RexRed wrote:edgarblythe wrote:I don't believe he existed. The persona created of him lives inside many of us for whatever reason. Although Christians claim to worship him, most of them actually follow the precepts of the Old Testament.
Edgar do you not think that there would be at least one person during the first century that would have debunked the Jesus "story" before all of Asia was infected by Christianity and believed in the space of two years? Even Josephus mentions Jesus... It is incomprehensible that there would not have been someone try to rise up and lead the Jews at the most opportune of times as the first century...
Have you ever considered that maybe Jesus was a real person who did do as the Bible says?
There were plenty of people who debunked "the Jesus story" in the first century. In fact, there wasn't a singular "Jesus story" in the first century... in fact there were many Jesus stories that were quite different... in fact many Christians in the first century didn't believe that Jesus was flesh (in fact in his letters, the apostle Paul takes time to refute these beliefs.
The modern Bible was pulled together in the fourth century. The people who did this chose which parts they liked and then threw out most of what contradicted... although it is clear that the gospel of John is from a slightly different text (with a slightly different doctrine).
Josephus proves that there were people who followed Jesus in the first century. He doesn't prove that Jesus was a real person, or which version of the Jesus story these followers followed. He certainly doesn't justify the modern Bibles version of happenings.
The Bible can be accepted on faith. There is nothing that proves the Bible... and using the Bible to prove the Bible is a logical fallacy.
I know all the arguments... I was an evangelical Christian and was training for the ministry and know the Bible, and todays modern interpretation well.
I also know, from experience, that when you look objectively at the Bible, there is no proof that it is right (other than what your faith tells you).
I won't go any futher than that Frank.
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