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      "body": "Congratulations @historicus! You received a personal award!\n\n<table><tr><td>https://steemitimages.com/70x70/http://steemitboard.com/@historicus/birthday2.png</td><td>Happy Birthday! - You are on the Steem blockchain for 2 years!</td></tr></table>\n\n<sub>_You can view [your badges on your Steem Board](https://steemitboard.com/@historicus) and compare to others on the [Steem Ranking](https://steemitboard.com/ranking/index.php?name=historicus)_</sub>\n\n\n###### [Vote for @Steemitboard as a witness](https://v2.steemconnect.com/sign/account-witness-vote?witness=steemitboard&approve=1) to get one more award and increased upvotes!",
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      "body": "She probably has a lot going on at the moment and just wants to sort things out before embarking on anything else. I hope things work out. Good luck! :-)",
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      "body": "<div class=\"text-justify\">Hello @barncat. Once again thank you for your comment.</div><br>\n\nTo answer the points you made.\n\n> “The Gospels are historical documents written by eyewitnesses or those who talked to eyewitnesses.”  \n\n<div class=\"text-justify\">No. Mark was written around 70 AD and was never intended to be an eyewitness account.  The evidence for the literary devices and sources Mark used to construct his story are overwhelming. It is obvious that it is nothing but a fiction and was meant to be read allegorically. This is now accepted by many mainstream scholars.</div><br>\n\n(see my post:- [Mark](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/the-gospel-according-to-mark-clever-myth-making)).\n\n<div class=\"text-justify\">Matthew, Luke and John are jazzed up versions of Mark written well after and therefore are just as fictitious.</div><br>\n\n> \"The internal evidence of the gospels is overwhelming. There's NO external evidence to disprove them.\"\n\nIf I read you correctly you are saying that what the Gospels say proves the Gospels? I'm sorry but that is a circular argument and invalid. Unless you believe the Gospels to be inerrant  (and I think you must do) then just because they mention places or people that existed does not make them historically accurate. Homer's Odyssey describes the travels of Odysseus through the Greek Islands and has details of many historical locations. Does that mean we should take Odysseus, the Greek gods and goddesses, one-eyed giants and monsters as literal fact simply because the story depicts geographic locations accurately? Of course not. \n\n> \"You're a false teacher seeking to destroy the faith of the weak. You'll receive a false prophet's reward in hell if you don't repent.\"\n\nWhat a horrible, selfish and petty god you worship. If I accept for a moment that your god exists (I don't believe in any gods by the way) then it has provided no evidence what-so-ever for its existence apart from - supposedly - a two-thousand-year-old book. Then, when I use the brain it gave me to think critically and question the evidence I will be rewarded with eternal torment. It expects me to mindlessly fall down and worship it under the threat of mortal blackmail. Totally immoral. This god has no redeeming features at all. Why would you worship such a creature?\n\nOnce again thank you for the comment. Once more you are the only one. Are other Christians too scared to debate because they secretly have doubts and feel their religion is built on sand?",
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      "body": "No, they're not myths.\n\nThe gospels are historical documents written by eyewitnesses or those who talked to eyewitnesses. The internal evidence of the gospels is overwhelming. There's NO external evidence to disprove them.\n\nYou're a false teacher seeking to destroy the faith of the weak. You'll receive a false prophet's reward in hell if you don't repent.",
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      "title": "Why Easter Is A Celebration Of A Myth",
      "body": "<div class=\"text-justify\">Easter is the biggest event in the Christian calendar. It is the time when Christians celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ and his confirmation as the son of God. It shows them that by following Jesus they will have a new birth and will be spiritually resurrected with him and receive eternal salvation. How many Christians realise that the whole crucifixion and resurrection narratives are nothing more than myth?</div>\n\n<center>![](https://imgsnap.com/images/2018/04/08/Crucifixion-Definition-5841eb355f9b5851e56dbb11.jpg)</center>\n\n<div class=\"text-justify\">Marks gospel, the one that the other three canonical gospels are based on, has used many sources to fabricate his story of the crucifixion. He has lifted directly from the Psalms and especially Psalm 22. For example;</div><br>\n\nPsalm 22.18 ‘They part my garments among them, and cast lots upon them’.\nMark 15.24 ‘They part his garments among them, casting lots upon them’.\n\nAnd also,\n\nPsalm 22.7-8 ‘All those who see me mock me and give me lip, shaking their head, saying “He expected the lord to protect him, so let the Lord save him if he likes’”.\n\nMark 15.29-31 ‘And those who passed by blasphemed him, shaking their heads and saying, “…Save yourself…” and mocked him saying “He who saved others cannot save himself!’”.\n\nAnd,\n\nPsalm 22.1 ‘My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?’\nMark 15.34 ‘My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?’\n\n<div class=\"text-justify\">Other texts that Mark mines for his crucifixion narrative include Amos 8.9, elements of Zechariah 9-14, Psalm 69 and Wisdom 2.</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">Mark isn’t reporting an actual event here. He is providing a standard Jewish myth story of a righteous man put to death by evildoers but then vindicated and raised up by God. </div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">The whole Passover narrative is constructed on the tale of another Jesus. The story of this Jesus ben Ananias who was active in the 60’s AD was told by Josephus in his book ‘Jewish War’ (JW). There are twenty significant parallels and one reversal between the stories of the two Jesus’s, - the following is taken directly from Richard Carrier:-</div><br>\n\n1 – Both are named Jesus\n2 – Both come to Jerusalem during a major religious festival.\n3 – Both enter the temple to rant against the temple.\n4 – During which both quote the same chapter of Jeremiah.\n5 - Both then preach daily in the temple.\n6 - Both declared ‘woe’ unto Judea or the Jews\n7 – Both predict the temple will be destroyed\n8 - For this reason, both are arrested by the Jews\n9 – Both are accused of speaking against the temple.\n10 – Neither makes any defense of himself against the charges.\n11 – Both are beaten by the Jews.\n12 – Both are then taken to the Roman governor.\n13 – Both are interrogated by the Roman governor.\n14 – During which both are asked to identify themselves.\n15 – Once again both say nothing in their defense.\n16 – Both are then beaten by the Romans.\n17 – In both cases the Roman governor decides he should release him.\n18 – But doesn’t in Mark but does in the JW\n19 – Both are finally killed by the Romans. By execution in Mark and by artillery in the JW\n20 – Both utter a lament for themselves immediately before they die\n21 – Both die with a loud cry.