The Deceptive Mechanisms

[Undeceived]

Besides that, are you aware of the Council of Nicea, where basically a bunch of people got together 300 years after the fact and inserted or removed into/from canon a bunch of shit in the bible, which led to the bible as we know it today? In other words, the bible has been cherry-picked after the fact. By men who stood to gain the most from it; power, sway, and influence. Because, funny thing, they did; it was called the beginning of the catholic church, now one of the most powerful institutions in the world and the face of Christianity for over a millenia.

Long before councils were ever convened, Christians, especially local church elders, were constantly collecting, evaluating and deciding which of the many writings of their day carried the authority of the apostles (Cf. Colossians 4:16; 2 Peter 3:15). The question asked of any writing to be read in the churches was: To what extent is this book (epistle, narrative, apocalypse, or gospel) an authentic and pure representation of the life and teachings of Jesus and His apostles? Thus, as Donald Guthrie puts it, "The content of the canon was determined by general usage, not by authoritarian pronouncement."

The Christian Church didn't gain real political power until the Middle Ages after the fall of the Western Roman Empire 150 years later. There was little power or money to be gained. Rather, the council was held to unify the church after Constantine (at last) legalized Christianity. 

And you don't feel ANY suspicion about this?

Should my being skeptical compel me to deny scripture? Are there specific reasons you reject the Bible's authenticity or are you saying something along the lines of "It's possible this could all be one big conspiracy, so I won't give it a chance until it's proved not to be"?

---

Tacitus: writing in the late first century or early second (I can't remember which and honestly I can't be bothered doing your research) merely voices what the Christians believed at the time. He wasn't a contemporary of Jesus therefore his guess is as good as anyone's.

Lucian: was born in 120 A.D. and therefore is an even worse source for Jesus. Again, it sounds like he's telling me what Christians at the time believed. Nothing new to see.

Babylonian Talmud: the Mishnah was composed around 200 A.D. and the Gemara in 500 A.D... yeah, no.

So you're saying Christians edited these? Would that be all the copies (aimed at the their contemporaries) or just the copies that survived to our day? Or do you believe a writer of history would scribble down hearsay?

Josephus: you can do this one at home on your own. Hint: observant Jew, dissonance.

What does being an observant Jew have to do with Christianity? In the Gospels, it's the observant Jews that find it hardest to enter the Kingdom of God.