03-24-2002, 06:24 PM
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#53
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Veteran Member
Join Date: Jan 2001
Location: India
Posts: 6,977
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Quote:
Originally posted by gixxer750:
Hi All,
I am teaching a Sunday School class on Christian Apologetics to the Senior Youth in my church, and we are currently looking at the person of Jesus, specifically his resurrection. I am curious to know what "free-thinkers" (nice term, by-the-way) think about Jesus.
Even if this is addressed to freethinkers, I hope you want to know how christian preaching looks through non-western eyes. Your problem is that you are not looking beyond the Christian world.
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Let me explain a little. Jesus of Nazareth was the single most influential man ever to walk the earth. He has split history into two parts, he has dominated the thoughts of countless people in the last 2000 years, and he continues today to influence more lives than any other single human being (even yours, if you are reading this!)
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christ was not the most influential man. Look at Buddha. Most Asians are Buddhists. Traditionally Asia had always been more populous than Europe, and Buddha got several centuries headstart over Christ.
Again Christ split history into two parts only in Christian view. Most of the world remained blissfully unaware that he existed at all. Even the early Christian community in India remained confined to only a small part and they became so hinduanized that RC church persecuted them for being heretics. The B.C/A.D calender used all over the world is due to economic and technological superiority of Western countires which just happened to be Christian. But when it comes to things like astrology or New Year's celebrations, it is traditional calenders that are used.
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Two things more than anything else about this man must be considered: First is his claim to be the Son of God. If it was not true, then no one has ever made a more preposterous, lunatic statement before.
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Krishna who mythical or not, existed at least a 1000 years before Christ declared he was God. Not any god, but THE God, creator and desroyer and the whole works, containing the entire universe within himself. This is a far more lunatic claim
than merely being god's son.
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Second is the fact of the empty tomb on the third day after his crucifixion. Christianity would never have spread past Jesus' death if his body could have been produced by the Jewish/Roman authorities.
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According to 'eyewitness' tesitmony of disciples, the 15th century Bengali saint Caitanya merged into the statue of Jagganath in Puri. They saw his soul emerge from his body and go into the statue. Since this is comparatively recent, the evidence is 'fresher'!
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So what is it? Was the whole story about Jesus a myth, "made up by the church to control people"? Was he a liar, or a lunatic? Was he a good man that was made into something else by the church? Or was he truly who he said he was? I would like very much to know what your thoughts are on Jesus.
Thanks!
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Neither freethinkers, nor people of other religions find Jesus unique.
Compare Christianity with other religions and you will see why many became freethinkers.
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