Editing G. A. Wells (section)

==Reception==
Co-author [[R. Joseph Hoffmann]] has called Wells "the most articulate contemporary defender of the non-historicity thesis."<ref>[[R. Joseph Hoffmann]]'s foreword in "The Jesus Legend," xii</ref> Wells' claim of a mythical Jesus has received support from [[Earl Doherty]], [[Robert M. Price]] and others.<ref name="price">{{cite journal |url=http://www.secularhumanism.org/index.php?section=library&page=price_20_1 |title=Of Myth and Men A closer look at the originators of the major religions-what did they really say and do? |journal=[[Free Inquiry]] |date=Winter 1999–2000 |first=Robert |last=Price |volume=20 |issue=1 |access-date=2007-11-17 |archive-date=8 December 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121208035523/http://www.secularhumanism.org/index.php?section=library&page=price_20_1 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |url=http://newhumanist.org.uk/901 |title=No god in the details |magazine=[[The New Humanist]] |volume=120 |issue=4 |date=July–August 2005 |first=Brain |last=Flemming |access-date =2007-11-17}}</ref> The classical historian R. E. Witt, reviewing ''The Jesus of the Early Christians'' in the ''Journal of Hellenic Studies'', offered some criticisms but concluded that "Hellenists should welcome the appearance of this challenging book."<ref>R. E. Witt, "Reviewed Work: 'The Jesus of the Early Christians' by G. A. Wells" The Journal of Hellenic Studies, Vol. 92 (1972), pp. 223-225.</ref>

However, Wells' conclusions have been criticized by biblical scholars and [[Ecclesiology|ecclesiastical]] historians such as [[William Hugh Clifford Frend|W. H. C. Frend]] and [[Robert E. Van Voorst]].<ref>{{cite journal |first=W. H. C. |last=Frend |title=Review of 'The Jesus of the Early Christians.' by G. A. Wells |journal=The English Historical Review |volume=87 |issue=343 |date=April 1972 |pages=345–348 |doi=10.1093/ehr/LXXXVII.CCCXLIII.345 |quote=Though Professor Wells has written a shrewd, challenging and entertaining book, his case fails.}}</ref><ref name="Van Voorst 2000">{{cite book |first=Robert E. |last=Van Voorst |author-link=Robert E. Van Voorst |title=Jesus Outside the New Testament: An Introduction to the Ancient Evidence |publisher=Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing |year=2000 |isbn=0-8028-4368-9 }}</ref> Voorst further critiques Wells work as "[Wells] advanced the non-historicity hypothesis, not for objective reasons, but for highly tendentious, anti-religious purposes."<ref name="Van Voorst 2000"/> Historian David Aikman from [[Patrick Henry College]] criticizes Wells' lack of expertise and objectivity: "Wells is not a New Testament specialist at all but a professor of German and a former chairman of the Rationalist Press Association. He has written several books rejecting the historicity of Jesus, a position almost no New Testament scholar endorses, even those who are radically opposed to Christianity."<ref>David Aikman, The Delusion of Disbelief (Nashville: Tyndale House Publishers, 2008), 201.</ref> Wells featured in the controversial Channel 4 television series about the historicity of Jesus, ''Jesus: The Evidence'' (LWT: 1984).

After reviewing criticisms from several authors, atheist philosopher [[Michael Martin (philosopher)|Michael Martin]] said that although "Wells's thesis is controversial and not widely accepted," his "argument against the historicity of Jesus is sound".<ref>{{cite book |first=Michael |last=Martin |author-link=Michael Martin (philosopher) |title=The Case Against Christianity |url=https://archive.org/details/caseagainstchris00mich |url-access=registration |publisher=Temple University Press |location=Philadelphia |year=1991 |isbn=0-87722-767-5 |page=[https://archive.org/details/caseagainstchris00mich/page/67 67]}}</ref>

[[Bart Ehrman]], in his ''[[Did Jesus Exist? (Ehrman)]]'' (2012) stated: "The best-known mythicist of modern times — at least among the NT scholars who know of any mythicists at all — is George A. Wells...He has written many books and articles advocating a mythicist position, none more incisive than his 1975 book, ''[[Did Jesus Exist? (Wells)|Did Jesus Exist?]]''. Wells is certainly one who does the hard legwork to make his case: Although an outsider to NT studies, he speaks the lingo of the field and has read deeply in its scholarship. Although most NT scholars will not (or do not) consider his work either convincing or particularly well argued." (p.&nbsp;19).  Wells provided an answer to these points in an article in ''[[Free Inquiry]]''.<ref>G.A. Wells, "Ehrman on the Historicity of Jesus and Early Christian Thinking", ''Free Inquiry'', Volume 32, Number 4, June–July 2012, p. 58-62.[https://web.archive.org/web/20160304053543/http://www.radikalkritik.de/Wells_Ehrman.htm excerpts]</ref>