RJS

So, assume you are the most free of the freethinkers, and assume you are living at the time of Christ. Also, assume that all of the events outlined in the Gospels (of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John found in the NIV version of the bible) happen and you are a witness to all or most of them.

How do you react?

(edited in an effort to get an answer)

[ May 24, 2002: Message edited by: RJS ]</p>

Darwin's Finch

Gospel or Gospels? If Gospels, just the canonical ones or all of them?

DarkBronzePlant

As described in the New English Translation? New Revised Standard? King James Version? Hebrew Names Version of the World English Bible?

Darwin's Finch

First things first. Do I get to inspect Mary's hymen during her pregnancy?

RJS

No

MrDarwin

Little discrepancies and contradictions aside (and assuming the NIV is correctly translated from the original languages in all parts), if I were to observe first-hand the events and they happened exactly as described in the gospels, I'd probably believe that supernatural events had indeed occurred, that Jesus could perform miracles and that Jesus had risen from the dead. And assuming I were basically the same skeptical person I am now, it's quite possible that I would believe that Jesus was a very good magician.

Would I believe Jesus was God? Hard to say. Not even the early Christians could agree on that.

So I guess my answer is that the question is very difficult to answer. And it does beg the question why all the people who were supposedly there, and supposedly did observe these events, did not immediately come to the same conclusions.

Jayhawker Soule

Very, very confused ...

So much so, that I'd probably write it all down. [After explaining how Jesus was born of a woman impregnated by an angel, and not by Joseph, son of either Jacob or Heli, around the time of the unheralded infanticide,] I would join Mark et. al. in totally ignoring the virgin birth, skip the horsemanship riding into Jerusalem, and jump right to the empty tomb, where

• they saw a young man sitting on the right side, clothed in a long white garment; and they were affrighted
• it came to pass, as they were much perplexed thereabout, behold, two men stood by them in shining garments
• Mary stood without at the sepulchre weeping: and as she wept, she stooped down, and looked into the sepulchre, And seeth two angels in white sitting, the one at the head, and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain.
• a partridge (oops, I got carried away, sorry ...)

Of course, I would probably hold off chatting about the Trinity stuff until the offical vote made it state law.

( Oh, by the way, do I get to use the Markan Appendix or not? )

free12thinker

I react in outrage. This question is similar to the question, "How do you react if you meet God today and he tells you that everything you've read is true?"

I would be beside myself in anger, knowing that everything I believe in (tolerance, humanity ..) was being pushed aside by our creator. I would marvel at his arrogant approach in 'handling' those who have defied in some way, and especially in handling those who have not defied him, but were simply part of the crowd. Christ teaches a lot of overly harsh lessens, as noted in the bible, and if I knew it to be true (as would be the case if I were living at that time and knew the gospels to be true), I would be outraged and saddened.

RJS

thanks to McDarwin and Free12thinker for honest answers. Gives me something to think about at lunch.

Hans

This is an excellent question. One that was covered well in this <a href="http://iidb.org/ubb/ultimatebb.php?ubb=get_topic&f=50&t=000199" target="_blank">topic.</a>

Even if you assume Jesus existed and did and said all the things he is reported to have done and said there is still no way to determine his true nature. The world of the supernatural is completely beyond our experience. How are we to judge whether or not what he said was true? How are we to judge whether what he claimed was a sacrifice was really any kind of sacrifice at all?

Specifically, how are we to determine whether he was the son of a god or a malicious magical elf pretending to be the son of a god?

Why is it that one should feel as though the natural thing to do is to offer up our complete and unquestioning allegiance and submission if some guy shows up performing miracles and claiming to be the son of an omnipotent god? Would you just bow ignorantly to a guy who walked on water? Would you not want to know if the things of what he speaks are true?