RE: Why do atheists even bother about debating Jesus?
January 30, 2013 at 12:03 pm
(This post was last modified: January 30, 2013 at 12:04 pm by Zone.)
(January 30, 2013 at 7:59 am)Zen Badger Wrote: Except Paul never actually met jesus did he.
He met him in a vision but that probably doesn't count. But he wrote about Jesus within living memory of his death when there was a small Christian community already present. Also Jesus had living relatives around at that point, his brother James founded a rival sect of traditional Jewish Christianity to Pauline Christianity. Paul had the idea of exporting the faith to the pagans so he was the co-founder of Christianity as we know it today. Also supposedly Paul worked a few miracles himself during his ministry, he he made the lame walk and all that business. He was on a lower power level (under 9000) to Jesus though. So there isn't any reason to think that Jesus never even existed, even opponents to Christianity at the time never suggested that they just said he wasn't divine.
(January 30, 2013 at 7:59 am)Zen Badger Wrote: And in fact there are NO accounts of his life by first person witnesses.
A bit odd for some one who is supposed to have affected thousands in his ministry.
It's because Jesus didn't have his own scribe like Mohammed and back then people relied more on oral transmission. Different communities of Christians compilled different oral accounts into their gospels. Matthew, Mark and Luke were the earliest ones written, they agree on some parts and differ on others. There was in fact a community called the Essenes and the Dead Sea Scrolls taught much of the same material Jesus taught during his ministry. So that most likely be where Jesus originated. Also wandering spiritual healers, magic and exorcists were common back so then so Jesus or Yeshua would have been part of that crowd.
