bible01
|
bible01 |
|
|
What is the truth Well-informed theologians could have proclaimed the truth long ago, yet they kept silent. Faith is defined as inner certainty without regard to proof, as instinctive conviction. People appeal to faith, people demand faith from those who do know. Faith is trust. This appeal, in the sense of belief in a higher power, in the incomprehensibility of "Be!" and "Die!", of the beginning and end of all being, good, necessary, and eternal. Faith has given consolation and help, blessing and profit to men in all ages. But faith has no connection with religious insistence on being right. With orders "Thou must!", "Thou shalt!", "Thou shalt not!", Christian pastors plunged into the great endless war of faith. With their insistence on being the only preachers of the true word of God, they made a claim with most unfortunate effects. On the other hand, it is not true what general opponents of faith say, that religion has brought suffering and care on mankind with persecutions, tortures, tears, and blood. If believers, egged on by Zealots, had made no image of God, there would never have been any religious wars. For religion in the spirit of faith in a creative and ordering power does not claim to proclaim the ultimate truth, nor does it offer multipurpose bits of advice or driveling adages for all occasions. Even before the discovery of the Dead Sea Qumran texts forced Christian theologians to admit new material to the discussion, men who wanted accurate knowledge discovered irresolvable contradictions in the New Testament. There could be nothing earthshaking about that, if it was not God's word or Jesus' word that was supposed to be involved. As Father and Son are con substantial (second Council of Constantinople), they are omniscient, infinitely wise, omnipresent, without error in short, infallible. These are the qualifications of the inspired authors determining the standard by which the Holy Scriptures are to be judged. Is this high standard justified? The Gospel according to St. Matthew begins with the family tree of Jesus, "the son of David, the son of Abraham" (1:1). Ancestors are enumerated until "Jacob begat Joseph the husband of Mary"(1:16). What purpose does Joseph serve, since he cannot be the father of Jesus? The fact that his wife was supposed to be pregnant by the Holy Ghost did not satisfy the simple carpenter, who knew perfectly well the normal way of bringing children into being. "Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a public example, was minded to put her away " (1:19) An angel in a dream saved their married happiness: "Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary. Unless otherwise indicated, the verses are quoted from St. Matthew's Gospel. Thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost"( 1: 20). Joseph accepted the apparition's message. Joseph's ancestry does not really seem to have been as clear as one would have wished, a certain skepticism as to his being the father of Jesus is hinted at in St. Luke. " And Jesus himself began to be about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph, which was the son of Eli" (Luke 3:23). Luke ascribes seventy-six progenitors to Joseph, Matthew only forty-two. There are considerable difficulties tracing the family tree down to Joseph. Modern theologians say that the "virgin birth" should not be taken to mean that Joseph had not touched Mary. Twisting the meaning of the words inspired by God, because the whole process is so implausible? Matthew makes it perfectly clear: "When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found to be with child of the Holy Ghost"( 1: 18). Nothing could be plainer than that. Matthew expressly states that John baptized Jesus and how he did it. John knew whom he was dealing with: "He it is, who coming after me is preferred before me, whose shoe's ratchet I am not worthy to unloose" (John 1: 27)". but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear" (3:11)- John addressed Jesus directly: "I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me?" (3:14). After the baptism the heavens opened and the spirit of God descended "like a dove" and a voice from heaven said: "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased" (3: 17) John recognized the man he had baptized, who was even identified by heaven as the Son of God. Nothing could be clearer. Herod Antipas (4 B.C.-A.D. 40) took John prisoner and even followed his consort's whim when she urged him to have the Baptist beheaded. John suddenly forgot Jesus in prison and sent two disciples to ask him: "Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another?" (11 :3) The impression that Jesus made on John during the baptismal ceremony seemed so lasting that it is difficult to understand his lapse of memory. Matthew, the toll collector (9:9) , later an apostle and an evangelist says: " Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues " (4:23), which housed the schools in those days. Synagogues came under priests and scribes. No one could just decide to teach there; he had to be examined by the scribes and recognized as one of them. Where did Jesus get the audacity to criticize this guild on which his teaching activity depended:. ...except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter the kingdom of heaven " (5:20)? In his Gospel Matthew records speeches of Jesus which raise justifiable doubts about his meekness. The Son of God says: "...but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire" (5:22). If all Christians who cursed when they were angry were treated like that, hell would be one gigantic crematorium. Chapter 5 Matthew