Bible Question for Christian Fundamentalists (those who take the Bible literally)?

Question

There is an alleged miracle in the gospels (the Gadarine swine) where Joshua (Jesus' s real name as Jesus is a Greek mistranslation) drives hundreds of demons out of the mind of a mad man and send them into the minds of a large herd of swine. The swine then all drown themselves.
(a) Why would pigs be in a Jewish community as they did and do not eat them and Jews would not tolerate pig farming even today ( If you don't believe this try get zoning for a hog farm in Israel)?
(b)If true do you think this shows that Joshua had no respect for other people's property as being divinely omnipotent he could have got rid of the demons in a less destructive way?
(c) If true do you think Joshua advocated cruelty to animals and had sadistic tendancies ( those poor wee piggies)?
(d) In view of my observations do you think this story is a pack of lies.
Please answer all parts of this question....The Pilgrim

to Psuedo-obscure..It was definitely pigs, referred to as swine

To Mr Mister.. I am serious

To PastorJ...
Your idea that Joshua is a translation of Jehovahshua is erroneous as Jehova the first part of that name is William Tyndall’s ( the first translator of the Bible into Englsh) famous mistranslation of the Hebrew word for God YHWY
Hebrew has no vowels hence your verbiage is rubbish.
Your statement that Jesus taught the Jews a lesson is not in my Bible so I assume it is your fiction..
As a vegetarian I think it cruel to farm animals to eat.

Answer 1

The area around where this happened was divided into different ethinic groups and actually seperate countries, & the Jews where not the majority at all. So the Swine probably belonged to some Greeks or others. However it is more then likely that the whole story is an allegory and bull$hit. Surely an intelligent talented pig like yourself does not believe in demons or miracles and are aware the Bible is 90% lies, and as a pig you know you have a strong sense of self preservation. There is no such thing as Kosher bacon either.

Answer 2

A. In Biblical times there were other ethnic groups in Israel. Circa 30 C.E. Israel was a Roman province, ruled by a Roman appointed "king", and occupied by Roman soldiers. Presumably, there were a lot of non-Jewish Roman or Romanized civilians around. Since the Romans liked pork, there would have been pig farmers, although probably not Jewish pig farmers.

B. A possible explanation is that J sent the demons into the pigs as a form of protest against the outsiders/occupiers who profaned the true G-d by openly raising swine in the Holy Land.

C. There is not a lot in the Bible, either Testament, that indicates a whole lot of concern about animals' mental health. Such as there is, however, would indicate that if there was another alternative, it should have been used. Explanation: J was rushed, wanted the miracle to be showy, and didn't think it through all the way.

D. I don't believe any miracle story is true, from Adam & Eve and the Garden, any of the New Testement, through to the wonder working Rabbis of the Middle Ages or the Shroud of Turin. I didn't think J was real before, and I don't think J was real now. Your question is, however, a fun exercise in history, Bible and logic.

Answer 3

What a great question, I like the way you set it up. I realized before reading the question that you doubt the validity of the Bible and it is always fun to discuss eachothers opinions.
You open your question by stating an "alleged" miracle pointing out a "Greek mistranslation" of the name Jesus. The intent is to cause people to reflect on the Bibles validity before the question is being asked, pretty good approach.
a) You ask about the presence of pigs in a Jewish community...claiming that because there were pigs mentioned it must not have happend. This is not the only spot that pigs are mentioned in the Bible (new or old covenant). Furthermore you assume that the pigs belonged to Jews...Do you really think that only Jews live in Israel, even today? To state that zoning law in Israel today is a valid excuse for zoning law in israel then, we both most likely know nothing of zoning then or now in Isreal.
b. Whether or not compensation was paid to the owners is not stated. The overiding point is that pigs are unclean just as demons are and the result of evil is flees for Jesus authority. Jesus could have gotten rid of the legion of demons anyway he wanted. He chose to off some pigs with the demons...who says Jesus is a softy? Who says that he values a pigs life more then the man who he freed? Why do you insist Jesus has to be so touchy feely? Jesus is a shepherd of his flock as he said "I am the good shepherd", Shepherds kill to protect their flock...nothing wrong with that.
c. It would be Sadistic if Jesus enjoyed seeing the pigs died...there is no reference to him being this way...PETA did not exist then, nor has it ever been pro Jesus, why should he follow their rules?
d. I think you are trying to present a truth in a way that decieves those who do not know better. I think you are looking for a reason to bash Jesus even though he died and was resurected for you too.
I think that before you jump to so many assumptions you should consider the larger picture, Everything is not so cut and dry.

