2 ms·
If the idea goes back to the first century, then it is more likely Jesus or his disciples or Paul knew the idea or believed or taught it, regardless of what was
by timbit42 9mo ago
If the idea goes back to the first century, then it is more likely Jesus or his disciples or Paul knew the idea or believed or taught it, regardless of what was recorded in the New Testament. Since, it doesn't, it is much less likely to be a valid teaching of Jesus.
Often the issue is that Christians tend to treat the books of the Bible as being univocal, that is, that the authors all had the same ideas and believed the same things. Upon close scrutiny, it becomes obvious that they didn't all believe the same things. This means taking verses out of context from different books and trying to make them agree is a poor way to understand each authors unique message.
- tombert 9mo agoThere are millions of people who believe that God's chosen profit was Joseph Smith, about two-hundred years ago. Certainly they don't think that having close proximity to Jesus is an important factor. I think it's all very silly, honestly.
- jandrese 9mo agoUltimately the more ridiculous and unbelievable the beliefs are the stronger your faith must be to keep them. It is a paradox of religion. I believe this is the underlying force that pushes people out to the fringes of their religion: the need to prove themselves the better man/woman by showing how strong their faith is.