\n\n<div class=\"text-justify\">The writer of Mark was certainly familiar with the Jesus ben Ananias and may have directly accessed Josephus to obtain the framework for the Jesus Christ crucifixion story. We have to remember that when Mark was written early Jewish Christianity was in a turmoil following the Jewish War and the destruction of the Temple in 70 AD. Mark was an attempt to replace the Temple cult with the new Christian cult that required no temple or sacrifices.The story of Jesus being the ultimate human sacrifice that washed away all sins was the perfect solution to the destruction of the temple.</div><br>\n\nSee my post on [Mark](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/the-gospel-according-to-mark-clever-myth-making) for a little more depth.<br>\n\n<div class =\"text-justify\"><div class=\"text-justify\">The Crucifixion story is just another example of how Marks Gospel is a mythic narrative about an earthly Jesus that is used to convey a system of parables about Christianity and what it represents. This is nothing unusual in ancient writings. Many cosmic gods were treated in such an allegorical fiction like this.</div>\n\n\n---\n\n### <center><strong>Sources</strong></center>\n\nRichard Carrier ‘On the Historicity of Jesus – Why We Might Have Reason for Doubt’ – Chapter 10 – Section 4 - ‘The Mythology of Mark’.\n\n---\n### <center><strong>Images</strong></center>\n<center>Header Image from [www.fthmb.tqn.com](https://fthmb.tqn.com/iEPvygFbprDVc4O5r7OnotXlGnk=/2088x1436/filters:fill(auto,1)/Crucifixion-Definition-5841eb355f9b5851e56dbb11.jpg)</center>\n\n---\n### <center><strong>My Previous Posts</strong></center>\n\n<center>[Christianity originated from Pagan and Jewish mystery religions](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/chritianity-originated-from-pagan-and-jewish-mystery-religions)</center>\n\n<center>[Was Paul a schizotype?](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/paul-s-epistles-the-writings-of-a-schizotype)</center>\n\n<center>[Hypotheses of Jesus historicity and Jesus myth](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/the-minimal-hypotheses-of-jesus-historicity-and-jesus-myth)</center>\n\n<center>[Why many biblical scholars cannot be objective](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/the-jesus-myth---why-many-biblical-scholars-cannot-be-objective--1516068994-972148)</center>\n\n<center>[Jesus Christ - History or Myth?](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/jesus-christ--history-or-myth-why-i-believe-he-didnt-exist-1515696018-1572924)</center>\n\n\n<center>The Gospels are not historical Documents -\n[Mark](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/the-gospel-according-to-mark-clever-myth-making), [Matthew](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/the-gospel-according-to-matthew-mostly-a-tune-up-of-mark), [Luke](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/the-gospel-according-to-luke-a-fabricated-tale-to-heal-sectarian-divides), & [John](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/the-gospel-according-to-john-over-the-top-propaganda)</center>\n<center>[The Gospels are not eye-witness accounts](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/the-gospels-are-eye-witness-accounts-right-err-no-i-m-afraid-not)</center>\n\n<center>[A challenge to all religious believers](https://steemit.com/introduceyourself/@historicus/a-challenge-to-all-religious-believers-can-you-defend-your-religion)</center>",
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      "author": "historicus",
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      "body": "<div class=\"text-justify\">I’m not denying that Christianity began with the followers of Jesus. What I’m saying is that early Christianity was only one of many mystery cults that were around at the time. This is aptly demonstrated in your example. Paul in 1 Cor. 15 is talking about revelations ie; hallucinations, he and others had about a celestial Jesus. This is one of the hallmarks of a mystery cult. </div>\n\nAs I mention in my post about [Paul]( https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/paul-s-epistles-the-writings-of-a-schizotype) in which I wrote;\n\n>This is totally consistent with the earliest form of Christianity being a Judeo-Hellenistic mystery religion. Like other mystery cults, Christianity had secret doctrines that only initiates were privy to and were rooted in esoteric astral or metaphysical theology. The general public were only being told Christian beliefs through myths and allegory. To obtain the true meaning Christian leaders (ie Paul) regularly hallucinated and believed their dreams were divine communications. They also achieved trace states, practised glossolalia (the speaking of tongues – not proper languages but rather gibberish - see 1 Corinthians 14) and were susceptible to psychosomatic illness.\n\n<div class=\"text-justify\">As for your second example; 2 Peter is known as one of the most widely recognised forgeries in the New Testament. It was written after Matthew which itself was penned between 80 to 110 AD. so there is absolutely no way that the author of Peter was a witness to any living Jesus and he was again referring to revelation experiences. This passage is just answering critics of Christianity who are questioning the faith as the old  prophecies of an imminent judgement day and Christ’s return haven’t been fulfilled.</div>\n\n>They will say, \"Where is this ‘coming’ he promised? Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.” (2 Peter. 3:4 -  NIV)",
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      "parent_author": "barncat",
      "parent_permlink": "re-historicus-chritianity-originated-from-pagan-and-jewish-mystery-religions-20180314t182907175z",
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      "title": "",
      "body": "<div class=\"text-justify\">Hello @barncat.First of all, thank you for taking the time to comment and may I offer my apologies for not replying earlier.</div><br>\n\nTo answer the points you made.\n\n> “Everything you posted is a lie. For example, the gospels are historical documents.”  \n\nWell, no and no.\n\n<div class=\"text-justify\">You point to the beginning of Luke as evidence that the author of Luke is writing history. This is very problematic. Unlike other historians of his age, the author of Luke does not discuss his methods or name any sources. Neither does the author cite his credentials or even his name. It is also well attested that the Gospel of Luke is heavily plagiarised from Mark and probably Matthew; two sources full of fictions and that in no way claim to be historical (for more on how Luke lifted from others.</div>\n\n(see my post:- [Luke](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/the-gospel-according-to-luke-a-fabricated-tale-to-heal-sectarian-divides)).\n\n<div class=\"text-justify\">There is another way that Luke 1:3 could be interpreted. The New International Version has translated ά νωθεν as “from the beginning” when the literal meaning is actually “from above”. This would tie in nicely if, like Paul, Luke’s author is receiving knowledge of Jesus from his ‘direct channel to the divine’. </div>\n\n(see my post on [Paul]( https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/paul-s-epistles-the-writings-of-a-schizotype)).</div>\n\nLuke – as are the other gospels – is simply awful as a historical source.