quotes counsels that even the most devout Christians of any age could not follow: "And if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out and cast it from thee" (29); "whosoever shall smite thee on the right cheek, turn to him the other also" (39); "And if any man will sue thee at law, and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloak also" (40); "And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain" (41). Distorted quotations believed as "God's word." I have not met a single preacher who has taken these words literally. Jesus repeatedly urged his hearers to speak clearly, they must never be "lukewarm": "But let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil" (5:37). He himself did not follow his own advice, for he spoke in veiled parables. Jesus healed a leper by laying his hands on him, he said: "See thou tell no man" (8:4), but added in the same breath: "go thy way, show thyself to the priest. "The original command to keep silence was pointless because "great multitudes" (8: 1) were present at the miraculous cure. Jesus asserted that he had not come to summon the righteous but the sinners to repentance: "I will have mercy and not sacrifice. " But, according to Matthew, mercy is in short supply, because Jesus threatened, even for minor sins: ".... the children of the kingdom shall be cast into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth" (8:12). "Love one another," "love thy neighbor as thyself " are the slogans under which the Christian churches have presented their doctrine to people from the beginning to today. Why does not the Bible reader realize that Jesus simply did not follow these categorical imperatives in his own example-setting person? Jesus said: "He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me" (1O: 37). Can all that be reconciled with "God's word," or is the Son of God in need of love? The citizens of Chorazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum presumably had not received Jesus and his disciples with due friendliness. As a result, the Son of God condemned them to hell until the last judgment ( 11:20-24). Matthew, reporting accurately the deeds of the Son of God, had to write contradictions en masse. Jesus sent out his messengers with the exhortation " be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves" (10:16). That's what I call two-faced advice! What is the point of a description by Matthew of a disgraceful injustice? "And Jesus answered and spake unto them again by parables, and said, The kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain king, which made a marriage for his son " ( 22: 1-2). This "parable" introduces a fine wedding with a fine point. The wedding breakfast was ready, but the guests did not come. Again the king sent out messengers to invite the guests, but they spurned the invitation and even killed some of the messengers. Finally the king gave the order: "Go ye therefore into the highways and as many as ye shall find, bid to the marriage"( 22:9). People from the street were driven into the hall. "And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there was a man which had not a wedding garment."( 22: 11 )Wild with rage, the king said: "Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth" (22:13). And the point of the parable "For many are called, but few are chosen" (22:14). Commentaries and recipes for evaluating sermons can twist and turn this example of "God's word" to their heart's content. Another story related by Matthew does not seem to be inspired by the divine spirit. ( 25:14-30) In this "parable" a rich man goes on a journey and before his departure entrusts his money to his servants. On his return they report to him. One, to whom his master had entrusted five talents, had used the time to make ten out of them. Nothing but praise! Another had made four talents out of the two given him to look after. More praise! All of them had increased their capital except one. This man, had buried the talent in his fear. He gave back the one talent he had received. Then his master said :"Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou knowest that I reap where I sowed not, and gather where I have not strawed: Thou oughtest therefore to have put my money to the exchangers, and then at my coming I should have received mine own with usury. Take therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents. For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance; but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath. And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping, gnashing of teeth. "Capitalists of all countries, praise the divine word! Multiply your talents! One last puzzle from Matthew (28: 16-17) :Eleven disciples (minus Judas) climbed the mountain near Galilee where Jesus had told them to go. They saw him and worshipped him "but some doubted. "What they could have doubted when faced with a human being who had been crucified and buried, but stood before them as large as life. Did they not believe their eyes; did they think he was a ghost? St. Mark tells some remarkable stories. He states plainly that Jesus had brothers Mark 3:31-32 )who appeared on the scene with his mother when Jesus was sitting at table with his disciples. The presence of the wonder worker had spread abroad, and crowds were gaping curiously in the street. And when his friends heard of it, they went out to lay hold of him: for they said, He is beside himself " (Mark 3:21). Did they think that Jesus was temporarily abnormal?. The master did not want to have anything to do with his mother and brethren who were asking for him outside. Dismissing them: "Who is