Resurrection of Jesus, 25.
11
WILLIAM LANE CRAIG, 28.

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 resurrection, James came to believe in him only after seeing him appear in the sky.

Only a small number of critical academics have agreed with this thesis in the past 200

years, according to famous scholars Gary Habermas. This radical skeptics

conversions, like as those of Paul and James, make a compelling arguments for the

rising Christ12.

b) The Theory of Hallucination:

I want to start by explaining the difference between the words Hallucination and

delusions. Hallucination is a false sense of something that is not there. Whereas

delusion is a mistaken belief that is maintained with the conviction that it is true in

spite of evidence to the contrary13. This idea suggest that since its typical for people

to have grief hallucinations after a loved one passes away, the disciples and the other

individuals who were grieving over the death of Jesus Christ may have had a

hallucination. This theory that was somewhat popular more than a century ago has a

number of significant issues the most significant of them being the existence of an

empty tomb. The most important Paul and James were among the eyewitnesses to the

resurrected Jesus hallucinations, then Jesus body should be still in the tomb. Another

thing to consider is that Paul was not at all in mourning at Jesus Passing. He felt that

it was God’s plan for them to be persecuted and detested both Jesus and his followers.

Nevertheless, this suggested idea is unable to explain this drastic change as this guy

who had previously detested Jesus went on to become one of his apostles14.

It’s also important to remember that hallucination are personal experiences

that take place in a person’s head. These aren’t communal or group encounters. It’s
12
Gary R Habermas and Michael R Licona, The CASE for the Resurrection of JESUS, 94.
13
Gary R Habermas and Michael R Licona, 105.
14
Gary R Habermas and Michael R Licona, 106–8.

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 possible that even within a group of people who are mentally prepared to experience

hallucinations they might only do so individually. Sharing Hallucinations is not

possible. However it documents three instances of the risen Christ making

simultaneous appearances to all the apostles, the five hundred brothers and sisters,

and cephas and the twelve. In a similar vein, the gospel also document Jesus Christ’s

appearances in groups. The rising Christ makes many group of appearance, all of

which demonstrate how unlikely it is that the eyewitnesses were hallucinating. These

folks also saw the resurrected Christ several times throughout the course of forty

days, rather than just once. A rather diverse group of people saw Jesus Christ appear,

including men and women, stubborn individuals like Peter and tender hearted

individuals like Magdalene, among others. Since, it is highly improbable that each of

these individuals would have been experiencing the identical thing. It would be

foolish to assume that each of their experiences was a hallucination15.

c) Discrepancies in the Gospel;

There are a number of distinctions and possible inconsistencies between the

resurrections narratives found in the Synoptic Gospels and the Gospel of John. Most

of these discrepancies relate to the minutiae of the events like whether or not there

were angels at the tomb (Mathew, Mark and Luke Say two: Luke and John Say one)

how many disciples were present. When Jesus made his first appearance where Jesus

made his first appearance.( Mathew28: 16,17 says Galilee; Luke 24:33 says

Jerusalem) and so forth. The New Testament scholars Micheal R Licona makes the

following argument in relation to this matter; the Gospel writers theological emphasis

and motivations for composing their narratives may have varied and this may be a
15
Gary R Habermas and Michael R Licona, 107–9.

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 significant factor in the changes in the specifies16. Therefore, before attempting to

find contradictions in the text, it is imperative that one takes this important issue into

account. He continues, saying that they are only distinction and that they don’t always

imply contradictions17. Additionally, he notes that Gospels fall within the category of

Gerco-Roman biography, which allows for a certain amount of adaptability in the

reporting of tales18.

Licona concludes by drawing a comparison between the narratives in the

Gospels and Plutarch’s a literary work from that age. He claims that the discrepancies

between Gospels are always found in the little details, and that these are quite

acceptable given the literary composing strategies of the time. Lastly, Jesus tells the

Christians that they don’t have to work to reconcile the divisions between the Gospels

that can be appropriately reconciled using the literary devices of historical narratives

and ancient biography19.

4. Christian Response:

Understanding that there is a person with needs behind every question

whether they be intellectual or emotional allow us to transform our response from a

simple discussion into an act of compassion and understanding that speaks to their

spirit as well as their mind. The people who put out the stolen body theory are

probably doubters who want a lot of tangible factual proof. They could also be

naturalists attempting to interpret historical occurrences inside the actual world. To

meet the intellectual demands of these people, it is imperative to present strong

16
Michael R Licona, WHY ARE THERE DIFFERENCES IN THE GOSEPL? WHAT WE CAN LEARN FROM
ANCIENT BIOGRAPHY, 180–88.
17
Gary R Habermas and Michael R Licona, The CASE for the Resurrection of JESUS, 202.
18
Gary R Habermas and Michael R Licona, 198.
19
Gary R Habermas and Michael R Licona, 201.

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historical evidence. People in this group frequently really seek the truth and as a

Christians, we should to have courteous, sincere conversations with them that are

marked by respect, humility and love. In order to help people come to the saving

knowledge of Christ, it is also imperative that we provide them with thoughtful

responses to their inquiries. Psychologists who study the mind and the human

perception are more likely to be the ones who put up the hallucination idea. But, it is

very possible that they will recognize their incorrect presumptions if we objective

bring out the flaws in the theory in accordance with their disciplines. Lastly, those

who present the gospel inconsistencies are probably skeptics looking for consistency

and coherence in the historical accounts, or they may be individuals from other

theological backgrounds. We have to explain to them the historical setting in which

the Gospels were composed as well as the characteristics of the literary genre in

which they were composed.

Giving responses on the topic of the resurrection goes beyond the act of arguing

with someone and coming out on top. This is because the resurrection of Jesus is not

merely fact that needs to be established or a point of contention that need to be made;

rather, it is the reality that determines each person eternal destiny. As Christians, it is

our duty to behave with this feeling of accountability, and we should base our

strategy on the idea that winning the person rather than the argument is our main goal.

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5 Conclusion:

The most important thing in Christianity is the resurrection of Jesus Christ,

which either validates or refutes the rest of the religion. Throughout the history, this

claim has been met with a number of challenges. Three particular issues were

addressed in this paper, the apparent gospel conflicts, the hallucination theory and the

stolen body theory. We defended the veracity of the historical event of the

resurrection throughout the thesis by drawing on the arguments of other academics.

Not only is the resurrection predicated on faith, but it is also a historically confirmed

event supported by facts and proof.

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 BIBLIOGRAPHY

ANDREW LOKE. INVESTIGATING THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS CHRIST. New York:

Routledge, 2020.
Gary R Habermas and Michael R Licona. The CASE for the Resurrection of JESUS. Michigan
US: Kregel Publication, 2004.
Michael R Licona. The Resurrection of Jesus - A New Historiographical Approach. USA:
InterVarsity Press, 2010.
———. WHY ARE THERE DIFFERENCES IN THE GOSEPL? WHAT WE CAN LEARN FROM
ANCIENT BIOGRAPHY. USA: Oxford University Press, 2016.
N T WRIGHT. THE RESURRECTION OF THE SON OF GOD. Great Britain: Nicholas Thomas
Wright, 2003.
WILLIAM LANE CRAIG. THE SON RISES - The Historical Evidence for the Resurrection of
Jesus. CHICAGO: Moody Press, n.d.

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