"How Jesus Became God" Prof. Bart D. Ehrman (24 Lectures / 30 Minutes Per Lecture / 4x DVD - The Great Courses)
Tracing the historic evolution of Jesus from a Jewish apocalyptic prophet to the second member of the Trinity, this 24-lecture series examines the intellectual and theological shifts that occurred over the first four centuries of the Common Era. Professor Bart D. Ehrman navigates the critical transition from the "low christologies" of the earliest Palestinian followers—who viewed Jesus as a human messiah exalted by God—to the "high christologies" that eventually declared him a pre-existent divine being. By dissecting the diverse views found within the New Testament and other early Christian writings, the course illustrates how cultural, linguistic, and philosophical pressures forced a radical reimagining of Jesus's nature in relation to the God of Israel.
 
The narrative arc of the survey culminates in the fierce Christological debates of the third and fourth centuries, focusing on the political and ecclesiastical maneuvers that led to the Council of Nicaea. Ehrman explores how the Roman Empire's shift toward Christianity under Constantine transformed internal theological disputes into matters of state, resulting in the formalized creeds that would define orthodox faith for a millennium. By analyzing the "lost" perspectives of Gnostics, Arians, and other groups, the synopsis provides a sophisticated historical framework for understanding how a specific set of divine claims emerged as triumphant over a sea of competing interpretations.