<br>\n\n<div class=\"text-justify\">As to your using archaeology as proof. While it is certainly true that the Bible uses real places and names actual persons in its stories you cannot say that archaeology has proved the scriptures. It is like saying that a Spiderman comic depicts a real character just because the setting of New York actually exists.  It is a fact that the sources you state have in many incidences been totally discredited. Archaeology since the 1970’s and especially work done in the 1990’s, has totally overturned most of the earlier 20th-century view that archaeology had confirmed Bible events. Recent archaeology has rendered almost all works before 1970 obsolete.</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">As an example of the bias used by many biblical archaeologists in the past, the following has been taken from The Archaeology of Nazareth: A History of Pious Fraud? By René Salm /  SBL: November 17, 2012.</div><br>\n\n> In 1930 six oil lamps were discovered in a Nazareth tomb, lamps which have been used in the scholarly literature as proof of a village in Hellenistic times (as early as the third century BCE). In fact, all six lamps date from the Middle Roman to the Late Roman periods, in some cases long after the time of Christ. ……… The error, in other words, amounts to about 500 years in the case of some of these lamps. Nor can all these oil lamps be lumped together into the same category—an elementary error that no archaeologist would conscientiously make. Nor does any one of these lamps date as far back as Hellenistic times. Nevertheless, this complex of errors has allowed the word “Hellenistic” to be falsely used in connection with Nazareth evidence for many decades. My book shows that this gross misdating is neither unique nor unusual in the Nazareth literature.\n\n<div class=\"text-justify\">Rene Salm also has this to say about one of the principal archaeologists of Nazareth, Father Bellarmino Bagatti.</div><br>\n\n>  (Bagatti) is also hardly beyond suspicion. In his 325 page book, Excavations in Nazareth, Bagatti repeatedly asserts the all important presence of Hellenistic evidence at Nazareth. When I carefully examined his tome I discovered that his alleged Hellenistic evidence boils down to no more than a single shard. That’s right—a single shard. If this were not surprising enough, I then discovered that the shard in question is in fact the nozzle of a Roman oil lamp, as verified through studies by Nurit Feig and others (MoN 111-19). In other words, Bagatti’s claim of Hellenistic evidence at Nazareth is totally fraudulent. \n\n<div class=\"text-justify\">Much has changed in the world of so-called ‘Biblical’ archaeology in recent times. The article you link to is very much an apologetic's one.</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">Thank you for engaging with me in a discussion. You are the only Christian who seems prepared to defend their faith.</div>",
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      "body": "Christianity was started by the followers of Jesus Christ. This is just one example:\n\n(1 Corinthians 15:3-8 NIV)  For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance : that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, {4} that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, {5} and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. {6} After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. {7} Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, {8} and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born.\n\nThe Apostle Peter testifies about Jesus as well,\n\n(2 Peter 1:16 NIV)  We did not follow cleverly invented stories when we told you about the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty.",
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      "body": "Everything you posted is a lie. For example, the gospels are historical documents. For example,\n\n(Luke 1:1-4 NIV)  Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled among us, {2} just as they were handed down to us by those who from the first were eyewitnesses and servants of the word. {3} Therefore, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, it seemed good also to me to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, {4} so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught.\n\nThis is a good site to demonstrate the authenticity of scripture:\n\nhttps://bibleevidences.com/archaeological-evidence/\n\nIt would be extremely difficult for the honest skeptic to dispute the overwhelming archaeological support for the historical accuracy of both the Old and New Testaments. Numerous items discussed in the Bible such as nations, important people, customary practices, etc. have been verified by archaeological evidence. Bible critics have often been embarrassed by discoveries that corroborated Bible accounts they had previously deemed to be myth, such as the existence of the Hittites, King David, and Pontius Pilate, just to name a few. The noted Jewish archaeologist Nelson Glueck summed it up very well:\n\nIt may be stated categorically that no archeological discovery has ever controverted a single biblical reference. Scores of archeological findings have been made which confirm in clear outline or in exact detail historical statements in the Bible1.\n\nBible-ArcheologyWhen compared against secular accounts of history, the Bible always demonstrates amazing superiority. The noted biblical scholar R.D. Wilson, who was fluent in 45 ancient languages and dialects, meticulously analyzed 29 kings from 10 different nations, each of which had corroborating archaeological artifacts. Each king was mentioned in the Bible as well as documented by secular historians, thus offering a means of comparison. Wilson showed that the names as recorded in the Bible matched the artifacts perfectly, down to the last jot and tittle! The Bible was also completely accurate in its chronological order of the kings. On the other hand, Wilson showed that the secular accounts were often inaccurate and unreliable. Famous historians such as the Librarian of Alexandria, Ptolemy, and Herodotus failed to document the names correctly, almost always misspelling their names. In many cases the names were barely recognizable when compared to its respective artifact or monument, and sometimes required other evidence to extrapolate the reference2.\n\nI believe one of the more overwhelming testimonies regarding the depth of archaeological evidence for the New Testament is in the account of the famous historian and archaeologist Sir William Ramsay. Ramsay was very skeptical of the accuracy of the New Testament, and he ventured to Asia minor over a century ago to refute its historicity. He especially took interest in Luke’s accounts in the Gospel of Luke and the Book of Acts, which contained numerous geographical and historic references. Dig after dig the evidence without fail supported Luke’s accounts. Governors mentioned by Luke that many historians never believe existed were confirmed by the evidence excavated by Ramsay’s archaeological team. Without a single error, Luke was accurate in naming 32 countries, 54 cities, and 9 islands. Ramsay became so overwhelmed with the evidence he eventually converted to Christianity. Ramsay finally had this to say:\n\nI began with a mind unfavorable to it…but more recently I found myself brought into contact with the Book of Acts as an authority for the topography, antiquities, and society of Asia Minor. It was gradually borne upon me that in various details the narrative showed marvelous truth3.\n\nLuke is a historian of the first rank; not merely are his statements of fact trustworthy…this author should be placed along with the very greatest historians4.\n\nThe classical historian A.N. Sherwin-White collaborates Ramsay’s work regarding the Book of Acts:\n\nAny attempt to reject its basic historicity even in matters of detail must now appear absurd. Roman historians have long taken it for granted5.\n\nArchaeological discoveries ranging from evidence for the Tower of Babel, to Exodus6, to the fallen Walls of Jericho, all the way to the tombs of contemporaries of St. Paul, have greatly enhanced the believability of the Bible. Though this vast archaeological evidence does not prove God wrote the Bible, it surely must compel the honest skeptic to at least acknowledge its historical veracity. For the believer its yet another reassuring testimony to the reliability of the Bible. In the words of the University of Yale archaeologist Millar Burrows:\n\n…Archeological work has unquestionably strengthened confidence in the reliability of the scriptural record. More than one archeologist has found respect for the Bible increased by the experience of excavation in Palestine7.",
