BIBLICAL BLOOMERS
(Investigator 142, 2012
January)
Jesus was born on
the
25th of December.
WRONG —
He was born on
the 6th of January. The date was changed to accord with the Pagan
tradition.
The
Messiah was the name
of Jesus.
WRONG —
He was given the
Hebrew name Joshua, but known as Yeshua. This was translated into the
Greek "Jesus”.
It was
prophesied in the
Old Testament that a virgin shall give birth.
WRONG —
The Hebrew word
"Almah” was the designation for a young woman. This was mistranslated
to read "virgin”.
Jesus
grew up in the Town
of Nazareth.
WRONG —
It has been
established that Nazareth did not exist at that time.
Jesus was
born in a
stable, surrounded by adoring farm animals.
WRONG —
Nowhere in the
Gospels is the word "stable” used. In Matthew, the Wise Men find Mary
and the baby in a house.
There
were three wise men.
WRONG —
The number was
never mentioned. There may have been more (and they were Pagan).
Jesus
Christ was the only
saviour and messiah.
WRONG —
There were at
least twenty-three, beginning with the Egyptian godman Osiris more than
2,000 years earlier, and nearly all were born to a virgin mother on the
25th of December — the winter solstice.
The halo
and the cross
are exclusively Christian symbols.
WRONG —
They can be
traced back to the Egyptian sun-god cult of Aten.
The
Gospels were written
by scribes contemporary to the time of Jesus.
WRONG —
They were written
by unknown scribes at the Nicene council in far-away Turkey, where
Jesus Christ was proclaimed Son of God. The Pagan Emperor Constantine
officiated.
The
Sabbath has always
been observed on Sunday.
WRONG —
The Sabbath was
traditionally observed on Saturday but was changed to accord with the
Pagan religion, the SUN-day.
Brian de
Kretser
BIBLICAL "BLOOMERS”
PRUNED
Anonymous
(Investigator 143, 2012
May)
In Investigator
142 Mr De Kretser lists ten "Biblical Bloomers". Most, however, are
dubious and require pruning:
Jesus'
birth date?
December
25th is merely
the official birth day. If my evidence for the "Star of Bethlehem” is
correct (See #81) then the "wise men” reached Bethlehem in June but
this was at least 40 days after Jesus' birth.
The
Messiah's name was
Joshua not Jesus?
"Joshua"
comes from
Hebrew and "Jesus" from Greek. Different languages pronounce names
differently but this is not something to make a fuss about.
"Almah"
in Isaiah's
prophecy means "young woman" not "virgin"?
"Almah"
can mean either
depending on context. (See #92) The Septuagint's use of the word
"virgin", despite everyone knowing that virgins don't give birth, shows
that the translators recognized, two centuries before Jesus came, that
the prophecy referred to someone special i.e. the Messiah.
Jesus in
Nazareth?
The
claim that Nazareth
didn't exist in the 1st century is atheistic fiction. Part of Nazareth
was archaeologically excavated in 2009. (See #131)
Jesus
not born in a
stable?
Luke
says there were no
spare rooms at the inn in Bethlehem and uses the word "manger" (2:7-16)
which referred to a trough animals eat from. Therefore many conclude
that a stable is implied. The arrival of the "wise men" occurred at
least 40 days later when Mary and Joseph were in a "house". (Matthew 2)
How many
"wise men"?
Mr De
Kretser is here
correct and scores one point since "The number is never mentioned."
Three is merely inferred from the three types of gifts — gold,
frankincense, myrrh.
Were
there at least 23
saviours besides Jesus?
In the
Old Testament
anyone who defeated military attacks on Israel was a "deliverer" or
"saviour" and included various judges, David and others. These were
"saviours" in a different sense to Jesus. If any pagan cults called
their idols or gods "saviours" then these too were saviours in a
different sense.
Are the
halo and cross,
exclusively Christian?
De
Kretser is correct
that other religions also used these symbols.
Were the
Gospels written
in the time of Constantine?
This is
nonsense since
fragments of New Testament manuscripts from the 2nd century still
exist, and the Jewish Talmud of the 2nd century refers (albeit
critically) to Christians and their beliefs. (See #140 page 47ff; #77;
#127)
Sabbath
changed from
Saturday to Sunday to accord with Pagan religion?
The
Jewish Sabbath was
from nightfall Friday to nightfall Saturday. Christians switched to
Sunday, not to please Pagans but to honor Christ's resurrection: "Some
judge one day to be better than another, while others judge all days to
be alike… Those who observe the day, observe it in honor of the Lord."
(Romans 14:5-6; Colossians 2:16)
De
Kretser has scored two
out of ten. He would do better if he consulted reliable sources.
Wrong Wrong Wrong
Kevin Rogers
(Investigator 143)
I refer to Brian
de Kretser's article on Biblical Bloomers in Investigator
#142. I don't normally comment on Brian's articles, as I thought that
his approach and content are bizarre. However, in the same issue, John
Williams included Brian in the "collectively superior" class, so this
is why I am writing.
Brian
provided a list of
10 supposed Biblical bloomers. Virtually none of them are. They are
supposed errors in what some people have said about the Bible, not
errors in the Bible itself. This includes celebrating Christmas on the
25th of December and the number of wise men. The Bible does not mention
Jesus' date of birth and so it is unknown; I don't know where Brian got
the 6th January from. The church did indeed displace a pagan festival
to celebrate Christmas but never claimed that this was his actual
birthday. Brian is correct in saying that the number of wise men is not
mentioned; it is simply inferred from the number of gifts. These
traditions have been added and so are not Biblical bloomers.
The
claim that really is
absolutely bizarre is his claim that the gospels were written by
unknown scribes at the Nicene council. However, it is the universal
opinion of Biblical and historical scholars that the gospels were
completed in the latter half of the first century, well over 200 years
before the Council of Nicaea. Some claim that the gospel of John was
written as late as 110 AD; but this is a minority view.
Some of
the reasons that
scholars agree that the gospels were written in the 1st century are as
follows: