Ask A Christian

[Red_Dawn]

religion will eventualy become obsolete and disapear.

[Zero]

religion will eventualy become obsolete and disapear.

I would have to disagree with you, as long there is death there will be religion

People fear death

[Psycho]

Religion was popular because people were scared of it and it was powerful. This gets passed onto new generations and eventually it becomes bleeding obvious that its probably a load of bull. But i still have my doubts.

yes! before people had no information whatsoever of what was happening when someone got sick, died, a storm came, lightnings, floods etc etc.
Today we know this is natural, but thousands of years ago it was very easy to say it was some holy beeing.
and if you do not do as it says in this handy book I happen to have in my hand here you will be smitten!

Sorry for not following the topic, but any topic starter regarding religion should be prepared to recieve some disbelief.
but I am not stubborn. if I see something that will change my mind, then believe me I will.

[{LAW} Gamer_2k4]

why are there so many contradicting things in the bible?

Could you give me some verses? I think I'm fairly good at clearing up "contradictions," but I've never heard that Judas betrayed Jesus to help him.

[Red_Dawn]

i think what your trying to say is that these people all turn to the bible for hope but the bible can sometimes be anything but. such passages in the bible portray ideas that would be harmfull to ourselves or others. examples:

"If your right eye causes you pain, pluck it out and throw it away" -Matthew.5:27
(yeah kids take your eyes out bible said so!)
"i say onto you, do not resist one who is evil." -Matthew.5:39
(yeah kids obey me muhahahahahahahahahha!)
"Give to him who begs from you, and do not refuse him who would borrow from you" -Matthew.5:42
(give me all your money god said so!)
"Everyone who has looked at a woman lustfuly hase already committed adultery" Matthew 5:28
(this is where the eye one comes in handy)
"Thou shalt not lie with mankind as thou lies with womankind, it is abomination" -Lev 18:22
(so its sinfull either way? i cant lie with man and i cant lust for woman.....wait....)

read what i already said -.-''


the two last ones contradict.

[Psycho]

I found this list "ten reasons christianity is false" or whatever, I would just like to see what you think of it t

Believe me I do not feel strongly about this list in any way, I would just like to see how you deal with it

(10) Irreconcilable Differences
The accounts of Jesus’ death and resurrection as depicted in the gospels are in serious conflict. Furthermore, Jesus’ resurrection appearances were not originally part of the gospel of Mark (the earliest of the four gospels). Mark originally ended at 15:8 with the women running from the tomb frightened. Verses 9-20 were a later addition. What the Christian scholars often overlook is the interesting phenomenon of later gospel manuscripts knowing more details than the earlier ones! This is a clear indication that those details were never part of the original oral and written accounts but were inserted into the later copies.

(9) Been There, Done That
The concepts of heaven, hell, eternal life, etc., all predate Christianity as does a savior-god who died and was resurrected. (See Zoroastrianism, Osiris, Dionysus, etc.)

( The Silence of the Lamb
There are no historical writings by any first century historian that mention Jesus by name although there are many writings by early historians about Christians. The two passages in the writings of Josephus that are often waved around as proof Jesus actually lived are clearly forgeries. (See Earl Doherty’s comprehensive work, “Josephus Unbound”, at http://pages.ca.inter.net/~oblio/supp10.htm )

(7) The Making of a Messiah
Almost every miracle and event in Jesus’ life can be found in the Old Testament stories. Here are only a few of them.
a) Feeding the multitudes (2nd Kings 4:42-44, Matthew 14:13-21)
b) Shades of Jonah (Jonah 1:4-6, 15, Mark 4:35-39)
c) Jesus’ dying words (Matthew 27:46 and Mark 15:34 = Psalm 22:1, Luke 23:46 = Psalm 31:5, John 19:30)
d) Infanticide and one escapes (Exodus 1:22-2:10, Matthew 2:13-18)
e) The king rides on two donkeys at once! (Zechariah 9:9, Matthew 21:2-7)

(6) Jesus Believed the Old Testament
Jesus is depicted as believing the Old Testament verbatim and therefore invalidates himself since much of the Old Testament can be shown to be false.

