(May 25, 2015 at 7:05 am)robvalue Wrote: If something new turns up here, I'll comment on it. Otherwise, I've already said all of my side of things so I won't repeat myself.
Rob-
On your website, you wrote:
Quote:Let's say you and I have been given a huge tub of sweets. There's so many in there, that it's impossible to count them all by just looking at the jar. I say to you that there are an even number of sweets in the jar. I am making a claim of knowledge. You have two options. You can either accept my claim, or reject it. If you accept it, you are agreeing that it is a sensible conclusion to say that there are an even number of sweets in the tub. If you reject it, you are saying that you don't think there is a good enough reason to draw that conclusion.
Since I have given you no evidence whatsoever, the sensible thing would be to reject the claim. I am clearly just guessing, so why should you believe that I know there is an even number in there? But notice by rejecting my claim, you are saying that you don't believe me when I say I know there are an even number. You are not saying that my claim is actually false. This would be ridiculous, because to reject my claim that the number of sweets is even, you'd have to make your own claim that actually the number of sweets is odd. That is a similarly absurd position. Instead, what you are saying is that you don't think my claim of knowledge is justified, and until there is more evidence, you don't accept this as true. You are maintaining the default position that we don't know if the total is even or odd, and need more evidence to decide.
Here are my thoughts.
Replace the tub of sweets with the New Testament. If I say the number is even (the NT is true), and you say you don't know, that would be fair. Don't place a bet on odd or even without more information. But what if the Catholic Church which was founded by Jesus upon Peter and has been in continuous existence since the tub was formed says, "This tub contains X number of sweets (truths)"? Does that incline you to place a wager?
And what if each of the books of the NT is actually its own tub of sweets. And what if the people who put them together say, "I know how many sweets are in the tub because I was there. I saw it. I counted."? And what if we can learn more about those authors, their character, their motivations for putting the sweets in the tubs, etc.? And what if all of that suggests that the tub-makers were honorable men, that they really were present when the sweets were made and that placed them carefully into the tub? Does that change your willingness to place a bet that there are an even number of sweets in the tub?
Sure, they could be wrong. They could have miscounted. But is that probable? If the otherwise reliable and knowledgeable tub-maker says to you, "I have carefully counted these sweets so that you may know how many are in this tub", would you really bet against him? Again, he may be mistaken. He may even be lying and having fun at your expense. But is that probable?
With the the tub of sweets, the odds are 50/50. Are you saying that it is less than 50/50 that the authors of the NT got it right regarding the resurrection? Despite having been there? Despite having interviewed witnesses?
I dunno, Rob. Maybe the whole of Christianity is just one big practical joke that got out of hand. But I wouldn't bet on it.
