The Historical Jesus

Welcome to an exploration of the historical framework surrounding Jesus of Nazareth, examining standard historical-critical methods, secular scholarly sources, and the foundational records that establish his existence as a figure of antiquity.

Roman Emperor Tiberias and Jesus - A Tale of Two Contemporaries

The Overwhelming Eyewitness Record of the Risen Jesus

The Secular Case for the Historical Jesus

Also note that NT scholar and atheist Bart Erhman wrote an entire book outlining the evidence, evaluated using standard historical-critical methods, that shows the Jesus of the Bible was a historical person. See:  Did Jesus Exist?: The Historical Argument for Jesus of Nazareth

Erhman notes that for the vast majority of ordinary people living in antiquity, we have little to no contemporary record at all. However, regarding the specific documentation available for Jesus - such as multiple independent textual sources, early letters (like those of Paul), and subsequent historical mentions within a few decades of his life - Ehrman argues that having this level of multi-source attestation is actually "astounding for an ancient figure of any kind," especially for a lower-class provincial teacher.