Raised on the Third Day: Defending the Historicity of the Resurrection of Jesus ed. by W. David Beck and Michael R. Licona

Abstract

Reviewed by: Raised on the Third Day: Defending the Historicity of the Resurrection of Jesus ed. by W. David Beck and Michael R. Licona Glenn B. Siniscalchi w. david beck and michael r. licona (eds.), Raised on the Third Day: Defending the Historicity of the Resurrection of Jesus (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2020). Pp. xvi + 343. $26.99. This book is collection of essays that concentrate on philosophical and theological themes that celebrate and enhance the work of the evangelical scholar Gary R. Habermas. Although the book is titled Raised on the Third Day: Defending the Historicity of the Resurrection of Jesus, there are several essays in the volume that have very little to do with the subject. At any rate, the book does an excellent job highlighting some of the newer challenges related to the historical approach to the resurrection. More importantly, it brings the reader up-to-date with some excellent responses in defense of the probability that Jesus was raised bodily from the dead. Although most of the contributors are evangelical scholars, the book should be consulted by biblical scholars and fundamental theologians who are dedicated to the study of Christian origins, especially as it relates to the plausibility of early Christian belief in the Resurrection. Following the introduction by the editors, the collection offers eighteen contributions: "On Habermas's Minimal Facts Argument," by Robert B. Stewart; "The Soul and Near-Death Experiences: A Case for Substance Dualism," by J. P. Moreland; "The Image on the Shroud: A Best Explanations Approach," by Mark W. Foreman; "The Uniqueness of Christianity [End Page 534] in a World of Religions," by Craig J. Hazen; "John Rawls's Political Liberalism and the Problem of Taking Rites Seriously: From Abortion to Same-Sex Wedding Cakes," by Francis J. Beckwith; "On the Organic Connection between Jesus' Atoning Death and Resurrection," by William Lane Craig; "The Moral Argument and the Minimal Facts," by David Baggett; "The Logical Structure of Moral Arguments," by Beck; "The Testimony of Josephus and the Burial of Jesus," by Craig A. Evans; "Near-Death Experiences and Christian Theology," by Dale C. Allison Jr.; "The Deaths of the Apostles and Belief in Jesus' Resurrection," by Sean McDowell; "The History and Current State of Modern Shroud Research," by Barrie M. Schwortz; "Racing toward the Tomb: Purity and Sacrifice in the Fourth Gospel," by Beth M. Sheppard; "A Note on Women as Witnesses and the Empty Tomb Resurrection Accounts," by Darrell L. Bock; "Historical Epistemology and Divine Action," by Benjamin C. F. Shaw; "The Primacy of Paul in Discussions on Jesus' Resurrection," by Licona; "What Aspiring (and Veteran) Apologists May Learn from Gary Habermas," by Alex McFarland; and "What Everyone Should Learn from Gary Habermas," by Frank Turek. One of Habermas's contributions to Christian origins is his long-standing work that catalogues different scholarly viewpoints on the subject of the resurrection of Jesus. Habermas has surveyed the various positions in order to determine what the consensus is on selected aspects of the field. Utilizing the current consensus, Habermas is well known as the originator of the "minimal facts case." In this approach, historical arguments are marshaled in support of early events surrounding the emergence of Easter faith (e.g., the conversion of St. Paul, the empty tomb, and the postmortem appearances of Jesus), that allow one to report confidently where the majority of scholars—regardless of their religious affiliation or approach—stand with respect to the purported facts. In the words of Stewart: "The minimal facts method is thus a means of contextualization. In particular, in an academic guild in which skepticism is the default mode, Christian scholars are working in an environment where many, if not the majority, are predisposed to dismiss all but the most uncontroversial of claims. In this context, arguing from minimal facts is often how one must begin" (p. 13). The book covers a great deal of terrain, including two chapters on the Shroud of Turin (Foreman; Schwortz), and another pair on near-death experiences (Moreland; Allison). These are hotly debated topics that Habermas has previously dealt with in his published work. Of the remaining essays, I benefited greatly from McDowell's nuanced argument on the apostles...