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      "parent_permlink": "christianity",
      "author": "historicus",
      "permlink": "chritianity-originated-from-pagan-and-jewish-mystery-religions",
      "title": "Chritianity Originated From Pagan & Jewish Mystery Religions",
      "body": "<center>![CrossStar](https://steemitimages.com/DQmNngZ56m6CZ3uhXBoTCUBSSzWCS6CDQbGsf7QD7F3RSqy/CrossInStar.jpg)</center>\n\n\n<div class=\"text-justify\">Christianity Has Its Origins In Pagan & Jewish Mystery Religions.It is beyond doubt that the earliest known form of Christianity was a Judeo-Hellenistic mystery religion.</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">What do I mean by a mystery religion? If we define a mystery religion as:-</div>\n\n1. A Hellenistic cult where individual salvation was achieved by ritual initiation into a set of ‘mysteries’.\n2. The knowledge of and participation in these mysteries were key to ensure an eternal life.\n3. All mystery religions are centred on a central saviour deity.\n4. This deity is always a son (or daughter) of god.\n5. This deity undergoes some sort of trial or ordeal.\n6. By undergoing this ordeal the deity ensures salvation for all who participate in their cult.\n7.All the mystery religions involve a ritual meal in which initiated members are united in communion with each other and their god.\n\n<div class=\"text-justify\">Christianity fulfils these criteria. The religions initiation rituals (for example baptism and the Eucharist) also involve an induction into a set of ‘mysteries’ which are required to be followed to achieve eternal life (Pauls letters routinely call essential Christian doctrines ‘mysteries’). Christianity is obviously centred on Jesus as the son of god. Christianity also has Jesus undergo the ordeal of crucifixion and by so doing, he ensures the salvation of his followers. Interestingly these deaths or trials of the diety were called a ‘passion’ (from patheon which literally means ‘sufferings’). The Christians ritual meal is the Eucharist and is epitomised by the telling of the story of the last supper.</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">Mystery religions were very popular in the era that Christianity arose and all belonged to the same kind of cultural syncretism. For example, Mithraism was a mixture of Perian and Hellenistic elements while the Isis and Osiris cult incorporated Egyptian and Hellenistic elements. Christianity was nothing more than a continuation of this trend.</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">We know that the Isis cult included an initiation of a ‘voluntary death’ after which the person is reborn. The person was baptized into the cult with an ablution of water and the day of initiation was a new ‘birthday’. The priest performing the ritual became the persons ‘father’. This is mirrored in the Christian ritual of initiation which involves a baptism symbolising death and resurrection and one is then reborn with a new father – God, although early Christians would call the person performing the ceremony father as well. The Isis initiation was consummated with a sacred meal on the third day which fully united the person to their saviour god or goddess and the other cult members. The Mithras cult also had baptism as an initiatory ritual.</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">We can see that Christianity is a distinctive Hellenistic mystery religon. It is a mixture of a local or national system of Hellenistic religious ideas. As with all mystery religions, Christianity also had a monotheistic trend where it has evolved from poytheism (many competing gods)  to henotheism (one god reigning over subordinate deities) to monotheism (one god). There was also a move to individualism focusing on the salvation of the individual rather that the welfare of the community as a   whole and cosmopolitanism where membership was open to all.</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">Given all the evidence available, it is undeniable that Christianity was a Judeo-Hellenistic mystery cult. It conforms exactly to the religious developments that befell nearly all other national cultures within the Roman Empire.</div>\n\n<center>-------------------------</center>\n\n\n###  <strong><center>Sources</center></strong>\n\n‘On the Historicity of Jesus – Why We Might Have Reason for Doubt’ by Richard Carrier – Chapter 4 – ‘Background Knowledge (Christianity)’ – Section 6. ‘Elements of Christian Religion’ – Element 11.\n\n###  <center><strong>Images</strong></center>\n<center>Header Image from [Israeltoday.co.il](http://www.israeltoday.co.il/Portals/0/news/130617_judeochristian.jpg)</center>\n\n\n###  <center><strong>My Previous Posts</strong></center>\n\n<center>[Hypotheses of Jesus historicity and Jesus myth](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/the-minimal-hypotheses-of-jesus-historicity-and-jesus-myth)</center>\n\n<center>[Why many biblical scholars cannot be objective](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/the-jesus-myth---why-many-biblical-scholars-cannot-be-objective--1516068994-972148)</center>\n\n<center>[Jesus Christ - History or Myth?](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/jesus-christ--history-or-myth-why-i-believe-he-didnt-exist-1515696018-1572924)</center>\n\n\n<center>The Gospels are not historical Documents -\n[Mark](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/the-gospel-according-to-mark-clever-myth-making), [Matthew](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/the-gospel-according-to-matthew-mostly-a-tune-up-of-mark), [Luke](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/the-gospel-according-to-luke-a-fabricated-tale-to-heal-sectarian-divides), & [John](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/the-gospel-according-to-john-over-the-top-propaganda)</center>\n<center>[The Gospels are not eye-witness accounts](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/the-gospels-are-eye-witness-accounts-right-err-no-i-m-afraid-not)</center>\n\n<center>[A challenge to all religious believers](https://steemit.com/introduceyourself/@historicus/a-challenge-to-all-religious-believers-can-you-defend-your-religion)</center>",
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      "body": "Nice post. The crusifiction story is mentioned in multiple older pagan religions as well, were the \"hero\" is crusified. There are a lot of references to astrology in the bible stories as well.\n ![image](https://img.esteem.ws/keg5nqpif2.jpg)",