Answer 4

First off Joshua is the Hebrew version of His name from Jehovahshua which means God is salvation. It translates into greek as Iesous which in english becomes Jesus. Do a little more etymological research and you will discover I am right.

A. The Jews should not have been farming pigs.
B. Jesus healed the demon possesed man and taught the Jews who were illegally farming pigs a lesson since they were breaking the law.
C. How was this cruel? They would have been butchered anyway and animals do not have souls so it is a moot point. I don't believe we should be cruel to animals in anyway but animals do not have the same rights as humans.
D. Your observations are wrong and come from a biased view of Jesus and the Bible.

Answer 5

i believe that god send the pack of demons into the pigs in order to show the people the ferocity and nature of demons Jesus was not a sadist he had only done that once. in order for us to understand better the nature of those evil entities. pigs back them were seen( to Jews) as dirty animals and pigs as dirty animal could no handle the pack of demons.Through that act Jesus showed us How that man was feeling how unbearable it must have been for him to live with that pack of demons inside of him. what other way could have Jesus shown us how that man felt if not that way ???
another thing, back then there are other people that lived in Judea Romans, Samaritans and other people that i can't remember cause i haven't been in a church or read read the bible in a long time.

Answer 6

a) this shows that the community there wasn't following Jewish law. Remember that there was a big push on at that time for people to become more civilized (ie more like the Romans) and some people accepted it.

b) again, this was property they weren't supposed to have (pigs being unclean) and the demons asked to be allowed to go there.

c) no, he wasn't the one who made them drown themselves--the demons did that.

d) no, it seems true. The story shows what sympathy Jesus had for the possessed man. The pigkeepers didn't care about him, they only cared about their pockets.

Answer 7

As you pointed out pigs are abhorrent to Jews, so I imagine Jesus said to himself, "Hey, I know how I can get rid of these demons and those effing swine in one fell swoop... it's a win-win situation!" He then worked out a modest compensation package for the poor pig farmer whose livelihood He had destroyed... I think He cured a boil on the guy's a$$ or something like that.

Answer 8

Romans eat pork. Roman's ruled the land. The spirit in the man was 'legion', a Roman term.

God may have been illustrating how people who espouse world domination, will meet their end.

It's good that you look for obvious contradictions, but the many anomalies in the bible can teach more than skepticism.

Answer 9

There are many such contradictions in the bible. People that try to take it literally are crazy. I know this is not an answer to your question but its the best question/statement I've read all night. I bet you've got them all pissed off and scratching there heads at the same time. lol (agnostic)

Answer 10

SINCE YOUR AVATAR IS A PIG I'M GOING TO GUESS THAT YOU ARE NOT JEWISH. SINCE YOU SINGLED OUT CHRISTIAN FUNDAMENTALISTS I'M GOING TO GO OUT ON A LIMB AND SAY YOUR NOT ONE OF THEM EITHER. YOU SOUND LIKE YOU GIVE GOD AND HIS SON'S WORK A LOT OFF THOUGHT SO I GUESS YOUR HEADED IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION. SINCE I'M A BELIEVER THAT DOESN'T LET OTHERS PROVOKE ME TO ANGER I WILL SIMPLY SAY KEEP THINKING AND READING AND SOMEDAY YOU TOO WILL UNDERSTAND AS I DO. AND IF YOU DON'T I DON'T NEED TO WORRY BECAUSE YOU WON'T BE SPENDING ETERNITY IN MY NECK OF THE WOODS. IF I DON'T SEE YOU IN THE HERE AFTER I'LL KNOW YOU STOPPED QUESTIONING AND SEARCHING AND MADE A DIFFERENT CHOSE THEN ME. SEE YOU LATER OR MAYBE NOT!