Did Nazareth Even Exist in the Days of Jesus? The Weird Claims of Rene Salm
Some people who claim that Jesus did not even exist argue that there never was a town of Nazareth. So hey, how could he be from there? It didn't exist and he didn't either. It's all a myth. Really. They base this claim on a book written by a fellow named Rene Salm. I was asked about Salm's book a couple of weeks ago, and remembered I had posted on the issue, and Salm's book, in 2012 (!). Here's the (current) question and my (previous) answer. QUESTION: Rene Salm’s 2008 book “The Myth of Nazareth: The Invented Town of Jesus (Scholar’s Edition)” makes an archaeological argument that Nazareth was not settled until after the First Jewish War, c. 70CE. It goes into great detail and appears to be quite scholarly, but I don’t know what to make of it. Bart, are you aware of this book or its author? ANSWER When I dealt with Salm's book in 2012, it was because he presented a paper at the Society of Biblical Literature meeting and [...]