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RE: After I know this how could I leave the church?
August 13, 2014 at 8:56 am (This post was last modified: August 13, 2014 at 8:59 am by Ben Davis.)
(August 13, 2014 at 8:30 am)sophonian Wrote:
I know that you are going to laugh. I only hope an explanation for this. I would like to think that these facts were not true. I was more happy when i was not a christian.
Tertullian was a roman lawyer that becomecome a christian. He had access to roman documents and made some declarations about 1st century A.D like this:
Quote:Tiberius6 accordingly, in whose days the Christian name made its entry into the world, having himself received intelligence from Palestine of events which had clearly shown the truth of Christ's divinity, brought the matter before the senate, with his own decision in favour of Christ. The senate, because it had not given the approval itself, rejected his proposal. Caesar held to his opinion, threatening wrath against all accusers of the Christians. [3] Consult your histories; you will there find that Nero was the first who assailed with the imperial sword the Christian sect, making profess then especially at Rome.
The thing that dont let me go from christianity is the fact that he says that in roman documents it is registered that when Jesus died there was a big portent in the sky; so we are not talking about an story recorded only in the gospels.
Quote:He exhibited many notable signs, by which His death was distinguished from all others. At His own free-will, He with a word dismissed from Him His spirit, anticipating the executioner's work. In the same hour, too, the light of day was withdrawn, when the sun at the very time was in his meridian blaze. Those who were not aware that this had been predicted about Christ, no doubt thought it an eclipse. You yourselves have the account of the world-portent still in your archives.
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Ah yes, Tertullian. Commonly used 'historical proof' of the historicity of a divine Jesus. Unfortunately, it doesn't stand up to scrutiny. Firstly, Tertullian was a Christian author therefore a certain level of bias can't be ruled out. Secondly, he was writing ~150 years after the purported death of Jesus so his account can't be considered reliable. Thirdly, he was the man who first formalised the concept of Trinity (it was the Tertullian model which was formed in to doctrine at the Council of Nicea) and as a consequence, there are many records of his life & work; in fact more is recorded about him and his life than about Jesus thus reinforcing the point that if the messiah had been wandering around, as claimed in the bible, performing miracles etc., there would be many independently verifiable accounts of his life.