stuart shepherd

Which came first...the chicken or the egg?
Or in this case....which came first the Jesus story...or the story of Yeshu Ben Stada and his mom, Mary Magdalene?

I suspect that the Gospels and the Talmud originated around the same time.

Do you have conclusive evidence that the Jesus story predates the Yeshu Ben Stada story?
Or do you have conclusive evidence that Yeshu predates Jesus?

It seems to me that the Gospel writers marginalized, the character Mary, the Mother of Jesus and enlarged the character of Mary Magdalene, because they knew that they had used the Yeshu Ben Stada story as the basis of their fictional Jesus story.
It seems evident that the Gospel writers knew, and they were hiding it from their readers.

Stuart Shepherd

stuart shepherd

Have any of you read PFC's latest post on the resurrection?

I thought it was disappointing. PFC unsuccessfully, in my opinion, tried to refute the comments that Sean McHugh made in this opening statement.

But PFC did not offer any evidence for the Historicity of the Resurrection.

Even if PFC could refute what Sean wrote.....so what? Where is the evidence?...where is the proof that Jesus rose from the dead? PFC doesn't prove anything. He just asserts that there was an empty tomb, and Jesus' followers said they saw him post mortem. Which proves zilch, nada, nothing.

When my Grandfather died recently, on his deathbed he promised the family that he would return from the grave and make us all rich. I hope he returns, I could use the money. The point is that I doubt if anyone can prove that my grandfather won't return. But on the other hand, if I want to convince you of the validity my grandfather's promise, I will need to provide the proof.
Same thing for PFC....PfC needs to provide proof of the resurrection. Empty assertions are meaningless.

Stuart Shepherd

stuart shepherd

Some of you may have noted the passing recently, of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi.
He was the Spiritual Advisor of the Beatles, and he introduced "Yogic Flying."

He claimed to be able to sit in the lotus position and levitate, raise up off the ground through the power of meditation. Literally thousands of his followers claimed to have seen the Mararishi levitate. I remember seeing pictures of the Mararishi levitating in magazines.

Of course critics said the pictures were just pictures of "cross legged hopping."

The point is that nobody in their right mind believes in the Mararishi's miracle of levitation, despite the testimony of thousands of witnesses and pictures in a magazine. Real proof is required.

Similiarly, real proof is required for us to believe that Jesus rose from the dead. Vague unsubstantiated references to an empty tomb, and more than 500 anonymous witnesses claimed by a felony murderer, Paul, and a mentally unstable woman with seven devils, Mary Magdalene, in a book full of fairy tales, of talking snakes, talking donkeys, floating axe heads, walking on water, being swallowed by a big fish and not dying, the parting of the sea of reeds, Noah's Ark etc is just not proof......it is fantasy.

Stuart Shepherd

Steven Carr

I shall remember that example.

FireBrandon

Yeah that is a good analogy. Thanks for sharing that Stuart! Sometimes it may seem like researching various subjects and then posting them on a forum is a waste of time, but your posts have been massively helpful to me

FireBrandon

stuart shepherd

Thanks for the compliment.
I'm happy to be helpful.

Stuart Shepherd

stuart shepherd

Recipe for a Christian Miracle

Several years ago, when I was a Christian, I attended a Bible Study at the home of one of the brothers of my church. It was late afternoon, and we were sitting in a circle in the living room. From my seat, I could see down a hallway from off the living room where there were bedroom doors in this hallway.

As the sun was going down I noticed that the sun was shinning from a bedroom window on to the wall in the hallway. As a truck or large vehicle rode by the house it would block the sun and the shadow would move across the wall of the hallway.

As I was watching a shadow move down the hallway, the woman sitting next to me jumped up and screamed, “”I just saw an Angel in the hallway””
Another woman jumped up “” I saw it also””

Everyone at the Bible Study jumped up and crowded into the hallway searching for the Angel.

By the time everyone was back in their seats, the sun was down, and it would have been useless to try and explain what had happened. They were all convinced that an Angel had visited our Bible Study.

By Sunday Service, it was official, the Pastor announced “”An Angel has visited our Bible Study. Praise God!””

Recipe for a Christian Miracle????
Just mix some wishful thinking with religious fervor , stir in a pinch of delusion, simmer, and voila you have a miracle. Maybe even a resurrection?

Stuart Shepherd

Agenda07

Surely Craig must see the irony of citing Martin Luther to defend his claim that faith is rational when Luther himself famously denounced reason as 'a damn whore'?

stuart shepherd

More Resurrection Fabrication

Let me show you something else that also smells fishy about the resurrection tale.

After the supposed resurrection of Jesus, the soldiers guarding the tomb come back to the city and tell the chief priests what had happened and that the tomb was empty.
The elders bribe the guards and tell them to say ""His disciples came by night, and stole him away while we slept.""
Now isn't this the dumbest most ignorant statement that you have ever heard? If the guards were SLEEPING, how could they possibly know that Jesus' followers had removed Jesus' body?
When a person is sleeping they are unconscious and would have no idea what was happening around them. If they did, they would have woke up and stopped Jesus' followers from removing the body.

I just can't believe that the chief priests and elders could have possibly thought that any reasonable person would have believed the story...."" His disciples came by night, and stole him away while we slept.""

Whatever anyone says about Jews, you always have to admit that they are very smart people. My Doctor, my Dentist, my Lawyer, my Accountant, and my Boss are all Jews. They are smart people. It is impossible that the smart Jews would have said to the guards....Say that ""His disciples came by night, and stole him away while we slept.""

The gospel writer, Matthew, wants us to believe that a smart bunch of Jews, chief priests, and elders, concocted such a dumb explanation for the empty tomb.
This whole passage is so dumb it stinks of fabrication.

stuart shepherd

Steven Carr

'While the women were on their way, some of the guards went into the city and reported to the chief priests everything that had happened.'

The guards told the chief priests that an angel had come down and that his clothes were as white as snow and announced that Jesus had been resurrected?

And the chief priests believed this story, and did not have the soldiers arrested?