February 6, 2007 7:30 PM
Long before he became a renowned religious and biblical scholar, when he was just a sophomore in high school, Bart Ehrman was born-again. He started attending an evangelical Bible school, accepted their message of salvation and immersed himself in Scripture. Ehrman was taught that the Bible was the inerrant word of God. But when he first examined Greek manuscripts himself, he started a journey that has consumed him ever since.
What Ehrman discovered were errors, well-known but often ignored mistakes, many of which radically change the meaning of our widely held beliefs. For almost 1,500 years, the New Testament manuscripts were hand-copied by scribes. Their alterationssome ancient typos, others intentional changeshave had lasting effects on our understanding of Jesus, the Trinity and the divine origins of the Bible.
In this lecture, Ehrman talked of where and why these changes were made, which have survived to become cherished biblical stories, and which simply were edited out. He recounted how his own personal study led him to abandon his once ultraconservative views for a more expansive view of the Bible.
About Bart Ehrman
Bart D. Ehrman chairs the department of religious studies at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. A leading authority on the early Church and the life of Jesus, he has appeared on top media outlets including NBC, CNN and The History Channel. He is author of 20 books including The Lost Gospel of Judas Iscariot.
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