Clivedurdle

Let me have another go at what I am saying.

Xianity is about resurrection, new life, rebirth. Xians were and are continually tying together the universe and god and jesus at the centre. They placed Jesus in the centre of the universe physically at Jerusalem but were vague about the timing.

Spring was an obvious time for new beginnings, and as their god is the creator he also created the seasons and the stars. There were and are huge arguments about the dating of Easter. Why?

They were very aware of the solar, lunar and sidereal calendars and how they did not match - Julius Caesar may have been assassinated for fiddling with time.

Then Dennis the Menace comes along and makes a schoolboy error - thinks his calculations fit reality. And the result is a worldwide belief system in a real Jesus at the centre of the universe geographically and temporarily.

But it is completely backwards!

My comments about mm are to note maybe all this stuff is after the fact and has ben written back - another example of rewriting history. And asking serious questions about who thought what and when may have fascinating ramifications.

Dennis the Menace may be the actual creator of the historical Jesus.

Toto

Before Dennis tried to calculate the exact birth year of Jesus, earlier Christians had located his death at 40 years before the fall of the Temple, and had related his birth to either Herod or the census of Quirinius. So it seems unlikely that Dennis invented the historical Jesus. He was a latecomer to the historicizing mission.

There are no more huge arguments over the dating of Easter. At one point, there were huge arguments over whether the Sabbath is Saturday or Sunday, and these persist.

Or that his calculations defined a higher reality?

Minimalist

How can a fictional event have an actual date?

Toto

The same way Scarlet O'Hara can be dated.

"Actual" might not be the right word.

Clivedurdle

Warning Dr Robertson - spiritual number!

Clivedurdle

Would the example of Michelangelo carving David out of a huge lump of marble help?

At what point did David appear? I think Dennis the Menace finished the carving off - and there was not much around before 300, and what there was may not have become David!

mountainman

One possibility is by changing the names of people - "rebadging" history. It takes alot of power to do this and will cause major controversies, but it can and has been done. Censorship ....

For example perhaps the memory of Apollonius of Tyana as an historical figure born in the early 1st century was split into two fictitious 1st century figures Jesus and Paul.

mountainman

When "Bishop/Pope Damasius" assumed the imperial role of "Pontifex Maximus" in the epoch following the death of Julian, David was canonised.

Denice the Menace has to stand in line behind the 4th century C14 dates on gThomas and gJudas. But I am a great fan of Douglas Adams - the "Parable of the Puddle" was agreat insight. I think that by the time of Denis the people at the top of the regime were always interested to explore new celebrations to their own power. They had the power by then to change the calendar. So they did.

Minimalist

Ah! I see.

renassault

525 does not equal 532 and where it says it's not known how he got the number, it means they don't know what chronologies he used. The calculations had been done long before him: Luke 3:1,23, etc. - even if one assumes Luke was "invented by Constantine" it still predates the 6th century by 200 years.