If you have been reading this blog lately you know that I am conducting a book review of an LCMS publication entitled, “Making the Case for Christianity”, authored by a group of very accomplished LCMS theologians (and one LCMS attorney). I was shocked to find the following:
The arguments in this LCMS book of Christian apologetics, written in support of the historical claims of early Christianity, are built upon:
— one very big assumption (that evidence for a Creator automatically translates into evidence for the ancient Hebrew god, Yahweh)
and
— outdated New Testament scholarship (that the Gospels were written by eyewitnesses)!
I have attempted to point this out by email to the majority of the authors of this book…but none of the authors have responded. I have sent an email to every LCMS district president (the bishops) regarding what I believe to be faulty scholarship in this book, asking them if this is the current teaching in LCMS seminaries, and have either been told to check with the authors or told that the only real issue of concern is my “anger” with my former pastor and with God!
No, my dear LCMS pastors and bishops, the real problem is that you are teaching naïve LCMS laypersons assumptions and outdated scholarship! One day these naïve laypersons are going to run up against, either in person or online, someone who knows something about current New Testament scholarship, and when your parishioner finds out you have been feeding him false, outdated information, he is going to lose trust in you and the Church.
You owe the people of the LCMS the truth.
Admit to them that modern New Testament scholarship no longer believes that the Gospels were written by Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Admit to them that a majority of NT scholars now believes that NO eyewitness wrote the four Gospels or the Book of Acts.
The Resurrection accounts in the four Gospels and the Book of Acts can no longer be touted as based on eyewitness testimony. The majority of scholars say they are not. Believe in this supernatural claim by faith, if you wish, but stop preaching it as “objective fact”, as the LCMS authors of “Making the Case for Christianity” so boldly promised to prove in the foreword to their book…but failed to do.
Escaping Christian Fundamentalism 
Maybe no one is responding to you because your authorities seem to be google and some abstract group (consensus) of New Testament scholars. What if I told you the consensus of Qur’an scholars suggest that the Qur’an is God’s eternal speech perfectly preserved would you believe that? I doubt it. You’d probably say it’s because you’re reasonable and Islam isn’t. But maybe, just maybe, your presumptions about what is assumed to be reasonable cloud your judgement on what is in fact reasonable. That is up for you to decide. I don’t care about what you think about Christianity. As an outside observer and a fellow human being you sound like an angry and presumptuous person. I stumbled upon your blog only because I try to follow the work of one this books authors and was googling it. You may disagree with the authors but don’t pretend that you have the intellectual upper hand. This is the arrogance of so many modern agnostic/atheists. In any case, I hope you find salam. I would be happy to, in a private forum, give you my email address so that we may talk about where to find it.
Salam alaykum
Abdul
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Thank you for your comment, Abdul.
I listed numerous sources which state that the majority of NT scholars no longer believe that the Gospels were written by eyewitnesses. No one, including yourself, has listed any source which refutes those sources.
I actually believe that Islam has better source evidence than Christianity. At least Islam has the writings of the person who claims to have experienced the supernatural events espoused by the religion. However, thousands of people have claimed to have seen gods, angels, flying horses, etc., in visions, dreams, and hallucinations. I don’t believe any of them. I believe that although supernatural events are possible, they are highly improbable and therefore not worth my time worrying about them.
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