my mother, or my brethren?" (Mark 3:33), and adding :" whosoever shall do the will of God, the same is my brother, and my sister, and my mother"( Mark 3:34 ). No feeling of gratitude to the mother who brought him into the world? John baptized in the Jordan, where people flocked to him. To all of them he preached "the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins" ( Mark 1:4). We know it occurs later in Mark that Jesus was baptized. Did the Son of God have sins that needed forgiveness? In Mark, Jesus says to his disciples: "Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God; but unto them that are without, all these things are done in parables " (Mark 4: 11 ). Which is to say: You, my friends, understand all my words, but I have to explain things to the people in parables. And in verse 13, he is angry at his disciples because they do not understand a parable :"Know ye not this parable? and how then will ye know all parables? " It is open to question whether the apostles ever understood exactly what Jesus meant. Matthew (13:11), Jesus said: "it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. " He raises the disciples above others who do not understand him, because " blessed are your eyes, for they see : and your ears, for they hear" (13:16). Not a bit of it! Even the learned Peter had to ask: "Declare unto us this parable" (15:15). Jesus asks in astonishment: "Are ye also yet without understanding?" (15:16). Did they understand "God's word" or not? Presumably not, for John says that even after the resurrection, when they could not ask the master for further explanations. The disciples did not understand. Mark relates that John had told Jesus that the disciples had seen a man casting out devils in the holy name and that they had forbidden him to do so (Mark 9:38). Jesus answered: "Forbid him not: for there is no man which shall do a miracle in my name, that can lightly speak evil of me" (Mark 9:39). This is put differently in Matthew. In his gospel, others have prophesied, driven out devils, and acted in Jesus' name (7: 22). And the answer was : " And then I will profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity " (7:23). It is not of God to give people tasks only to deny their existence later. It is not made easy for the Christian layman to make his way through the contradictions in the New Testament. Informed theologians: doubtless have a hot line over which they can get information from the highest source. Through their mouths and again through the mouths of those they teach, children in religion classes and believers in church learn how everything is to be understood and how it may on no account be interpreted. You must believe? In the revelation of the holy word it is said that Jesus was the only begotten son of God, and that he admitted as much at a hearing before the High Council. In fact, the correct translation of Jesus' remark is not "I am" but "Thou sayest so." In Mark we also read: "And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God" (Mark 10:18). Jesus clearly pointed out that he was not God, but of course he did not know what the decrees of the Council would soon make out of him. Opposed to the dogmas that Father and Son are one and the trinity of Father, Son, and Holy Ghost is an honest confession by Jesus :"But of that day and that hour knowest no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father" (Mark 13:32 ). If they had been one, they would have been informed of the day and hour of a distant event. The High Priests condemned Jesus because he had "blasphemed" God. The High Priests asked whether he was Christ, the Son of God. The answer according to Matthew ( 26:64): " Thou hast said. " The answer according to Mark (14:62): "I am." The answer according to Luke ( 22:70 ): "Ye say that I am." Contradictions because none of them was present at the trial; they are merely reporting rumors. Jesus was arrested without grounds. The High Priests and Council did their best to find charges: "And the chief priests and all the council sought for witness against Jesus to put him to death; and found none" (Mark 14:55). It has not been explained what damaging information Judas could really have betrayed. He did not report at any stage of the trial, was not present at any hearing, nor did he appear as a witness for the prosecution. The elders paid him thirty pieces of silver. What for? Identification of a man who was known all over town. The authorities would not have been so helpless. Judas could not turn traitor for thirty pieces of silver. There must have been something else involved that we shall never know about. Judas could easily come by money, much more than thirty pieces of silver. Just as the Essenes had their communal life organized with a central fund, Judas looked after the money for Jesus' s group. Sentence and execution are a mystery. Jesus was handed over to Pontius Pilate, who considered him innocent, but had him crucified . The governor said : "Take ye him, and crucify him: for I find no fault in him" (John 19:6). Jews would not crucify anybody. Crucifixion was a Roman form of execution. The Jews went on: "We have a law, and by our law he ought to die, because he made himself the Son of God" (John 19:7). Why should the Romans worry about that? Religious disputes did not interest them. John asserts: "When Pilate therefore heard that saying, he was the more afraid" (John 19:8). What was he afraid of? He possessed the military and political power and was in charge of the police force. He said to the silent Jesus: "knowest thou that I have power to crucify thee, and have power to release thee?" (John 19: 10). So why