After the Crucifixion, was Jesus Resurrected or Rescued? Licona vs. Ally

This episode is a 2016 debate held at the University of Tennessee – Chattanooga between Dr. Michael Licona and Dr. Shabir Ally, president of the Islamic Information and Dawah Centre International in Toronto, Canada. Dr. Licona presents a case for Jesus’ death by crucifixion and his resurrection, contending that there exists substantial evidence for this but that Islam offers none to the contrary. Dr. Ally argues that Jesus was taken off the cross before he died, placed in the tomb, and then assumed into heaven before he died. Ally bases this on his belief that the gospel’s resurrection narratives show evolution and legendary development, such that the later the gospel was written, the stronger its claims that Jesus died became. He also asserts that the Q source document used by Matthew and Luke and the pre-Markan source used by Mark show that some in the early Christian community believed that Jesus was taken straight into heaven, alive, from the tomb, much as Enoch was.