[BrainSmashR]

Originally Posted by rhertz

There were dozens of divinely inspired writers who contributed to the Bible over hundreds of years. Some were prophets, some were disciples, some prisoners, but all had the spirit of God in their minds, hearts, and souls. We know this because they plainly said so. Contrast that to Homer recording fables or Dr Seuss writing stories. Even if such fables or stories hold some truth, this would have no bearing one way or the other on the validity of the Bible.

A marble relief, found in Italy but thought to have been sculpted in Egypt, depicts the apotheosis of Homer. It shows Ptolemy and his wife/sister Arsinoe III standing beside a seated Homer. The poet is shown flanked by figures from the Odyssey and Iliad, with the nine Muses standing above them and a procession of worshippers approaching an altar, believed to represent the Alexandrine Homereion. Apollo, god of music and poetry, also appears, along with a female figure tentatively identified as Mnemosyne, the mother of the Muses. Zeus, the king of the gods, presides over the proceedings. The relief demonstrates vividly how the Greeks considered Homer not just a great poet, but the divinely inspired source of all literature.[2]

That's from wikipedia. As you can plainly see, your thoughts are based on opinion alone, not easily accessible and readily verifiable fact....and again, we're talking about 2 parts of 1 story and only 1 author.

C'mon dude, you can't even debunk Homer while not being able to name one author of the Bible.

In large part, my proof is that the majority of people on the planet (Christians, Jews, and Muslims) believe he existed. That is considerable evidence. How many believe that Greek Mythology is the one true religion? I cannot name a single person who believes such. Do you believe the Iliad and Odyssey are non-fictional works that are historical and religious in context?

As I stated, the difference between Mythology and Religion is the number of current believers. 2007 years ago, how many people do you think followed a monotheistic religion, much less Christianity? How about 3000 years ago? How about 5000? How about 10,000 years ago in the first recorded histories of man? Heck dude, monotheism didn't even appear until around 1500 BCE.

I hate to call you a zealot, since you don't make a religious reference in every other post, but you are clearly and intentionally overlooking the obvious with on this one. As I stated, religion isn't a Democracy...majority is irrelevant.

Then you have never witnessed a “miracle” yourself? Have you ever prayed in Christ’s name and had your prayer answered? If not, then it comes as little surprise that you have no faith in Christ. I find that most people who believe in Christ do so out of personal experience. In other words, seeing is believing. Likewise have you prayed to Zeus and then witnessed your prayer answered against all odds? Is so, then I can understand why you believe in what you do. Again seeing is believing.

I don't pray to any alleged omnipotent being. Are you implying that any "miracle" you have witnessed doesn't have a scientifically related cause and affect?

Get real dude.....if ANY woman you know showed up pregnant tomorrow, would you believe it was an immaculate conception? Remember, intercourse doesn't have to happen for a pregnancy to occur, but but a meeting of sperm and egg must.

Are you saying that statistically speaking, the vast majority of people on earth are more often wrong than right? I happen to believe that mankind is more often right than wrong, and so do most modern scholars and psychologists. The “problem” is usually when an individual thinks the world is wrong yet he or she is right. Certainly, there is always the remote possibility that the whole world is wrong and that you are right, in which case the correct action is to keep your mouth shut about it. Why?

That is certainly not what I said. However, you cannot deny that the majority has been wrong on some relatively major issues be it a flat-Earth, or in your case, polytheistic beliefs. Heck, I'd go as far as to say you'd consider every non-Christian to be "wrong", regardless of their beliefs, correct?

You and society are linked together whether you like it or not. To know the truth, you have to believe in something and then act on it. Society will give you plenty of feedback. This site is one example. Now if society decides to hang you for heresy or treason then at least you will die secure in the knowledge that you contributed something to our party!

I believe in Science. I assumed that was perfectly clear....please forgive me if it was not.

Proof:
- Documentation: Old and New Testament, Dead Sea Scrolls, nearly all of Theology
- World Consensus: Substantial statistical proof that Jesus existed
- Experience: As a Christian, I am a living testament to the miracles I have witnessed and prayers than I have seen answered against all odds.
- Even the number of “Bible codes” would suggest this is not your average book

Obviously you and I have very different beliefs in what constitutes evidence. The Bible and the Dead Sea Scrolls are heresay....that is, not first-hand accounts. The majority of theology does not support Christianity....while I will concede it is currently the most popular, it's numbers are easily surpassed by the number 2 and 3 religions combined (Muslim, Hindu), and of course that doesn't even take into account the numerous other religions found throughout the world. Simply put, Christians only make up about 1/3 of the total global population, and that's putting you in the same category as snake handlers, the Amish, Mormons, and Jehovah's Witness...aren't you proud?

Where's the cross?
Where are the bones?
God saves souls....are you implying only once that he considered removing the body as well? How convenient.

To put mythology on par with Islam, Buddhism, Christianity, etc. puts you in a tiny minority statistically speaking, and possibly matching those who believe Man did not land on the moon, or that the WTC towers was as inside job, or that the world is still flat.

Or,the more likely case, you could just be another borderline zealot readily willing to overlook the obvious simply because it doesn't support your beliefs while waiting for the image of Mary to appear in another piece of toast.