should he be afraid? If he had really considered Jesus innocent, he could have released him in spite of the Jewish protests. Since a crucifixion subsequently took place, he must have had political grounds. "God's word" shows considerable variations when it comes to Jesus' last words on the cross. According to Mark (15:34) and Matthew( 27:46), he cried in a loud voice: " My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" Luke( 23:46), he cried: " Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit. " According to John (19:30), his words were: "It is finished." The four gospel also differ about the women's visits to the tomb. Mark (16:1-8) says that Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices to anoint Jesus. On the way they were wondering how they would move the stone from the tomb, when they saw it was already open and a young man in a long white sat inside. He told them not to be afraid, for Jesus, whom they sought, had risen from the dead. They were to tell the disciples this. But the women fled in a panic; " neither said they anything to any man; for they were afraid. " John( 20: 1-2) describes things differently. Only Mary Magdalene went to the grave early on the first day of the week and found the stone already removed. In a panic she ran to Simon Peter and the other apostles, telling them that "they" had taken Jesus away to an unknown place. Luke( 24: 1-6) only mentions "women" ( not mentioned by name ), who went to the open tomb and found it empty. While they stood there sadly, two men in "shining garments" said to them: " Why seek ye the living among the dead? He is not here, but is risen." Matthew makes the scene very dramatic( 28:1-9 ): Mary Magdalene and Mary mother of James went to the tomb, which was closed. Fortunately, an earthquake began at that moment, and the angel of the Lord, his face like lightning and his robe as white as snow, came down from heaven, moved the stone, sat on it, and spoke to the women. He showed the place where Jesus lay and said that he had risen, that they were to inform the disciples quickly. The fact that they also met Jesus on the way is no longer connected with the visit to the tomb. The collaborators on the Bible at least should have taken care to synchronize the central event of the resurrection in the accounts? The apostles' reaction to the events is also remarkable. They did not believe a word of the story told by the women, among whom were the two Marys and Joanna: "And their words seemed to them idle tales, and they believed them not "(Luke 24:11). John (20:9) affirms: "For as yet they knew not the scripture, that he must rise from the dead." This is quite incomprehensible. Throughout four books the evangelists noted down Jesus' pronouncements that he would die and rise again, yet at the end they knew nothing about it. The ascent into heaven is also contradictory. According to Matthew ( 28:16-17) Jesus summoned the disciples to a mountain near Galilee for the appearance. When they saw him, they worshipped him, "but some doubted." Still? Matthew has nothing further to say about an ascent into heaven. Mark (16: 19) has only one sentence to cover the important event: "So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God." Luke( 24:50-51 ) makes Jesus himself lead the disciples as far as to Bethany." While he was blessing them, " he was parted from them, and carried up into heaven. " John has nothing to say about the ascension. The most important events in Jesus' life. The evangelists recorded so many unimportant details that one can not understand why they did not describe the two central events on which the Christian dogma is based better. If Jesus had ascended into heaven in full view of everybody, or at least in the circle of his disciples, the news would have spread through the streets of Jerusalem the same day, for the people had taken an interest in the trial and crucifixion. But not a single Roman or Jewish historian noted down a single word about these earthshaking events! Devout Christians know nothing or too little of the background of the Bible. They accept it as the word of God from generation to generation. The fact is that the Christian doctrines are borrowed from older religions is shown by documentation. Practically everything in the Bible and in Christianity can be found in the cults of Attis, Dionysus, Mithras and Isis. The central figure of the individual mystery cults was always a savior a " Son of God," who was described as "the Lord." The suffering and death of the " Son of God " plays a decisive role in these cults, most of them were crucified . A god's going down into hell ("descended into hell") was a widespread idea, just as the ascent into heaven formed part of the salvation story in all mystery cults. The trinity was known too, as it was in ancient Egypt. Sick were healed in the names of Mithras and Dionysus, dead waken, the sea calmed, water turned into wine, etc. There was also the festival of Easter in which the resurrection of the god concerned was conceived of in exactly the same way as in later in Christianity. Doctrines of salvation, is found in all its details. Even the original sin was not really new (Mithras). The life of the " Son of God" or the founder of the religion shows striking to the life of Jesus, This begins already with the prophecies as " Redeemer and savior of mankind. For example, the followers of the Zoroastrian religion were also told :"The world is full of expectation of him; he is the prophet Mazda. "Generally there is an account of the supernatural begetting of the savior god, with the virgin birth being wildly known long before Jesus, in the cases