(5) What Prophecies?
Jesus is not foreshadowed in the Old Testament (messianic prophecies were
not messianic prophecies!)
a) Whom they pierced (John 19:34-37, Zechariah 12:10-14,13:1-3)
b) Out of Egypt (Matthew 2:14-15, Hosea 11:1-2)
c) Rachel weeping (Matthew 2:17-18, Jeremiah 31:15-17)
d) Speaking in parables (Matthew 13:35, Psalms 78:2)
e) Nazarene nowhere in there (Matthew 2:23)
f) What third day prophecy? (Luke 18:31-33, Luke 24:46, 1st Corinthians
15:3-4)
g) Bethlehem was a man (Matthew 2:3-6, Micah 5:2, 1st Chronicles 4:4)
h) Virgin birth: a sign to Ahaz (Matthew 1:20-23, Isaiah 7 and
i) Thirty pieces of silver (Matthew 26:15, Matthew 27:9-10, Zechariah 11:12-13)

(4) A Sign To Ahaz
Isaiah 7's virgin (or young maiden) birth is not a prophecy about a coming
messiah. Period. It was a sign to Ahaz (that a boy, not a girl, would be born of the young woman) which already happened during Ahaz’s lifetime. This makes the authors of the virgin birth gospels (Matthew and Luke) in error! Paul never mentions the supposed virgin birth of Jesus or any prophesies regarding it. Bible scholars tell us that Paul probably never even heard of the virgin birth story in relation to Jesus. The earliest known Christian writings, the letters of Paul and the gospel of Mark, say nothing of it. It is a later development in the Jesus legend as the early Christians attempted to convert the Romans and Greeks. Anyone who was anyone in those cultures was born of a virgin. Julius Caesar, Hercules, Plato, and many other notables, both historical and mythical, were said to be born of virgins. It had to happen to Jesus too, eventually, if the Christians were to gain converts in the Greco-Roman world.

(3) Broken Promise, Failed Prophecy: What’s the Difference?
Jesus promised to return from heaven within the lifetimes of his
listeners – he never did. (Matthew 16:27-28, Matthew 24:34, Matthew 25:13, Matthew 10:23)

(2) The Severed Line
The Messiah was to be of the lineage of David yet Jesus was born of a
virgin! (Isaiah 9:6-7, Jeremiah 23:5-6, Zechariah 13:1, Matthew 1:1,20-24, 9:27, 12:3, 23, 15:22, 20:29-31, 21:9, 15, Mark 12:35, Luke 1:27-33, John 7:42, Romans 1:1-3, 1st Timothy 2:8, Revelation 5:5, 22:16, Matthew 1:18-25, Luke 1:26-38, Jeremiah 36:27-31)

And the number 1 reason why Christianity is false…

(1) Jesus Sinned
Jesus sinned by making himself unclean when he touched the leper and dead
girl (a violation of Levitical law which all Jews were under. Jesus himself
agreed he was under the law.) (Ezekiel 44:25-27,Lev 13:1-8, Lev 5:2-6, Num
5:1-3, Num 19:11, Matt 9:23-26, Matthew 8:2-4)

[{LAW} Gamer_2k4]

i think what your trying to say is that these people all turn to the bible for hope but the bible can sometimes be anything but. such passages in the bible portray ideas that would be harmfull to ourselves or others. examples:

"If your right eye causes you pain, pluck it out and throw it away" -Matthew.5:29

It's actually "If your right eye causes you TO SIN."  Big difference.  The point of this verse, as implied by Matthew 5:30, is to remove any sin in your life.  If you were perfect, except for your eye, then the removal of said eye would return you to perfection, allowing you to go to heaven.

"Give to him who begs from you, and do not refuse him who would borrow from you" -Matthew.5:42

Show the love of God through charity.  Nothing wrong or surprising about that.

"Everyone who has looked at a woman lustfuly hase already committed adultery" Matthew 5:28

And that's why things such as pornography are wrong.

"Thou shalt not lie with mankind as thou lies with womankind, it is abomination" -Lev 18:22

Lust implies immorality; it's not lust if you think about your wife in such a way.  Therefore, your reference is irrelevant, causing this verse to boil down to one thing: God considers homosexuality a sin.

