In the most recent podcast episode of Skeptoid — a podcast which I enjoy immensely and would highly recommend — Brian Dunning takes on the folk myth that Hebrew Slaves built the Egyptian Pyramids. This myth, of course, has no basis in either history or archeology and Dunning does an excellent job of demonstrating this [...]
If you have not read my previous post on Theo1689, it may be helpful for you to browse what I have written there to provide context for what I discuss here. Before seeking to answer Theo1689’s questions about Mormon doctrine and dogma as it relates to the Biblical text, it is important to put a [...]
I have had a long-standing interest in Mormon apologetics which began when I was a teenager. Many of my friends were devout evangelical Christians who, on more than one occasion, “witnessed” to me about the error of Mormon beliefs. Given that at the time I was also quite zealous, such conversations generally involved long discussions [...]
When we compare how the slaves of other nations in the ancient Near East were treated, we can see that the laws regarding slavery, especially as outlined in Exodus, were incredibly progressive for the time. … We can see that while it may be easy to simply adopt the practices and customs of those around us, sometimes it is necessary to break with tradition in order to improve social conditions for all.
By requiring “’faith in the gospel’ Jesus simply meant a trusting in him and in the news that he had proclaimed, that now under him the kingdom of the Messiah was to begin, and that by ‘mysteries’ he understood the parables about this kingdom, insofar as they were not immediately clear to the common man, but needed some explanation.” … Reimarus goes on to give a detailed analysis of the contradictions in the resurrection narratives in an effort to show that they were invented and added after Jesus’ hope of worldly deliverance had failed. Reimarus is to be admired for being the first to attempt to separate the words and intentions of Jesus in the gospels from the later interests and concerns of the Christian community which appeared after Jesus’ death.
As such, our interaction and dialogue – if such dialogue exists – is defined not by an effort to understand and identify commonalities but rather, is punctuated with constant efforts to undermine, gain rhetorical advantage, and demonstrate – at least to ourselves and those with whom we share similar beliefs – how absurd, inane, and plainly stupid each other’s position really is. … More than any other passage in the New Testament, these verses convey what is at the heart of the message of Jesus; that we must gain a lasting victory over our enemies not by full engagement, but rather by transcending the very notion and concept of enemies itself; by consciously removing ourselves from the cycle of animosity which has hitherto animated and consumed us.
