The Resurrection Fact or Fiction?

“Hell” is an interesting word to start that sentence with. :thinking:

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Latin lessons aside, what did the Romans ever do for us?

Indoor plumbing?

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According to what I’ve been reading it seems.the Gospel according to Mark is considered by consensus as the most reliable biblical account of the death and resurrection of Christ. Written around 70AD.
In Wikipedia it says
" I Joseph of Arimathea is a member of the Jewish Council – the Sanhedrin which had condemned Jesus) – who wishes to ensure that the corpse is buried in accordance with Jewish law, according to which dead bodies could not be left exposed overnight. He puts the body in a new shroud and lays it in a tomb carved into the rock."
and then
“The Jewish historian Josephus, writing later in the century, described how the Jews regarded this law as so important that even the bodies of crucified criminals would be taken down and buried before sunset. In this account, Joseph does only the bare minimum needed for observance of the law, wrapping the body in a cloth, with no mention of washing or anointing it. This may explain why Mark has a story prior to the Crucifixion, in which a woman pours perfume over Jesus (Mark 14:3-9): Jesus is thereby prepared for burial even before his death.”

Well, it was the first. “Most reliable” doesn’t necessarily mean “reliable” though.

Josephus isn’t always reliable either. His focus was on painting the Jewish people as law-abiding and worthy of respect. And the Romans were not known for respecting the feelings of crucifixion victims, presumably particularly not those who were seen as enemies of the state. But it’s something, as is the mention in Mark. Of course, it’s impossible to determine conclusively if Jesus was given a proper burial or not, and he could have been. It’s really something you have to accept as a matter of belief in the end.

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Or King Richard’s? Oh right, that one finally turned up.

Okay then, I guess Richard III really existed. Maybe the J-man’s body will turn up too.

So there were these two Jesuit archeologists. One pulls the other over in a conspiratorian whisper. “You’ll never guess what we discovered on our most recent dig!” he tells him. “The bones of Jesus!”

“My God!” exclaims the other. “Do you realize what this means? For our faith…? Everything we believed, is now turned on its head.”

“You’re telling me! So…the old boy really did exist after all!”

The evidence that Jesus existed as a historical figure is pretty much overwhelming except for a couple of conspiracy theorists, the evidence for King Arthur is sketchy.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/apr/14/what-is-the-historical-evidence-that-jesus-christ-lived-and-died

We’re just now learning the locations of the tombs of Alexander the Great and Genghis Khan–and these were world-conquering monarchs. Jesus was a nobody.

Time to air out your summer clothes. :sunglasses:

I thought you were using King Arthur and Robin Hood as examples now you have shifted it to actual historical figures. That’s an improvement on your last attempt.
As to the Jesus was a “nobody” remark, if that was meant as a serious remark or snide comment (you could have said “relatively unknown”) well in regards to who was more famous in their lifetimes well yes King Alexander and Khan , however Jesus was well known enough to be mentioned by Roman Historians (just after his time) and is now probably the most famous name on the planet and certainly far more well known than the dandy Alexander.

Arthur and Robin are legendary / mythical, to the point where they are virtually defined by their respective legends / myths, regardless of what history may underlie them. With Jesus only a few facts are generally accepted about him (i.e. that he was an early first-century Palestinian Jewish religious figure, itenerant and rather marginal, who attracted crowds based on his preaching, folk healing, and exorcism; that he was baptized by John and crucified at the command of Pilate, etc.) and the nature of the primary sources prevents us from learning much more about him as a historical figure. When I call him a “nobody” I mean from the perspective of his time, not from ours. It is entirely understandable that key information would have been lost, including the fate of his remains. Alexander and Genghiz Khan were far more prominent during their respective lifetimes, and yet their graves were successfully hidden. Jesus was a criminal, a rebel, and not even an especially noteworthy one by the standards of the time.

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You’re arguing fiction, yeah?

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An excellent presentation.

Fiction that many believe is truth. Exploring topics in more detail is fun even if it’s fiction. Thanos with the Infinity Guantlet Vs. Dr. Manhattan and the like.

Resurrection fact or fiction
resurrection

while many/some/none of you need proof of something before believing in it, it really comes down to this:

26 And after eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, “Peace to you!”
27 Then He said to Thomas, “Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing.”
28 And Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord and my God!”
29 Jesus said to him, “Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

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The arguments in that article are laughable.

Beautiful :purple_heart: