Uncovering the Lucan Allegory

[Drich]

How can you quote wiki to build an arguement against, what the same artical says later on?

READ The WHOLE Artical. The Territory or 'Country of Gerasenes' is not in anyway in any type of dispute here! (Even though their is contraversy over the actual site) But the fact that Gerasenes extended to the sea of Galilee is solid fact. For the very next paragraph (Just Above The Picture I want You To Note) in the very same wiki artical that you have been quoting speaks directly to the description of the Said 'country of Gardens.' Which Extends to the Shores of the sea of Galilee.

I've read that paragraph and I have to agree with it. There's enough evidence for me to accept the territory reached the coast. That map that I linked you to from the wiki page is misleading then because it draws the territory as ending along the Yarmuk River instead of the Sea of Galilee, but nevermind.

Got it! Now that that is over what does the description of Gerasenes have to do with anything?

How so? All you have are quotes from Josephus describing the land and the fruit bearing trees. The rest of your 'evidence' (The 'works of Barnabus, and your wiki reference) do not support any of your assertions.

I also gave the bit where Josephus describes the entire massacre which seems very relevant with 'swines' being made to drown in Luke.

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But now, when the vessels were gotten ready, Vespasian put upon ship-board as many of his forces as he thought sufficient to be too hard for those that were upon the lake, and set sail after them. Now these which were driven into the lake could neither fly to the land, where all was in their enemies' hand, and in war against them; nor could they fight upon the level by sea, for their ships were small and fitted only for piracy; they were too weak to fight with Vespasian's vessels, and the mariners that were in them were so few, that they were afraid to come near the Romans, who attacked them in great numbers. However, as they sailed round about the vessels, and sometimes as they came near them, they threw stones at the Romans when they were a good way off, or came closer and fought them; yet did they receive the greatest harm themselves in both cases. As for the stones they threw at the Romans, they only made a sound one after another, for they threw them against such as were in their armor, while the Roman darts could reach the Jews themselves; and when they ventured to come near the Romans, they became sufferers themselves before they could do any harm to the ether, and were drowned, they and their ships together. As for those that endeavored to come to an actual fight, the Romans ran many of them through with their long poles. Sometimes the Romans leaped into their ships, with swords in their hands, and slew them; but when some of them met the vessels, the Romans caught them by the middle, and destroyed at once their ships and themselves who were taken in them. And for such as were drowning in the sea, if they lifted their heads up above the water, they were either killed by darts, or caught by the vessels; but if, in the desperate case they were in, they attempted to swim to their enemies, the Romans cut off either their heads or their hands; and indeed they were destroyed after various manners every where, till the rest being put to flight, were forced to get upon the land, while the vessels encompassed them about [on the sea]: but as many of these were repulsed when they were getting ashore, they were killed by the darts upon the lake; and the Romans leaped out of their vessels, and destroyed a great many more upon the land: one might then see the lake all bloody, and full of dead bodies, for not one of them escaped. And a terrible stink, and a very sad sight there was on the following days over that country; for as for the shores, they were full of shipwrecks, and of dead bodies all swelled; and as the dead bodies were inflamed by the sun, and putrefied, they corrupted the air, insomuch that the misery was not only the object of commiseration to the Jews, but to those that hated them, and had been the authors of that misery. This was the upshot of the sea-fight. The number of the slain, including those that were killed in the city before, was six thousand and five hundred.

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Therefore I still think it takes more faith to believe 'Legion' is genuinely the name of the demon(s) rather than Luke making a connection between Jews killed by Roman legion(s).

Not considered to be by the Jews, as Pigs were deemed 'unclean.'

Ah, then it makes even more sense that Luke would draw parallels between the Jews killed as being swines. That's the best way to promote a new religion to the Romans and such.

God only knows for sure. Perhaps it is as the end of the chapter indicates. He went there to Help One man from being tormented by a 'leigon' of Demons. Perhaps this man was known beyond the 'Country of Gerasenes' as being stricken with The most powerful collection of Demons ever known. We are told many tried but all failed to cast out these Demons, so besides helping this one man who could not be helped by anyone else. Christ also cemented His power and Authority in the minds of everyone who knew of this man and the efforts to free him from possession.

After all if this Legion was anything like a Roman legion there were possiably 5000 Demons, that Christ dispatched with a single word.

Sure. We can speculate Jesus was working miracles which oddly resembled an historical massacre that happened OR we can accept there was nothing supernatural and Luke simply flipped an historical event upside-down for his movement's benefit.

So... despite what the 'evidence' shows, You have decided to default to simple faith because it is what you choose to believe?!?

Now if I were of the Atheist system of belief, you do know that i would be required at this point to baseball bat you verbably, until you conceeded the point or till you left the forum, because your 'faith' is contrary to what the evidence concludes. That said it seem to be your lucky day, because i am not of that system of belief. All that my system of belief requires of me is that I point out your hyprocrisy, by showing you the level of faith you have invested in a system of belief that is supposedly based in evidence and Fact alone. then I am to tell you if you invested the same mustard seed of Faith in God, He would produce a yeild in your life 10x what you invested. Meaning if you Gave God what you give your current system of belie,f you would have all the 'evidence' you needed to sustain a real Faith.