Earl Doherty and some other mythicists try to argue that Paul thought that the story of Christ, whatever that story may have involved, was set in a mythical heavenly realm – typically, a realm viewed as having been “in the realm of flesh” and yet “above the firmament.”
Such claims apparently seem not merely plausible but persuasive to some – but certainly not to those who have actually read the New Testament extensively, rather than atomistically looking for prooftexts to support for a preconceived theory.
It is all well and good to mention those texts that refer to Christ being victorious over powers or crucified by the rulers of this age. But not in isolation from other evidence. Take for instance Ephesians 6:12, which refers to its author and readers also being involved in a struggle “not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”
So can someone please explain to me again why the events involving Jesus are supposed to have been thought of as occurring elsewhere than on earth, when a Christian author writing on earth to recipients on earth used the same language to refer to a conflict he believed they were currently involved in? If, as Earl Doherty claims, “Colossians 2:15 can hardly refer to any historical event on Calvary” then surely Ephesians 6:12 cannot have been written by or to people who believed they were historical human beings living on earth, right?
[I also happened across an extensive discussion of Doherty and mythicism by Bernard Muller, which I’ve only had a chance to glance at, but looks like it is worth exploring further.]
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