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      "body": "There is absolutely no historical or archaeological evidence that any of what you describe took place. The Bible stories in Exodus are simply a rehash of numerous ancient near eastern myths.",
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      "title": "Paul's Epistles - The Writings Of A Schizotype?",
      "body": "<div class=\"text-justify\">Were the writings and gospel of Paul, one of the founders of Christianity, based on nothing more than hallucinations? Did he have a schizotypical personality and believed he was in direct contact with a celestial Jesus?</div><br>\n\n<center>![](https://imgsnap.com/images/2018/01/21/st-paul21.jpg)</center>\n\n### <center>A Little Background</center>\n\n<div class=\"text-justify\">Paul is the earliest Christian source we have. His 1 and 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Romans, Philippians, 1 Thessalonians and possibly Philemon are usually dated to around the 50s BC and are commonly agreed to be authentic (although even these seven letters have been meddled with). 2 Thessalonians, Ephesians and Colossians are forgeries perhaps from the latter half of the first century but may contain redactions of some lost Pauline letters. 1 and 2 Timothy and Titus are definite forgeries from a later date.</div><br>\n\n### <center>Was Paul's Jesus An Actual Man?</center>\n\n<div class=\"text-justify\">The following quote is from a modern-day psychologist and concerns one of Paul’s letters to fellow congregants in Rome whom he has never met and couldn’t have previously shared any stories with.</div><br>\n\n>\tImagine for a moment that one of your friends writes you a twenty-page letter passionately wanting to share her excitement about a new teacher. This letter has only one topic, your friend’s new teacher. [But] at the end of her letter you still do not know one thing about her teacher. Yet, Paul presents the central figure of his theology this way….It [seems] impossible to imagine how Paul could avoid telling one story or parable of – or fail to note one physical trait or personal quality of – Jesus. [1]\n\n<div class=\"text-justify\">What does this mean? Well, in the seven authentic letters of Paul, he mentions Jesus, by name or title, over three hundred times. On half of these occasions, Paul tells us some fact concerning this Jesus but not one of these facts actually connects Jesus with living an earthly life. Even mentions of the crucifixion and resurrection, which are mentioned over forty-five times, are devoid of any details. It is startling to realise that Paul never mentions:-</div><br>\n\n* Jesus’ baptism\n* Jesus’ ministry\n* Any miracles\n* Jesus’ trial\n* Any details on what Jesus did, what he was like, where Jesus was from or where he had been.\n* There are no mentions of Galilee or Nazareth\n* Pilate, Joseph and Mary never get a mention.\n\n<div class=\"text-justify\">When Paul could have used a reference to Jesus’ life to better further an argument, he doesn’t. Neither do his opponents make any appeal to the life of an earthly Jesus to make a point.</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">Anything Paul claims to know about Jesus he says he gained from private revelations and hidden messages within scripture. He doesn’t reference, at all, anyone who were eye-witnesses to the life of Jesus or even anyone who knew someone who knew him. It is as if a real-life Jesus never existed. In fact, there is no indication at all that Paul is writing about a historical Jesus in any of his writings. All he seems to have knowledge of is a celestial being.</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">This is totally consistent with the earliest form of Christianity being a Judeo-Hellenistic mystery religion. Like other mystery cults, Christianity had secret doctrines that only initiates were privy to and were rooted in esoteric astral or metaphysical theology. The general public were only being told Christian beliefs through myths and allegory. To obtain the true meaning Christian leaders (ie Paul) regularly hallucinated and believed their dreams were divine communications. They also achieved trace states, practised glossolalia (the speaking of tongues – not proper languages but rather gibberish - see 1 Corinthians 14) and were susceptible to psychosomatic illness.</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">From what we can take from his writings, Paul today would be classed as a schizotypal type personality. Whereas in our modern day world this would be deemed an incapacity, in antiquity schizotypals would be regarded as prophets and holy men and would naturally gravitate to religious cults.</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">Scholars have argued that the origin of Christianity can be attributed to hallucinations of the risen Jesus. Richard Carrier explores all this in depth in his book ‘On the Historicity of Jesus – Why We Might Have Reason for Doubt’ and provides a very compelling argument that early Christians gained their facts and teachings of Jesus from revelation and scripture rather than from any witnesses or second-hand accounts.</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">Paul demonstrates this in Romans 16.25-26</div><br>\n\n> Now to him who is able to establish you in accordance with my gospel, the message I proclaim about Jesus Christ, in keeping with the revelation of the mystery hidden for long ages past,  but now revealed and made known through the prophetic writings by the command of the eternal God, so that all the Gentiles might come to the obedience that comes from faith [2]\n\nAnd also in Galatians 1.11-12\n\n>I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that the gospel I preached is not of human origin. I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it; rather, I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ.[3]\n\n### <center>Summary</center>\n\n<div class=\"text-justify\">There are many scholars who now believe that Paul (along with the other apostles who founded the Christian cult – Peter, James and John) was only ever writing about a Jesus he saw and heard in revelation and hallucination. He used no sources which were based on the life of a real living person.</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">Could it be that the Christian religion is based on the idea that Jesus only ever existed as a celestial being and was never a living human being? The evidence says yes.</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">In the next post of this series, I will look at how religious cults of antiquity were based on this idea and how easy it would be for the Christian cult to have arisen.</div>\n\n### <center>Sources</center>\n\n[1] ‘On the Historicity of Jesus – Why We Might Have Reason for Doubt’ by Richard Carrier – Chapter 11 – ‘The Evidence of the Epistles’ – Section 2. ‘The Peculiar Indifference of Paul and his Christians’ – Quoting from Billy Wheaton and Joy Fuller, ‘Hooks and Ladders: A Journey on a Bridge to Nowhere with American Evangelical Christians’ (Bloomington, IN: iUniverse, 2009), p.31 \n\n[2] Romans - [www.biblegateway.com]( https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Romans+16&version=NIV)\n\n[3]  Galatians - [www.biblegateway.com](https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Galatians+1&version=NIV)\n\n### <center>Images</center>\n\n<center>Header Image from [www.biographyonline.net](https://www.biographyonline.