In the political spectrum, there are folk on the left and the right (and in the middle of course). Then there is the LUNATIC fringe – SO FAR to the left or SO FAR to the right that they are just waaaay ouuuutttt theerrrre in wacko land.

When it comes to experts in the fields of textual criticism, there are liberals on the left and conservatives on the right, and then there is the LUNATIC fringe.

On the right, the lunatic fringe is probably identified by the King James Only advocates who believe God re-inspired the text of the 1611 King James Version of the Bible in English. It is hard, if not impossible to reason with such people, and the miltancy and venom with which they express their misguided views has wrought havoc in local Churches both here in the USA and elsewhere.

The lunatic fringe on the left are the Jesus Seminar people, who are often portrayed as “experts” by the media, while those who know something of the field are stunned that these people are even listened to.

Dr. R. C. Sproul commented, “In my opinion, from an academic since, I believe the Jesus Seminar is a lunatic fringe of scholarship.”

Dr. James White says, “The Jesus Seminar is an organization of ultra left, I’m not talking about liberal scholarship, they are outside the pale of liberal scholarship. They are so far out there that you can’t even get a radar fix on them… they’ve started with their conclusions, and they’re now working on establishing what they started with their conclusions. It’s the exact opposite of meaningful scholarship….”

For more on the Jesus Seminar see this article here by Timothy D. Oliver.