How far back does the earliest narrative of a great commission and ascension go? Which account--Mark's, Matthew's, or Acts'--is likely the earliest? Is any of this in anyway likely traceable to any historical figure? Is Paul responsible for turning Jesus into more of an historical, rather than mythical, figure? Why are Christians not seeing Zoroastrianism as a sort of ancestor to their tradition, similarly to the way the Muslims look at Christianity? How did the concepts of Zoroastrianism catch on so well in the Jewish world, and why? How and why did the mythos surrounding Jesus appeal to so many non-Jewish people to the point of becoming the official religion of the Roman empire? Do you think that Christianity would've spread as massively as it did without the institutionalization of Christianity by the Roman Empire?