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/st-paul21.jpg)\n\n### <center>My Previous Posts</center>\n\n<center>[Hypotheses of Jesus historicity and Jesus myth](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/the-minimal-hypotheses-of-jesus-historicity-and-jesus-myth)</center>\n\n<center>[Why many biblical scholars cannot be objective](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/the-jesus-myth---why-many-biblical-scholars-cannot-be-objective--1516068994-972148)</center>\n\n<center>[Jesus Christ - History or Myth?](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/jesus-christ--history-or-myth-why-i-believe-he-didnt-exist-1515696018-1572924)</center>\n\n<center>The Gospels are not historical -\n [Mark](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/the-gospel-according-to-mark-clever-myth-making), [Matthew](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/the-gospel-according-to-matthew-mostly-a-tune-up-of-mark), [Luke](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/the-gospel-according-to-luke-a-fabricated-tale-to-heal-sectarian-divides), & [John](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/the-gospel-according-to-john-over-the-top-propaganda)</center>\n\n<center>[The Gospels are not eye-witness accounts](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/the-gospels-are-eye-witness-accounts-right-err-no-i-m-afraid-not)</center>\n\n<center>[A challenge to all religious believers](https://steemit.com/introduceyourself/@historicus/a-challenge-to-all-religious-believers-can-you-defend-your-religion)</center>",
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      "body": "Nice job on presenting both sides of this discussion. I post a verse every day as well as a part of my Verse Of The Day campaign and would love to have your feedback on the posts.\n\nThank you,\nSpencer Coffman\n[Latest Verse: Isaiah 41:13](https://steemit.com/christian-trail/@spencercoffman/verse-of-the-day---isaiah-4113---for-i-am-the-lord-your-god-1513985679-3132892)",
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      "title": "The Minimal Hypotheses of Jesus Historicity And Jesus Myth",
      "body": "<center>![](https://imgsnap.com/images/2018/01/17/ID-100240931.jpg)</center>\n<div class=\"text-justify\">I mentioned in my previous post that Richard Carrier uses a probability approach - Specifically Baye’s Theorem - to determine the historicity of Jesus. Carrier has been criticised for the use of Baye’s Theorem to argue a historical case by some who say it was not intended for such a purpose. However, other scholars have affirmed that Baye’s Theorem is ideally suited for the study of history. I have not studied probability or statistics and therefore am not qualified to comment either way but even without Baye’s Theorem, the mass of evidence and arguments Carrier presents to support his thesis is compelling.</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">I will leave out Carriers comments on how he derives his probabilities for the various aspects of his investigation (except in my summary of his final results) but I will use Carriers set of criteria against which to determine the arguments for historicity or myth. This post will set out these criteria ready for future examination.</div><br>\n\n### <center>What is the Jesus Historicity Hypothesis?</center>\n\n<div class=\"text-justify\">The following are set by Carrier out as being the minimum for determining whether Jesus was a historical person.</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">•\tJesus was an actual man who acquired followers during his lifetime and these followers then continued an identifiable movement after his death</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">•\tThis Jesus was claimed by some of his followers to have been executed by the Roman or Jewish authorities.</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">•\tThis Jesus began to be worshipped as a living god (or demigod) by some of his followers.</div><br>If these three facts can be established as true then the historicity of Jesus cannot be denied. [1]\n\n### <center>What Is The Jesus Myth Hypothesis?</center>\n\nCarrier establishes five propositions for the minimum Jesus myth hypothesis.\n<div class=\"text-justify\">•\tOriginally, when Christianity first started, Jesus was believed to have been a celestial god who would have been called a demigod in pagan terms and an archangel in Jewish terms.</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\"><div class=\"text-justify\">•\tHe only ever communicated with his followers through dreams, visions or prophecies.</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">•\tJesus was believed to have gone through a process of ‘becoming flesh’, being put to death, being buried and then being resurrected all within a supernatural realm and not on earth.</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">•\tAn allegorical story of this figure was then composed for consumption by his followers. These stories made Jesus into a divine man with a family, followers and enemies and built up narratives that were uttered by him along with deeds he performed while on earth.</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">•\tThese stories eventually came to be taken as real.</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">These are the five points that need to be determined as true for the Jesus myth hypothesis. [2]</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">In future posts I will be going through the evidence for both the historical and myth hypothesis.</div><br>\n\n### <center>Sources</center>\n\n[1] ‘On the Historicity of Jesus – Why We Might Have Reason for Doubt’ by Richard Carrier – Chapter 23 – ‘The Hypothesis of Historicity’.\n\n[2] ‘On the Historicity of Jesus – Why We Might Have Reason for Doubt’ by Richard Carrier – Chapter 3 – ‘The Hypothesis of Myth’.\n\n### <center>Images</center>\n\n<center>Header Image by [Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net](Image by Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net)</center>\n\n### <center>My Previous Posts</center>\n\n<center>[Why many biblical scholars cannot be objective](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/the-jesus-myth---why-many-biblical-scholars-cannot-be-objective--1516068994-972148)</center>\n\n<center>[Jesus Christ - History or Myth?](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/jesus-christ--history-or-myth-why-i-believe-he-didnt-exist-1515696018-1572924)</center>\n\n<center>[The Gospel according to John - Over the top propaganda](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/the-gospel-according-to-john-over-the-top-propaganda)</center>\n\n<center>[The Gospel according to Luke -\n A fabricated tale to heal sectarian divides](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/the-gospel-according-to-luke-a-fabricated-tale-to-heal-sectarian-divides)</center>\n\n<center>[The Gospel according to Matthew - Mostly a tune-up of Mark](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/the-gospel-according-to-matthew-mostly-a-tune-up-of-mark)</center>\n\n<center>[The Gospel according to Mark - Clever myth making](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/the-gospel-according-to-mark-clever-myth-making)</center>\n\n<center>[The Gospels are not eye-witness accounts](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/the-gospels-are-eye-witness-accounts-right-err-no-i-m-afraid-not)</center>\n\n<center>[A challenge to all religious believers](https://steemit.com/introduceyourself/@historicus/a-challenge-to-all-religious-believers-can-you-defend-your-religion)</center>",
