Building on Strauss and Bruno Bauer, the German philosopher Drews argues that the figure of Jesus grew out of a pre-Christian saviour cult, drawing on Persian messianic belief, Philo’s idea of a mediator and the dying gods of the ancient world. The book caused a public storm in Germany; nearly all historians, then and now, reject its thesis.
A key document in the history of the Christ myth theory, for readers curious about how the historical Jesus was debated a century ago. Download the free EPUB.