The Minimal Facts Approach

A historical methodology popularized by Gary Habermas and Michael Licona that builds the case for the resurrection using only facts that are accepted by virtually all critical scholars; including skeptical, non-religious historians. These facts are “minimal” because they are the floor, not the ceiling. They include: (1) Jesus died by crucifixion under Pontius Pilate, (2) His disciples sincerely believed He appeared to them alive after His death, (3) Paul (a former persecutor) was suddenly converted based on what he believed was an appearance of the risen Jesus, (4) James (Jesus’ skeptical brother) was similarly converted, and (5) the empty tomb. The power of the approach is that it uses the opposition’s own data: even scholars who reject the resurrection grant these facts. The question becomes: what hypothesis best explains all five together? The minimal facts approach does not require biblical inerrancy or even high confidence in the Gospels; it operates on historical criteria that secular historians themselves use.