The Bible For Normal People [Bible] Episode 326: Chris Keith - How do Scholars Reconstruct the "Historical Jesus?"
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Apr 27, 2026 
Chris Keith, New Testament scholar who studies how historians reconstruct Jesus, joins to unpack methods for separating the first-century figure from later theological portrayals. They survey quests for the historical Jesus, the limits of the Gospels as straightforward history, and why imagination, genre, and humility matter in study. The conversation highlights why certainty is elusive and scholarship can deepen faith.
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Apply Methods Not Assumptions To Gospel Claims
- Use explicit methodological filters when assessing Gospel material rather than assuming face-value historicity.
- Chris Keith describes approaches like anti-supernatural presuppositions, Aramaic reconstruction, and the criteria of authenticity as common sieves scholars apply.
The 1950s Quest For An 'Authentic' Jesus
- Mid-20th-century scholars sought an 'authentic' Jesus free of Christian interpretation using form criticism and sieving methods.
- Bultmann and his students treated sayings' earliest forms as pathways to recover the person behind the traditions.
Jesus Seminar Was Media Savvy But Flawed
- The Jesus Seminar popularized historical-Jesus ideas through media savvy but produced uneven scholarship.
- Chris Keith praises their publicity skills while criticizing their reliance on 1950s methods and inconsistent academic quality.
