Did Jesus really rise from the dead?

We can't repeat the resurrection in a laboratory. But we can investigate it as a claim about history.

Jesus' crucifixion is one of the strongest historical facts about his life. Very early after his death, his followers were proclaiming that he had risen and that they had seen him alive. Paul preserves an early Christian tradition naming people and groups who believed Jesus appeared to them, and Paul himself changed from an opponent of the Christian movement into one of its leaders.

Christians also point to the empty tomb, although historians debate some of the evidence surrounding it.

None of this automatically proves that Jesus rose.

Alternative explanations—legend, hallucination, deception, or a moved body—need to be considered seriously.

The Christian argument is that the resurrection explains the evidence better than its rivals do.

And if Jesus really rose, Christianity changes from an interesting religion into a claim that demands an answer.