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      "title": "The Jesus Myth - Why Many Biblical Scholars Cannot Be Objective.",
      "body": "<center>![](https://imgsnap.com/images/2018/01/16/red-flag.jpg)</center>\r\n<div class=\"text-justify\">A few days ago I did an introduction post to my series on why I believe that the figure of Jesus Christ beloved by Christians today is based on a myth (see the link at the end of this post if you wish to have a read)</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">Before delving deeper into my reasons for believing this, I want to first deal with the issue of scholarship bias in the field of biblical studies.</div>\r\n\r\n> “It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary depends upon his not understanding it!” - Upton Sinclair [1]\r\n\r\n<div class=\"text-justify\">One of the most common arguments used to defend Christianity is that most historians believe that the Jesus of the bible existed and that the evidence exists to prove it. This may be true on one level – that of most historians believe that Jesus existed – but there is a major problem.  Many of the historians often quoted are Christian biblical scholars who bring Christian bias and presuppositions to their work.</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">As one example of the kind of non-objectivity of the current crop of leading biblical scholars, Richard Burridge, whose book, ‘Introduction to the History of Christianity’  has the following remarkable statement concerning miracles and fulfilled Old Testament prophecies:-</div><br>\r\n> <div class=\"text-justify\">“Some people say we cannot be expected to believe this in our rational world; actually, such stories are very common in all forms of ancient literature, including their history books, as well as in other cultures. It really depends on our prior assumptions: if we rule such things out as impossible in advance, then they have no place in a historical account today. On the other hand, if we accept and believe in Jesus as the Son of God who was raised from the dead, then it should not be surprising that he could do extraordinary things.”[2]</div>\r\n\r\n<div class=\"text-justify\">Right from the get-go, Mr Burridge lays out how keen he is to forgo any form of critical analysis of the Bible by immediately accepting that everything in it is true – “if we accept and believe in Jesus as the Son of God who was raised from the dead, then it should not be surprising that he could do extraordinary things”. This cannot in anyway be called an objective statement.</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">Historian and biblical researcher Richard Carrier also lays into Bruce Chilton, a well known American scholar of early Christianity and Judaism. He cites Chilton as saying ‘Jesus is acknowledged as a figure of history’ due to ‘the unearthing of new information’ consisting of ‘both literary documentation and archaeological evidence’. Carrier then points out that almost none of this ‘new information’ mentions or attests to Jesus or even early Christianity while that which does mention Jesus is nothing more than late fictions about him. He then accuses Chilton of being ‘disingenuous at best, and deceitful at worst’.[3]</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">Another major problem we come across with biblical scholarship is that many biblical scholars are employed by theological or denominational dominated institutions. This may not be too bad if those institutions allowed scholarship to exist that went against their ethos, but in many cases, they don’t.</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">Of these employing institutions, at least 41% require that their employee's sign or verbally confirm a statement of faith or similar religious commitment. One University has this to say about the consequences for failure to adhere to their faith statement</div><br>\r\n> <div class=\"text-justify\">“Whenever a member of the Board of Trustees, administrative officer, professor, teacher or instructor is not in complete accord with the foregoing Doctrinal Statement, he or she shall forthwith withdraw from all connections with the University, and his or her failure to do so shall constitute grounds for immediate removal from such positions by the Trustees”[4]</div>\r\n\r\n<div class=\"text-justify\">This kind of theological dictatorship has implications. There have been many cases where well-meaning Christian biblical scholars have lost their jobs or been seriously hampered by saying something that supposedly goes against their institution’s constraints. In his book ‘Jesus: Mything in Action, Vol. 1’ David Fitzgerald looks at the cases of six scholars who have suffered because of this. They are Mike Licona, Peter Enns, Bruce Waltke and Anthony Le Donne who lost their jobs,  Christopher Rollston who lost his tenured position and Tom Thompson who suffered years of harassment.[5]</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">Because of this poisonous atmosphere, the level of critical scholarship in biblical studies is extremely poor. As Raphael Lataster notes;</div><br>\r\n\r\n> <div class=\"text-justify\">“There is not much more that needs to be said about the methods of mainstream Historical Jesus researchers at this point; they’re terrible.” [6]</div>\r\n\r\n<div class=\"text-justify\">As a final point, it is interesting to note that all scholars who advocate a historical Jesus have access to the same sources yet draw a wealth of widely differing conclusions. As the Jesus historicist John Dominic Crossan has acknowledged:-</div>\r\n><div class=\"text-justify\">But that stunning diversity is an academic embarrassment. It is impossible to avoid the suspicion that historical Jesus research is a very safe place to do theology and call it history, to do autobiography and call it biography [7]</div>\r\n\r\n<div class=\"text-justify\">So, it is against this background that Richard Carrier has undertaken a completely new and probability-based approach to the question of whether a historical Jesus existed. We shall start examining the evidence in the next post.</div><br>\r\n\r\n### <center>Sources</center>\r\n\r\n[1]  Upton Sinclair. I, Candidate for Governor: And How I Got Licked, Berkely; CA: University of California Press, 1994, p. 109)\r\n\r\n[2] Richard Burridge. 'Introduction to the History of Christianity'. Minneapolis MN: Fortress Press, 2013. P31.\r\n\r\n[3] ‘On The Historicity of Jesus; Why We Might Have Reason For Doubt’. by Richard Carrier. Chapter 2. The Hypothesis of Historicity. Section 2. 'The Basic Problem'. 2014 Sheffield Phoenix Press.\r\n \r\n[4] Jesus: Mything in Action by David Fitzerald. Volume 1. Chapter two: Bias Cut.\r\n\r\n[5] Jesus: Mything in Action by David Fitzerald. Volume 1. Chapter two: Bias Cut.\r\n\r\n[6] ‘Jesus Did Not Exist – A Debate Among Atheists’ by Raphael Lataster with Richard Carrier. 2015. Chapter 3, The case for agnosticism.\r\n\r\n[7] Jesus: Mything in Action by David Fitzerald. Volume 1. Chapter three: Who Do Men Say that I am? citing from John Crossan’s book ‘The Historical Jesus: The Life of a Mediterranean Jewish Peasant (1993)\r\n\r\nImage from [www.2.bp.blogspot.com](http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-a_UiwZi7_Ao/UA121mIUeZI/AAAAAAAAAkw/kNHwAynAwt0/s400/red+flag.jpg)",
