Easter Is Coming in 8 Weeks

Quote: Evenbob

Compound this with decades of stories on
stories on stories, and the liklihood of the
resurrection happening as it's portrayed in the
Bible isn't even 5%.

In the immortal words of Dumb and Dumber, "So you're saying I have a chance."

Quote: FrGamble

To experience the joy of flying there is nothing like flying.

The point you're missing is you don't have to fly in order to know flight is possible and real.

Quote: FrGamble

To experience the joy of flying there is nothing like flying. We can talk all we want about the academics and science behind aerodynamics, but it doesn't compare to flying. It is personal and makes it hard to explain to someone else, which is part of the strength of experience. I can't have your experiences for you, you have to have them yourself.

Sure, but this is not proof that a wing works in the way we surmise. This is just proof that the plane flies. We may not know how, or why, it just does. And that's cool and fine and dandy. But isn't proof of aerofoil effect.

Quote: FrGamble

In the immortal words of Dumb and Dumber, "So you're saying I have a chance."

No chance for me, I don't believe in god
or supernatural magic. Bill O'Reilly is a
Catholic and wrote Killing Jesus, about
his death on the cross. When asked why
he never mentions virgin birth or the
resurrection in the book, he said he only
wrote about what could be proved thru
sources other than the Bible. Eyewitness
accounts carried orally for decades are not
proof of anything. They aren't even proof
they're actual eyewitness accounts.

He puzzled a lot of Christians, they thought
the resurrection was a provable fact. Circular
logic rears it's head again.

Quote: FrGamble

You do have to make sure you understand the basics, that it makes sense to you, check out the plane make sure it is safe, .

But you're hardly doing something new. It's
already been proven beyond a doubt the
plane will fly, you know this or you wouldn't
even think about trying it. You act like you're
strapping on a pair of wings and jumping off
a cliff.

You must be comparing the plane analogy to
believing in god or the resurrection. 'Just give
it a try, you can only experience the joy of
believing by becoming a believer.' It doesn't
work that way. You believe in something because
to you it's true, just saying the words means
nothing. For some reason that's beyond me, you
can believe the stories in the Bible. For a lot
of us, we need more than that. Proof would be
nice..

Quote: TheCesspit

Sure, but this is not proof that a wing works in the way we surmise. This is just proof that the plane flies. We may not know how, or why, it just does. And that's cool and fine and dandy. But isn't proof of aerofoil effect.

No one is saying that it is proof of how a wing works, but ultimately what is more important that we fly or that we understand how to fly? I also wonder if there are certain things we only learned by actually flying? Life is an adventure and one that no matter how hard you try you will not have all the answers or understanding before you need to act. In living life you recognize your limitations, learn as much as you can, make reasonable choices, and trust other wise men and women who have gone before you - and go for it. Don't wait before it flashes before your eyes.

Quote: Evenbob

Eyewitness
accounts carried orally for decades are not
proof of anything. They aren't even proof
they're actual eyewitness accounts.

What a swath of history you cut through with such a ridiculous statement?!? Is there anything you believe actually happened before photography was invented?

It is hard to prove anything that happened so long ago.

If you can't confirm it experimentally, and you can't confirm it with physical evidence, then you are left with the written word and stories.

How much meaning has been lost through translations? How much was idiomatic? How much has changed through an oral history before it was written down?

Which was a parable, an outright fiction, or an actual fact?

If a copy or partial copies of Dianetics, or the Book of Mormon, or The Hunt for Red October are found centuries from now, will they be able to tell fact from fiction?

The older something like that is, the less credible it is as evidence of anything.

Quote: FrGamble

What a swath of history you cut through with such a ridiculous statement?!?

Not ridiculous at all. Jesus dying on the
cross was recorded in places other than
the Bible. The resurrection was not. Why
is that? It supposedly happened three
days after his death, and would have been
a very important detail of the death of
Jesus. It's fine if you and others want to
believe it happened, just don't claim it's
a proven fact when there's no forensic
proof whatever.

Quote: Dalex64

It is hard to prove anything that happened so long ago.

If you can't confirm it experimentally, and you can't confirm it with physical evidence, then you are left with the written word and stories.

How much meaning has been lost through translations? How much was idiomatic? How much has changed through an oral history before it was written down?

Which was a parable, an outright fiction, or an actual fact?

If a copy or partial copies of Dianetics, or the Book of Mormon, or The Hunt for Red October are found centuries from now, will they be able to tell fact from fiction?

The older something like that is, the less credible it is as evidence of anything.

Your point is only valid if there is not an actual history that develops alongside of any written or oral traditions. In a thousand years The Hunt for Red October will be known to be fiction because that truth has been passed down along with the excellent book. You act as if these ancient stories were even ancient to their contemporaries. They knew what was true and important and passed that down to their children and students and so forth. This is why we don't have today thousands of different Messiah stories and why we have an understanding of who the Roman Emperors were back then. The false chaff gets filtered out and falls away, the truth remains and is passed on. I suppose some of this takes trust in that we don't have photos of Jesus Resurrected (of course, many believe that is what the Shroud of Turin is), but it is not unreasonable to believe the ancient history that has been passed onto us by written word and stories.

Quote: Evenbob

It's fine if you and others want to
believe it happened, just don't claim it's
a proven fact when there's no forensic
proof whatever.

Again if you need forensic proof it is hopeless for you. Do you currently or would you ever believe in anything if you did not have forensic proof?