[Red_Dawn]

did god himself say that?

[{LAW} Gamer_2k4]

I found this list "ten reasons christianity is false" or whatever, I would just like to see what you think of it t

Believe me I do not feel strongly about this list in any way, I would just like to see how you deal with it

(10) Irreconcilable Differences
The accounts of Jesus’ death and resurrection as depicted in the gospels are in serious conflict.

How so? It's one thing to say that two things conflict.  It's another thing to have examples.

(9) Been There, Done That
The concepts of heaven, hell, eternal life, etc., all predate Christianity as does a savior-god who died and was resurrected. (See Zoroastrianism, Osiris, Dionysus, etc.)

Of course heaven and hell do...Moses mentioned it to God in Exodus, at least.  The concept of a savior or messiah isn't anything new; prophets in the Bible were talking about Jesus hundreds of years before he came.

( The Silence of the Lamb
There are no historical writings by any first century historian that mention Jesus by name although there are many writings by early historians about Christians. The two passages in the writings of Josephus that are often waved around as proof Jesus actually lived are clearly forgeries. (See Earl Doherty’s comprehensive work, “Josephus Unbound”, at http://pages.ca.inter.net/~oblio/supp10.htm )

I don't have much knowledge of this, but do you really think that our religion will fall apart just because we've misnamed our savior?

(7) The Making of a Messiah
Almost every miracle and event in Jesus’ life can be found in the Old Testament stories. Here are only a few of them.
a) Feeding the multitudes (2nd Kings 4:42-44, Matthew 14:13-21)
b) Shades of Jonah (Jonah 1:4-6, 15, Mark 4:35-39)
c) Jesus’ dying words (Matthew 27:46 and Mark 15:34 = Psalm 22:1, Luke 23:46 = Psalm 31:5, John 19:30)
d) Infanticide and one escapes (Exodus 1:22-2:10, Matthew 2:13-18)
e) The king rides on two donkeys at once! (Zechariah 9:9, Matthew 21:2-7)

So foreshadow/prophecy make a story false?  The donkey one has me stumped though, it's possibly a mistranslation or misunderstanding.  Remember how God told Adam to "replenish" the earth?  At the time of translation, "replenish" simply meant "to fill," not "to fill again." This is probably something like that.

(6) Jesus Believed the Old Testament
Jesus is depicted as believing the Old Testament verbatim and therefore invalidates himself since much of the Old Testament can be shown to be false.

Again with the unsupported statements.  Which parts of the Old Testaments are false?

(5) What Prophecies?
Jesus is not foreshadowed in the Old Testament (messianic prophecies were
not messianic prophecies!)

You'll definitely have to explain what you mean by this...you even give examples to the contrary!

(4) A Sign To Ahaz
Isaiah 7's virgin (or young maiden) birth is not a prophecy about a coming
messiah. Period.

You can interpret it as you like, but even if that line wasn't prophecy, it doesn't change the circumstances of Jesus' birth.  Also, "Trying to pander to the Romans" is simply one interpretation by someone who is clearly biased ("the LEGEND of Jesus"). 

(3) Broken Promise, Failed Prophecy: What’s the Difference?
Jesus promised to return from heaven within the lifetimes of his
listeners – he never did. (Matthew 16:27-28, Matthew 24:34, Matthew 25:13, Matthew 10:23)

Matthew 16:27-28 - You realize the Revelation was written by the disciple John?  He saw Jesus return (albeit, in a vision) before he died.  Therefore, Jesus was speaking the truth in this verse.
Matthew 24:34 - "Generation" does not always refer to a short period of time.  Jesus is simply saying that mankind will not die out before he returns.  (Ironically, people also use the same word, generations, to "prove" that the earth was created over millions of years.  (Genesis 2:4) Come on people.  Get your attacks straight before you accuse US of contradictions.)
Matthew 25:13 - Jesus is telling the disciples to always be alert for his coming.  He doesn't SAY that he'll return in their lifetimes; in fact, he actually says that we won't know.  Big difference.
Matthew 10:23 - Christians will not be able to convert everyone before Jesus returns.  No surprise there.