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      "permlink": "jesus-christ--history-or-myth-why-i-believe-he-didnt-exist-1515696018-1572924",
      "title": "Jesus Christ – History or Myth? Why I Believe He Didn’t Exist",
      "body": "<center>![](https://imgsnap.com/images/2018/01/11/ID-100249271.jpg)</center>\r\n<div class=\"text-justify\">I am an atheist and so obviously argue from the position of a non-belief in a god or gods. Doing this requires me to have some knowledge of the points I am arguing and it was while doing some research that I came across the theory that Jesus as a historical person never existed. While not believing that the miracle performing, Son of God Jesus was real I had always been open to the suggestion that the Jesus story was based on a real person or an amalgamation of people.</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">The theory postulated that the Jesus of the Gospels is nothing more than a myth and that Christianity exists in its present-day form because of misunderstandings and the propaganda promulgated by the early Christian Church. As it is now a widely held belief among scholars that the Patriarchs of the Old Testament (Moses, Joshua, Noah, Sampson etc) are mythical creations then why not Jesus? [1]</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">After looking at a very well constructed argument presented in the book ‘On the Historicity of Jesus – Why We Might Have Reason for Doubt’ by Richard Carrier and then after doing further research I have come to agree with the theory. I now believe that Jesus didn’t exist – definitely not as the Jesus portrayed in the Gospels and almost with a one hundred percent certainty, not as a historical person.</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">There is a wealth of information to publish in order to fully explain the Jesus Myth theory so I intend to do a series of posts outlining the various arguments. Some of the topics will cover:-</div><br>\r\n* How many past and present biblical scholars cannot be relied upon to present evidence-based arguments for the existence of Jesus.\r\n* Why the Bible cannot be taken as anything even closely resembling a historical document\r\nWhich I have covered to some extent in my posts of the Gospels of Mark, Matthew, Luke and John. (see below for links)\r\n* Why Christianity had its origins in a Jewish break-away cult based on a myth which, in turn, had its roots in much older belief systems.\r\n* Why present-day Christianity is the result of winning a ‘propaganda war’ and is now nothing like the first Christians believed.<br>\r\n\r\n<div class=\"text-justify\">I believe that the Jesus Myth theory strikes at the very heart of Christianity – the belief in a divine Jesus who walked the earth two thousand years ago, performed miracles and was resurrected after dying on the cross in order to atone for the sins of humankind – and therefore needs to be carefully studied and subjected to a rigorous review. </div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">If nothing else this theory should spark a debate on the reasons why Christians believe what they do and maybe force a revaluation of long-held beliefs and the institutions that uphold and guard those beliefs.</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">By the way, I am focusing on Christianity for the simple reasons that it is the religion I am most familiar with and it is the religion that the theory deals with. As it happens I think that what applies to Christianity also applies to almost all the religions of the world.</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">So, in order to further the debate, I invite all those interested - whether you are a believer, an agnostic or an atheist - to take part in a debate over the next few weeks (via the comments section) based on the various articles I will post.</div><br>\r\n \r\n### <center>Rules For The Debate</center>\r\n\r\nTo enable a productive debate the following rules must be observed when commenting.\r\n\r\n<div class=\"text-justify\">Be civil. I appreciate that this subject may press a few buttons but please don’t take it personally. Politeness doesn’t cost anything.</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">With that in mind; any abusive or offensive behaviour to others will be flagged and the instigator ignored in future debates.</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">If you decide to take place in the debate and you cite something please provide the source.\r\nProvide evidence for what you say; ‘because I have faith’ doesn’t cut it. Neither does ‘look around you at and see how everything fits in beautifully together. There must be a god behind it all’. That is Creationism and has no relevance to this topic. a debate for another day maybe?</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">And that's it. I am aware that in publishing these posts I may alienate or antagonise some but I hope that the majority out there will be open-minded enough to explore new ideas. So, what do you think? Are you up to debate this subject and maybe challenge beliefs you have held all your life? I look forward to talking with you in the weeks ahead.</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">Subsequent posts will be long – sorry about that – but there is a lot of information to get through.</div><br><div class=\"text-justify\">Throughout this series of posts, I will rely heavily on the aforementioned book - ‘On the Historicity of Jesus – Why We Might Have Reason for Doubt’ by Richard Carrier. I will attempt to state the relevant chapters from where I have gathered my information as well as any sources Carrier uses.</div><br>Any other sources will be notated as and when used.\r\n\r\n### <center>Sources</center>\r\n[1]  Jesus: Mything in Action by David Fitzerald. Volume 1. Part One: Myths of Mythicism. Chapter One: Of Dinosaurs and Deniers.\r\n\r\nRichard Carrier ‘On The Historicity of Jesus; Why We Might Have Reason For Doubt’ 2014 Sheffield Phoenix Press. Chapter 1. The Problem.\r\n\r\n### <center>Image Sources</center>\r\n\r\n<center>[Image by Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net](www.freedigitalphotos.net)</center>\r\n### <center>My Previous Posts</center>\r\n\r\n<center>[The Gospel according to John - Over the top propaganda](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/the-gospel-according-to-john-over-the-top-propaganda)</center>\r\n\r\n<center>[The Gospel according to Luke -\r\n A fabricated tale to heal sectarian divides](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/the-gospel-according-to-luke-a-fabricated-tale-to-heal-sectarian-divides)</center>\r\n\r\n<center>[The Gospel according to Matthew - Mostly a tune-up of Mark](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/the-gospel-according-to-matthew-mostly-a-tune-up-of-mark)</center>\r\n\r\n<center>[The Gospel according to Mark - Clever myth making](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/the-gospel-according-to-mark-clever-myth-making)</center>\r\n\r\n<center>[The Gospels are not eye-witness accounts](https://steemit.com/christianity/@historicus/the-gospels-are-eye-witness-accounts-right-err-no-i-m-afraid-not)</center>\r\n\r\n<center>[A challenge to all religious believers](https://steemit.com/introduceyourself/@historicus/a-challenge-to-all-religious-believers-can-you-defend-your-religion)</center>",
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