A sober look at how the New Testament was copied, debated, and recognized — engaging both skeptical (Ehrman) and confident (Bauckham) scholarship.
Section 01Scholarly Synthesis
Copying and Variants
Thousands of manuscripts contain many variants — mostly trivial. Textual criticism reconstructs early readings with confidence. We weigh Ehrman's caution against the broader consensus on textual stability.
Section 02Scholarly Synthesis
Eyewitness Testimony?
Bauckham argues the Gospels stay close to named eyewitnesses. This is contested; we present it as one strong position within a live debate, not as settled fact.
Section 03Historical Analysis
Recognizing the Canon
The canon emerged through use and confirmation over centuries, listed in full by Athanasius in 367 CE — neither invented at one council nor dropped from heaven.
Sources cited