The Easter story is the cornerstone of the Christian faith, but not everyone buys into it. In fact, there are plenty of Christians out there who have some serious doubts about the whole thing. Maybe they’ve done some research, or maybe they just can’t wrap their heads around the idea of a man rising from the dead. Whatever the reason, these Christians are choosing to question the Easter narrative, and they’ve got some pretty compelling reasons why.
1. The Gospel accounts of the resurrection are inconsistent.
If you read the four Gospels side by side, you’ll notice some pretty glaring inconsistencies in the resurrection story. How many women went to the tomb? What did they see when they got there? Who did Jesus appear to first? The details vary depending on which Gospel you’re reading, and that’s enough to raise some eyebrows among skeptical Christians.
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2. The earliest Gospel (Mark) doesn’t even mention the resurrection.
The Gospel of Mark is widely considered to be the earliest of the four Gospels, according to PBS, and guess what? It doesn’t even mention the resurrection. The original ending of Mark’s Gospel has Jesus being buried and the women finding an empty tomb, but no post-resurrection appearances. Some scholars believe that the longer ending was added later by someone else.
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3. The idea of bodily resurrection was not a Jewish belief.
In Jesus’ time, the idea of a bodily resurrection was not a common Jewish belief, Huffington Post explains. Most Jews believed in a spiritual afterlife, not a physical one. So, the idea that Jesus would have been resurrected in bodily form would have been a foreign concept to his followers and a tough sell to his Jewish contemporaries.
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4. The empty tomb doesn’t necessarily prove a resurrection.
Just because Jesus’ tomb was found empty doesn’t necessarily mean he was resurrected. There could be other explanations, like grave robbers or even Jesus’ followers moving the body themselves. The empty tomb is a mystery, but it’s not a slam-dunk for the resurrection.
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5. The post-resurrection appearances could have been hallucinations.
Some skeptical Christians argue that the post-resurrection appearances of Jesus could have been hallucinations or visions experienced by his grieving followers. Grief can do strange things to the mind, and it’s not uncommon for people to see or hear things that aren’t really there after a traumatic loss.
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6. The resurrection story could have been a later addition to the Jesus narrative.
Some scholars believe that the resurrection story was not part of the original Jesus narrative, but was added later by his followers to give his death more meaning and to differentiate him from other failed messiahs of the time. After all, a messiah who dies and stays dead is not a very compelling figure.
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7. The resurrection story borrows from pagan myths.
Some skeptical Christians point out that the idea of a dying and rising god was not unique to Christianity. Many pagan religions had similar stories of gods who died and were resurrected, like Osiris in Egypt and Dionysus in Greece. Could the Jesus story have borrowed from these earlier myths?
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8. The Apostle Paul never met the physical Jesus.
The Apostle Paul is often cited as a key witness to the resurrection, but here’s the thing: Paul never actually met the physical Jesus. His encounter with the risen Christ was a spiritual vision, not a physical one. So, his testimony is not exactly airtight evidence for a bodily resurrection.
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9. The Gospel writers had an agenda.
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Let’s face it, the Gospel writers were not objective journalists. They had a story to tell and a message to promote. They were writing to convince people that Jesus was the Messiah and the Son of God. So, it’s possible that they may have embellished or even fabricated certain details to make their case more compelling.
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10. The resurrection story is just too far-fetched for some people.
For some skeptical Christians, the idea of a man rising from the dead after three days is just too much to swallow. It’s a fantastic claim that defies everything we know about biology and physics. Some people simply can’t bring themselves to believe in something so miraculous, no matter how much they may want to.
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11. The resurrection isn’t essential to the Christian message.
Some Christians argue that the physical resurrection of Jesus is not actually essential to the core message of Christianity. They believe that the teachings of Jesus about love, forgiveness, and social justice are what really matter, not whether or not he actually rose from the dead.
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12. The resurrection story has been used to justify violence and oppression.
Unfortunately, the resurrection story has sometimes been used as a tool of violence and oppression. Some Christians have used it to justify crusades, inquisitions, and other atrocities in the name of a triumphant Christ. This has led some skeptical Christians to question whether the story is really worth defending.
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13. Science has made it harder to believe in miracles.
In our modern age of science and reason, it’s become harder for some people to believe in miracles like the resurrection. We know more about the natural world than ever before, and we’ve seen how many seemingly miraculous events can be explained by science. For some skeptical Christians, the resurrection just doesn’t fit with their scientific worldview.
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14. Doubt is a normal part of faith.
Finally, it’s important to remember that doubt is a normal and even healthy part of faith. Questioning the resurrection story doesn’t necessarily mean you’re a bad Christian or that you don’t believe in God. It just means that you’re grappling with some tough questions and trying to make sense of a complex and mysterious event.
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