Jesus, son of Panthera

According to Celsus, a Greek opponent to Christianity, Jesus was the son of a Roman soldier named Panthera and his mother Mary committed adultery. This claim by Celsus was quite early in Christian history, around 170 AD, thereby predating large portions of the New Testament. What would have happened if proof had been put forth, falsified or not, that was acceptable as proving the theory? Would Christianity have failed if that proof came out prior to 200 AD? Obviously at some point Christianity becomes "too big to fail" like today if definitive proof came out it wouldn't have much of an effect on world Christianity.
 
How could it ever be proven? I don't imagine any physical evidence would be available even as early as the night after Mary and Pantera's supposed liaison. If you somehow got everyone to accept it, you might see an uptick in adoptionism.
 
I don't think you're going to be able to prove the parentage of a guy who died 140 years before with technology available in 170 CE. At best they could get some text alleging to be from Mary or Panthera which supports the story, which could easily be dismissed as a forgery.
 

jahenders

Banned
The religion is largely based on Christ rising from the grave and doing miracles. If someone believes he raised himself (and others) from the dead and has done all manner of other miracles, are they going to be dissuaded by his ancestry?

Even if Christ was the product of adultery and it became clear, that would be attributed to "God even making good things from bad."

According to Celsus, a Greek opponent to Christianity, Jesus was the son of a Roman soldier named Panthera and his mother Mary committed adultery. This claim by Celsus was quite early in Christian history, around 170 AD, thereby predating large portions of the New Testament. What would have happened if proof had been put forth, falsified or not, that was acceptable as proving the theory? Would Christianity have failed if that proof came out prior to 200 AD? Obviously at some point Christianity becomes "too big to fail" like today if definitive proof came out it wouldn't have much of an effect on world Christianity.
 

fi11222

Banned
According to Celsus, a Greek opponent to Christianity, Jesus was the son of a Roman soldier named Panthera and his mother Mary committed adultery. This claim by Celsus was quite early in Christian history, around 170 AD, thereby predating large portions of the New Testament. What would have happened if proof had been put forth, falsified or not, that was acceptable as proving the theory? Would Christianity have failed if that proof came out prior to 200 AD? Obviously at some point Christianity becomes "too big to fail" like today if definitive proof came out it wouldn't have much of an effect on world Christianity.
Actually, the account of Panthera in Celsus seems to be coming from Jewish sources (from Alexandria) and indeed, the name "Jesus son of Pandera/Pantera" appears in many places in the Mishna (which was being composed at about the same time). It is therefore considered quite likely by many scholars that the story of "Jesus son of a Roman soldier named Panthera" is a piece of Pharisee polemic which was being spread in the IInd century graeco-Jewish milieu where early Christianity was developping in order to try to combat its growing influence. It is therefore quite likely that the "proof" about this alternative theory regarding the birth of Jesus did indeed "come out" but that it failed to make a big enough splash. Christianity continued growing regardless.
 
According to Celsus, a Greek opponent to Christianity, Jesus was the son of a Roman soldier named Panthera and his mother Mary committed adultery. This claim by Celsus was quite early in Christian history, around 170 AD, thereby predating large portions of the New Testament. What would have happened if proof had been put forth, falsified or not, that was acceptable as proving the theory? Would Christianity have failed if that proof came out prior to 200 AD? Obviously at some point Christianity becomes "too big to fail" like today if definitive proof came out it wouldn't have much of an effect on world Christianity.

It does'nt actually predate the New Testament - most of it was written well before 170; for example the 4 canonical Gospels were all written before c 120, as were most of the epistles.
 
According to Celsus, a Greek opponent to Christianity, Jesus was the son of a Roman soldier named Panthera and his mother Mary committed adultery. This claim by Celsus was quite early in Christian history, around 170 AD, thereby predating large portions of the New Testament. What would have happened if proof had been put forth, falsified or not, that was acceptable as proving the theory? Would Christianity have failed if that proof came out prior to 200 AD? Obviously at some point Christianity becomes "too big to fail" like today if definitive proof came out it wouldn't have much of an effect on world Christianity.

If the claim was made in AD 170, that means it postdates literally all of the New Testament.
 
According to Celsus, a Greek opponent to Christianity, Jesus was the son of a Roman soldier named Panthera and his mother Mary committed adultery. This claim by Celsus was quite early in Christian history, around 170 AD, thereby predating large portions of the New Testament. What would have happened if proof had been put forth, falsified or not, that was acceptable as proving the theory? Would Christianity have failed if that proof came out prior to 200 AD? Obviously at some point Christianity becomes "too big to fail" like today if definitive proof came out it wouldn't have much of an effect on world Christianity.

just as a side note:
From all I know in the Medieval Europe among the Christian Europeans Josef (official father of Jesus Christ) was the most popular character of dirty sexual jokes.
As a husband who got to know after the wedding that his young wife had been already pregnant. I mean even for the Christian Europeans that looked a little bit suspicious. And funny.
 
just as a side note:
From all I know in the Medieval Europe among the Christian Europeans Josef (official father of Jesus Christ) was the most popular character of dirty sexual jokes.
As a husband who got to know after the wedding that his young wife had been already pregnant. I mean even for the Christian Europeans that looked a little bit suspicious. And funny.

My (also Catholic) brother has referred to Joseph only half-jokingly as the patron saint of cuckolds.
 
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