(2) The Severed Line
The Messiah was to be of the lineage of David yet Jesus was born of a
virgin!

Joseph was descended from David, and Jesus was descended from Joseph.  Sounds to me like he's in the lineage of David, but I'm not sure how that works with virgin births (since that would imply he descended from no one).

And the number 1 reason why Christianity is false…

(1) Jesus Sinned
Jesus sinned by making himself unclean when he touched the leper and dead
girl (a violation of Levitical law which all Jews were under. Jesus himself
agreed he was under the law.) (Ezekiel 44:25-27,Lev 13:1-8, Lev 5:2-6, Num
5:1-3, Num 19:11, Matt 9:23-26, Matthew 8:2-4)

When he touched them, they were no longer leprous/dead, so there was no violation.

[Dascoo]

religion will eventualy become obsolete and disapear.

I would have to disagree with you, as long there is death there will be religion

People fear death

Not all people. I don't.

[a-4-year-old]

did god himself say that?

you don't know very much about this do you?

[{LAW} Gamer_2k4]

I would have to disagree with you, as long there is death there will be religion

People fear death

Not all people. I don't.

Neither do I.  Death is only bad if you believe that this world is all there is; I know I have a lot to look forward to after death.

did god himself say that?

Anything from the Bible is from God.  That's why we call it "God's Word" - because we believe he inspired its authors to write what they did.

[Dascoo]

I would have to disagree with you, as long there is death there will be religion

People fear death

Not all people. I don't.

Neither do I.�  Death is only bad if you believe that this world is all there is; I know I have a lot to look forward to after death.

O my ****- holy crap you just proved my point. You would be scared if there was no afterlife...


Also I don't believe in the afterlife. I'm not scared of death, and why should I? I'm not going to delude myself to believe that my "soul" (non-existant) will go to heaven. I'm going to look at death the way it really is.� 

[Graham]

I would have to disagree with you, as long there is death there will be religion

People fear death

Not all people. I don't.

Neither do I.  Death is only bad if you believe that this world is all there is; I know I have a lot to look forward to after death.

O my ****- holy crap you just proved my point. You would be scared if there was no afterlife...

Also I don't believe in the afterlife. I'm not scared of death, and why should I? 

Why not hope for something more then the depressing thought of your corpse rotting away?

[SirJamesaford]

I would have to disagree with you, as long there is death there will be religion

People fear death

Not all people. I don't.

Neither do I. Death is only bad if you believe that this world is all there is; I know I have a lot to look forward to after death.

O my ****- holy crap you just proved my point. You would be scared if there was no afterlife...

Also I don't believe in the afterlife. I'm not scared of death, and why should I?

Why not hope for something more then the depressing thought of your corpse rotting away?

Whats so depressing about that?

[Dascoo]

Why not hope for something more then the depressing thought of your corpse rotting away?

I'm not going to lie to myself. Actually I plan on being cremated anyways.

My biomass will provide food to tiny little organisms, so what's so depressing about that?

[Graham]

Eh, just is to me. And if you ask that was not my reasoning for believing in Christianity, neither is it most Christians reasoning.

Why not hope for something more then the depressing thought of your corpse rotting away?

I'm not going to lie to myself. Actually I plan on being cremated anyways.

My biomass will provide food to tiny little organisms, so what's so depressing about that?

Woah lie? I am not trying to call you a liar or debunk your beliefs, neither did I open this topic for people to debunk mine. This is a simple respectful sharing of cultures.

[Dascoo]

I'd die happier knowing nothing will happen anyways

[SirJamesaford]

Guys please stay on topic here... this is an "Ask a christian" topic not an atheist convention... im not usually this concerned but i really dont want this locked... But you did help me think of a question that i'd like to ask gram...

Gram, Do you think we are alone in the universe?  And in the bible does it say ANYWHERE that earth is the only planet god tends to?  And if we find an intelligent species elsewhere in the universe what does that do to your religions reputation?

Quoted so's i get an answer.

I always ask religious people about life elsewhere... i dont know why... but i just do.

[Iron Man]

� , what christian demonitation are you, and how, pardon the term i cant think of a better way to say it, religous are you tword it? (I.E going to church every sunday vs actually participating, ETC)