@poemblaze @robfwtx @MLClark I'm just happy to see people sharing what they believe. Believing in something can be a wonderful thing. I'm not of the Judeo-Christian faiths but there is much in common with early Christianity and Buddhism. A similar birth story too, interestingly. Mysticism from early parts of both faiths share much. I'm Theravadin (a tradition of Buddhism) which is one of oldest Buddhist traditions and pretty conservative (small C) and scripture based. xx
Thanks for sharing, Florence!
I'd caution against using the term "Judeo-Christian", which is upheld by a lot of nasty anti-Semitic Christians to erase the thriving existence of Judaism and its peoples. "Abrahamic faiths" covers Judaism, Christianity, and Islam in a much less dangerous manner.
Have you come across the discourse suggesting the figure behind Biblical Christ might have spent his missing years wandering and learning from Indian mystics, among others?
@MLClark @poemblaze @robfwtx Great. Thank you.
@MLClark @poemblaze @robfwtx Are you on ResearchGate? I'd be interested to read any of your academic stuff. I'm on there also. Thank you.
No, I left academia to live in Colombia, which has given me a very different and wonderful education.
What do you study and write on? I still love to read solid academic research, though my reading tends toward international political discourse and the sciences these days.
@MLClark @poemblaze @robfwtx Oh, if you're not on there. No worries.
@MLClark I understand where you are coming from, but there are even secular bible scholars who beleive Jesus existed and that Paul himself wrote some of the epistles attributed to him. Granted, they are not the gospels themselves, but they do give a good idea of the state of Christian belief at the time. @Florence @robfwtx
@poemblaze @MLClark @robfwtx I tend towards this viewpoint too Matt. Josephus, who is sometimes seen as a reliable source, mostly confirms this.
When I say that the Biblical character of Christ is a pastiche I mean that it's cobbled together anecdotes from various sources. (For instance, the anecdote against throwing stones - later addition.) One of those street preachers might have had enough shared life events to be considered the "core Christ" in the gospels, but clearly differentiating what that single person said or did from the mess of added commentary decades later is not a realistic task.
I'm guessing I've been blocked for the above? Ah well. One person's friendly conversation is another's personal attack or "lecture", but that *is* the joy of this place. We can choose whom or what we want to engage with, or not.
Matt! Have a terrific rest of your day. I don't doubt you do many wonderful things in the world with your faith, and that's all that matters. Cheers.
@MLClark Haven't blocked you at all.
@MLClark Obviously we disagree on some of these things. Although the the collective lifespan was not high at the time, there were still people who lived into old age. If one believes that there were actual disciples who held together, they would have shared the stories they remembered.
In comparison, my great uncle me stores about his grandfathers. I have no reason to believe they are not largely true even though they're about men who were born around 200 years ago. I'm not mad I just disagree.
@poemblaze Oh, you didn't block me, Matt! I think Florence did. And that's okay. Hope her day improves, too!
And of course we disagree. :) You wouldn't have your faith in a god if you didn't. But I do enjoy our chats and wish you all the best. Cheers!
@MLClark there was a lot of travel for commerce across those lands back then. the influence shows up in early Greek philosophy too.
@Florence @poemblaze @robfwtx
It's been around for 150 years or so, tied to Western fetishization of Indian mysticism when it first emerged.
https://www.jstor.org/stable/41348773
Again, I want to be clear that I don't think the Christ character in the Bible is anything more than a pastiche of street preacher anecdotes and other spiritual ideas added by the gospels' anonymous authors many decades on.
But I see zero reason there wouldn't have been more commingling of mystic thinkers / preachers in the era.