Hi everyone.
My online friend minimalist told me about this forum and invited me to comment on one of his threads which I'll do shortly. I've been an active member of the thinking atheist forum for the last three years or so and have had a brief look at this site and am impressed.
My particular interest is in the early history of Christianity. I've spent many years researching the topic and feel that I have some things to say. I also have some things to learn so I hope my presence here will be a two way process.
I have written a book about the history of Christianity and its relevance in today's world. It's the product of seven years hard work. I have a website that discusses many of my ideas at
http://www.markfulton.org if anyone is interested.
I live in Australia so I'm in a very different time zone to most others.
The following is the preface to my book which tells you a little bit more about me.
I was born in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia. My parents were practicing Catholics.
I attended Catholic schools during my formative years. As a child and young man I never felt comfortable with Christianity, considering much of it inherently implausible. Like millions of others I suffered through religious instruction and church services, but didn’t have the maturity, inclination or time to seriously question the dogma. I was too busy being a kid. I now regret the waste of countless hours lost in Christian indoctrination during my youth.
The day I left home as a sixteen year old I stopped going to church. I’d had enough of being ordered what to believe and how to behave. I went to university, obtained a medical degree, and am now a practicing doctor on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland, Australia. I own a practice with a particular interest in preventative medicine. I have a holistic approach to my patients, and try to help people achieve not only good health, but also happiness.
Some years ago I noticed that many of my Christian patients had significant psychological issues, and their Christian beliefs were to blame. I knew that many political and social problems also had their roots in religious belief. I’d always been curious about the origin of Christianity, so decided it was time to make a serious study of the religion I was born into. I wanted to discover the essence of Christianity, and spent nearly all my spare time in the next seven years studying early Christian history, with a particular emphasis on the bible. The more I learned, the more intriguing and complicated the puzzle became.
After many years I arrived at some firm conclusions. I thought them worth sharing. The result is this, my first book, a product of over seven years of intensive thought and investigation.
I write in a colloquial, rather than formal style, and not as a biblical scholar, (I can’t read Greek or Hebrew) but as a layman. Some of my views are partly based on my own professional experience.
What’s revealed may be life changing for some people. I hope this book will appeal to everyone who enjoys history and informed opinions about the bible and Christianity.
The biblical quotes in this book come from the Jerusalem bible, (JB, my parents’ bible) the New Jerusalem bible, (NJB) the King James bible, (KJV) or the new King James bible, (NKJV) and there is the odd one from other bibles too. I used a few different bibles so as not to be accused of being partisan or out of date.
Okay, that's enough about me. I'll just say it's nice to be here.
