Wouldn't that mean the writers could twist the facts any way they wanted? Could the true message pf Jesus have been warped? It seems many Christians today are disdainfull of other religions, yet Jesus was a kind man who respected everyone. Why is this?
2006-09-12 06:22:38 · 25 answers · asked by Shinkirou Hasukage 6 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
It was compiled in the 3rd century, but extant copies of the Gospels date to the end of the 2nd century, and fragments date to the mid 2nd century.
But you have the basic gist correct. No-one who wrote anything in the New testament had ever actually met Jesus, nor do any of them even claim to have received their information from people who knew Jesus.
Other than Paul, the other writers came so late they could not realistically have ever even met someone who had known Jesus, and Paul seems to know nothing at all about an earthly Jesus except that he was crucified for our sins.
The whole New Testament is an elaborate system of hearsay.
2006-09-12 06:30:45 · answer #1 · answered by lenny 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
No, the entire Bible as we know it was compiled about 400 years after Jesus' death. It was written by many different authors before then. There are even some books of the bible that never even made it into the canon, such as the Gnostic gospels of St. Thomas and Mary Magdalene. The Bible that the Catholics use has some extra books in it, called the Apocrypha.
In my honest opinion, the Bible is the most flawed book in the world. It has been copied and pasted together too many times to be accurate for anything. It is entirely written by humans, as is evident from all the internal contradictions, as well as obvious contradictions to modern science.
The bible also condones horrible practices, such as slavery (Exodus 21:2-6, Exodus 21:7-11, 1 Timothy 6:1-2), rape (Deuteronomy 22:28-29, Deuteronomy 22:23-24, Numbers 31:7-18), murder (Hosea 9:11-16, Isaiah 13:15-18, Jeremiah 48:10), and human sacrifice (Genesis 22:1-18, Exodus 13:2, Judges 11:29-40). Go ahead, look them up. Most of them are Old Testament, but there's a New Testament verse in there.
I'm going to have to gently disagree that Jesus respected everyone. When a Samaritan woman with a sick daughter asked Jesus for help, he called her and her daughter dogs. I just don't consider that very respectful.
When it comes right down to it, the reason most Christians are distainful of others is because they feel they are right, and everyone else is wrong. The Bible tells them so!
2006-09-12 14:14:46 · answer #2 · answered by Avie 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
All teachings were passed down orally. That is the reason the bible is written in parables. It made it easier to remember when the teachings were told as stories. The Jewish people were slaves and uneducated. Not having written language. Christians used to Jewish so again they were still uneducated but now free from slavery. Nothing was in writing until many many years later including the Old and New Testament. The exact timing is unclear but some do say 200 years after Jesus' death.
At this point it is all speculation. To those that believe it does not matter. For the record I am not christian however, I have done extensive research into the history of Christianity.
2006-09-12 14:32:52 · answer #3 · answered by Nelly 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The earliest parts of the New Testament started to be written only 20 years after Jesus` s death. All of the gospels were written by the year 100. Jesus`s message as recorded in the Bible has not been warped, but it is true that many Christians are not as kind as they should be.
2006-09-12 13:30:11 · answer #4 · answered by andy c 7 · 3⤊ 0⤋
OT books were around before him.
NT books were around about 40 - 70 AD .
The final list of cannon is what took longer to agree upon. The list was actually available much earlier with the exception of a book or two. Here is some of the criteria for cannon:
-The author can be verified
-The date of origin can be pinned down and it could have copme from the supposed author
- The letter is in possesion by the church it was sent to
- The content in the book agrees with other verifiable scripture
- There is a true redemptive thread of Christ in the book
This criteria succesfully weeded out alot of heretical writings that were written to justify some point that did not jibe with the mission of Christ or with the other scriptures that were verifiable.
The Bible is actually much more authentic and viable than any other document of such age. Also there are more copies of the manuscripts around than comparable works of Roman or Greek literature and the copies are more acurate than those comaprable works. The Bible has stood the test of time more than even Plato's works
2006-09-12 13:48:54 · answer #5 · answered by mgreenpa 1 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Jesus wasn't the writer of the Bible. He gave the ideas to the writers. The Bible has gone through many years and languages, hence the different versions. Religious rivalry is a waste of time when most can agree that there is some kind of higher purpose or leader or greater good.
I personally believe you get to heaven by asking Jesus Christ into your life. Getting to heaven just by asking is pretty good I think.
2006-09-12 13:29:23 · answer #6 · answered by Nicole 2 · 2⤊ 0⤋
The Old Testament was written some 1000 years before Jesus, and several books of the New Testament were written nearly 50 years or more after his death.
2006-09-12 13:25:44 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 0⤋
The new testament was written at least fifty years after Jesus' death. But the Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and the five books of moses are much older. If you read these older works carefully you will see that most of what Jesus said about kindness and caring for others was part of the Jewish tradition in which he was raised.
2006-09-12 13:27:05 · answer #8 · answered by epalmer613 2 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Jesus challenged the false practices of His day. The religious created a system around the Truth that became more important than what God revealed and wanted. They had lost touch with the Will of God, and Jesus wanted to restore it. He was Love, Mercy, Compassion...He was also anger, righteousness and Light. He was filled with Zeal for the House of His Father.
2006-09-12 14:41:32 · answer #9 · answered by novalee 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋
The oldest known book in existance is the book of Isaiah from the Bible. It predates Jesus by centuries, yet contains the most prophecies about him. Amazing, huh?
2006-09-12 13:35:03 · answer #10 · answered by Bad Cosmo 4 · 2⤊ 0⤋