Tag: Jesus
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Surprise, surprise! Adam and Eve never existed!
Surprise, surprise, Adam and Eve never existed! Who says so? No less than the leader of the world’s 1.1 billion Roman Catholics, ‘G-d’s representative on Earth’ – the Pope. Scholars have known for over 200 years that most of the Bible stories are myths, that even the accounts of historical events were written hundreds of…
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The early Christians had no knowledge of Yeshua’s ‘miraculous’ conception and birth
The early Christian community seems to have had no knowledge of the Christmas stories. Even the two gospel authors who mention them make no reference to them after the first two chapters. Yeshua’s birth is not referred to in either ‘Matthew’ or ‘Luke’s’ accounts of his adult ministry, trial, crucifixion or resurrection. Most reputable scholars…
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Nativity scenes should not show cows, donkeys or angels because they aren’t mentioned in the Bible!
Wandering through Bournemouth Square, I came across a model of the traditional nativity scene set in a glass and timber presentation case close to the annual Christmas market. Of course most people are familiar with stable scene, the ‘holy family’ surrounded by farm animals, shepherds, angels and the three wise men bearing gifts of gold,…
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Merry Christmas Everybody
It’s not unusual for religious people to believe that their prophet or guru came into the world in a miraculous way, and Christians are no exception. In Yeshua’s case, tradition has it that he was born in Bethlehem, but this was an invention of the authors of Matthew and Luke’s gospels, keen to tie him…
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Explain this to a 6 year-old!
Professor Albert Einstein said that if you can’t explain something to a six year-old, you don’t understand it yourself. So here are six things you can ask your Christian friends and colleagues: How does the execution of a Jewish prophet and healer nearly two thousand years ago save me or you from the consequences of…
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The world is run by a family of giant lizards
As a child, my Methodist parents paid lip service to respecting others’ beliefs as long as they didn’t conflict with their own. I was to respect other people’s tastes, political opinions and allegiances, but they also warned me to be suspicious of the Catholic family living next door, the Spiritualists across the road, men with…
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The First Gospel
‘Mark’ was the first of the four official gospels to be written, around 70 CE. Only the seven authentic letters of Paul and the anonymous letter to the Hebrews were written before this, which means ninety percent plus of the New Testament was written after. Nobody knows who wrote it, but it is clear the…
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Truth and Trinity
Most Christian denominations teach that the essence of G_d exists in three forms, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The Father is as described in the Hebrew Scriptures – creator, omnipotent power, friend and judge; the Son, Yeshua, was sent to Earth in human form to redeem humanity; and the Holy Spirit is the means…
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We know next to nothing about Yeshua
Most religions can be traced back to a wise, knowledgeable and persuasive teacher, usually with great charisma, who claims to have answers to the deeper questions. Often they claim that G-d spoke directly to them. Yeshua certainly held this appeal for his close followers and continues to do so for millions around the world. But…
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‘Jesus’ wasn’t called ‘Jesus’
The first and most obvious historical fact about the main character of the New Testament gospels is that he wasn’t called ‘Jesus’. To some, this is an obvious point, to others it comes as a surprise; some acknowledge it but think it doesn’t matter. But it does, because it illustrates the way in which the…