The Historical Reliability of the New Testament

[robvalue]

The bible is inerrant huh? Quite clearly, it is not. It is flat out wrong about lots of things. It's self contradictory. It contains obviously ripped-off stories from previous mythologies. It's full of magical claims that no Christian would take seriously is it didn't happen to be their special book. Also, even Christian scholars admit the bible has forgeries in it.

I was hoping you had really paused for thought when I challenged you before. My challenge was simple: give an objective reason why I should just believe what someone else believes about supernatural events, considering I wouldn't believe my own wife backed up by hundreds of other people. I would believe they believed what they were saying, but as you have said yourself, belief is not fact. When it comes to supernatural claims regarding things that no one has ever demonstrated to even be possible, let alone exist, just taking someone at their word is to abandon all critical thinking. I'm not claiming they are wrong, I'm claiming there is not adequate reason to believe they are right. This is the gap you have to bridge, no matter how much you try and big up the people saying it. You tried a false equivocation, I called you on it. But if you do want to have another attempt, by all means be my guest.

Like I said, everything else is irrelevant, I'm willing to concede all your other arguments about how reliable the witnesses are to make it easier for you. Do you have another argument? Why should I believe them? I fully accept you are convinced, that's not the issue. And I'm not saying they are lying. I will concede that they think they are telling the truth, for the sake of argument. What is more likely: that they are mistaken, which people are every day even when they are convinced they are right; or that unprecedented supernatural events occurred? I'm not saying they didn't experience anything, I'm saying their interpretation and memory of the events cannot just be accepted as true because they think it is.

I ask you this: if ten of your most trusted friends in the whole world came to you and told you they had all been together and were visited by God, and God said Christianity is wrong and you need to become Muslims, would you believe them? Assume they are totally convincing and answer any questions you may have about the experience to your satisfaction. Would you convert to Islam based solely on that?