I think there was probably an actual person whom the stories are based on, or possibly multiple people and myths (like it says in the Zeitgeist documentary). My friend who's a Bible expert says he thinks there's a lot of quotes by 'Jesus' in the Bible that he never really said, and I believe him. I honestly don't know whether the real Jesus performed any miraculous healings, magic, etc., though I'd like to think so. I certainly don't believe that Jesus wanted us to think that if we don't accept him into our hearts we'll go to hell for eternity. I don't think he died for our sins either, that was Paul's invention. My Bible-expert friend thinks Paul was probably a closeted homosexual who was trying desperately to grapple with the fact that homosexuality was considered a sin..