of Buddha and Zoroaster. With Buddha the begetting is supposed to have taken place by penetration of a divine ray in the womb of the virgin mother. Other saviors, besides Jesus, were born in a manger, the birthplace was lit by a bright light; in the case of other religions, heavenly choirs singing praise appeared; even the adoration of the shepherds was not lacking. After the births of both Jesus and Krishna, the slaying of all newly born male children was ordered by a jealous king. All founders of religion were tempted by the devil, mostly in the desert where they were fasting. The devil first offers food and then worldly dominion if his victim submits. When Buddha was baptized, there was an earthquake God proclaimed :" Immortality is discovered. " (With Jesus ...this is my beloved son.") Similarity can also be observed in the deaths of divine figures who are venerated as universal saviors. When Caesar died, there was talk of a terrible darkness and of the earth bursting open and the dead returning. The resurrection of sons of God who were transformed on this earth is known in antiquity before Jesus. The risen Apollonius, a contemporary of Jesus, appeared to his disciples. In the religions of the Egyptian and Babylonian we find the concept "I am the vine" and the slogan "I am the good shepherd. The persecution of the adherents of mystery religions by the priests of the established religion was a custom. The mocking of the suffering of Dionysus is staggeringly like the mocking of Jesus. Most founders of religions and some of gods known to the classical and Far Eastern world before Jesus were miracle workers just like JESUS. The miracle of the turning of the water into wine has its parallel in the Dionysus legend. Sick are healed, old men find youth, the hungry are fed, the blind see, cripples walk, the dumb speak. Cures are performed at a distance, as by Jesus. The healed carried their beds, the sea is calmed, three hundred thousand people are miraculously fed, and there were many other parallels. Peter sinking in the water ( the man of little faith) appears in Buddhism. Buddha called himself "the truth," . Zoroaster also proclaimed that he would " return with the holy angels." Krishna also preached that the world "could not recognize him. In conclusion, a number of texts from the holy scriptures of other older religions are here to compare with passages from the Bible, especially the Gospels. Abbreviations: Bible: bold , other religions Abbreviations: B = Buddhism, Hi = Hinduism M = Mystery religions T = Taoism Z = Zoroastrianism There is none like thee, Lord Yours is the dominion and yours is the the power, and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen. There is none like thee in the world (Hi) For thine is the kingdom, and the might, O Mazda (Z) The crooked shall be made straight. That which is crooked shall be made straight (T) Unto you is born a Savior Blessed art thou among women. Unto you this day the Savior is born. The virgin has given birth; the line increases (M) Exalted above all earthly women (B) [The reference is to Buddha's mother.] He that seeth me seeth him that sent me. He who sees me sees the teaching (B) For God sent not his son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. For the Logos [Herakles] is not there to harm or to punish, but to save (M) I am the light of the world. I am the eye of the world (B) This day is [the scripture]fulfilled ... The time is fulfilled [Assurbanipal] Go ye therefore, and teach all and nations . . . teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you. That which you have seen of me learnt from me, that shall you preach to all men (Hi) Who hath ears to hear, let him hear. He who has ears, let him hear the words and believe (B) He that skeet fainted No man having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the Kingdom of God. He who seeks shall find it [the Tao] (T) For he who is occupied [with the things of this world] is unfit to accept the kingdom (T) They are all under sin Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be white as snow. Sin reigns freely over you (Hi) Even if thou art a villain and thy sins surge heavily, the raft of knowledge bears you easily away over every sea of sins (Hi) We fetch strength from god; who shall be against us. If God be for us, who can be against us? (Z) For believe me he who trusts in me shall never die. And whosoever liveth and believeth shall never die (Hi) For your Father knowest what things and complaints you have before you ask him. Your Father know thy questions beforehand (Z) Woman, why weepest thou? I ascend to my Father. Lament not, mother; now I ascend into heaven (M) Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit. Take my spirit, I pray thee, up to the stars (M) It is finished. It is finished (M) 1. Jesus was not the "only begotten Son of God," for Almighty God, the creator of heaven and earth," has neither sons nor daughters. 2 . Jesus cannot have fulfilled the function of a savior, because the concept of original sin, which can be wiped out only by blood and martyrdom, is irreconcilable with the concept of an almighty and eternal God. 3. The deeds, sermons, and teachings of Jesus, insofar as they have been handed down correctly, are not divinely inspired; they existed long before Jesus. 4. Jesus and the Christianity initiated by his presence are not of divine origin, just as the Bible does not contain "God's word." Visions cannot be attributed to God the Father, or God the Son, or the Blessed Virgin Mary. THEIR EXPLANATION MUST BE SOUGHT ELSEWHERE
|
|
Send mail to
tjkent@hotmail.com with
questions or comments about this web site.
|