Why do people have so much trouble believing what they can't see?

Question

In the past, stories would be passed down through the generations, telling about peoples ancestors, things they did, and why they did them. It was meant to keep the family traditions alive as they passed from one generation to the next. Nowadays, maybe because people have become untrustworthy, or just callus, but they hear the stories about Jesus, and the miracles he did, and treat it as though it's some Harry Potter novel. God revealed in the Bible his intentional restraint in the end times, because he wanted to see if anyone would still have faith enough to follow him, even if it's been so long since the time Jesus was here on earth healing people, etc. I wonder how many from this age will go to heaven, as opposed to say, 2000 years ago, when the miracles Jesus did were fresher in peoples minds? I still see miracles everyday, but then, I look for them!

Skep doc~Yeah?

1. Josephus- was the Jews greatest historian and a General.
He lived the 2nd 1/2 of the 1st century, at the same time as the apostles. He wrote a book called "Antiquities of the Jews".
In book 18, chapter 3, section 3, he wrote:

"About this time lived Jesus, a wise man, if it be proper to call him a wise man, for he was a doer of wonderful works! Teacher of such men as received the truth with pleasure.
He drew over to him both many of the Jews and many of the Greeks, and when Pilot at the instigation of the principal men among us had condemned him to the cross, those who had loved him did not forsake him. For he appeared to them again alive on the third day, the divine prophets having foretold these and many other things concerning him and a sect of Christians so named after him are not extinct to this day."

2. The Talmot- which are Holy Jewish writings refer to Jesus




There are numerous Pagan writings referring to Jesus:

1. Tasadus- was th

Aw, it wouldn't let me put the entire thing. Oh well.

runnynose~ Maybe so about the "fishes". But then how do you explain the healing that took place when Jesus touched someones eyes, or when they touched the hem of his garment?

Answer 1

it't not about believing in what you can't see but believing in what you BELIEVE is real.

Answer 2

Ask yourself this question: when a great deal of evidence is shown that Jesus' miracles were not the magical events that are in the bible, why don't you allow for this? When a priest told us that the loaves and fishes were not a magic story but, instead, about the real miracle of people seeing their unwillingness to share their food, people today react with anger. Isn't a story about love better than some silly magic story? And if you continue to go down this path, then consider that an Islamic terrorist wonders why you don't believe he's going to heaven and getting 72 virgins. Do you see the point that's being made here? 99.999% of people who are dogmatic and afraid won't ...

Answer 3

Scientific methods have been discovered which make us doubt a good many things. If it's not recorded on paper, stone or clay, I'm less likely to believe in it, and even if it is recorded, I'm not likely to believe something that hasn't been proven possible through scientific methods.

Not that I don't believe in deities, I just don't think They get involved in individual human lives very often. They've got a lot to take care of, especially since we're trying to kill off what They've provided.

And 2000 years ago the percentage of the population that was Christian was very small due to persecution. Not that I approve of it, but the Christian religion hadn't developed its methods of subverting other cultures quite yet, so it was rather small. In the times following, up to about 600 to 700 years, the "peasants" simply followed which the rich believed. They might not have actually had much belief themselves; in fact, a lot of "pagan" traditions were still followed, even by the rich, including folk traditions that involved warding off curses and bad luck.

Answer 4

Not sure because the same people have some sense, right? I mean, its not like they're going to jump off of the Empire State Building, right? That would mean they didn't believe in gravity and you can't see that. Or how about sticking a fork into an electrical socket? Can't see electricity but you sure will feel it. I know, what about the wind? Can't see the wind but if they stood in New Orleans a couple of years ago, they might have gotten blown over by hurricane winds. People often walk by sight rather than faith and its a short walk off of a short pier.

Answer 5

Harry Potter is better written and has more internal consistency. The Bible is a cut and paste job assembled by a political committee, then modified by hundreds, if not thousands of others over the centuries.

The King James version of the Bible so loved by fundies was based on translations of Greek manuscripts written 1000 years after Jesus life and death, It has many passages and changes that aren't in the earlies known manuscripts. There is not a single remaining document from earlier than 200 years after his death, and all the copies have been adulterated through transcription, editing for religious, political and social reasons. Transcription errors from amateur scribes were copied by others for centuries.

Read "Misquoting Jesus" for the truth about your precious Bible. The real history of the Bible is far more fascinating than the mythology of Christianity.

EDIT
Josephus wasn't even born until after Jesus death.

Josephus Flavius, the Jewish historian, lived as the earliest non-Christian who mentions a Jesus. Although many scholars think that Josephus' short accounts of Jesus (in Antiquities) came from interpolations perpetrated by a later Church father (most likely, Eusebius), Josephus' birth in 37 C.E., well after the alleged crucifixion of Jesus, puts him out of range of an eyewitness account. Moreover, he wrote Antiquities in 93 C.E., after the first gospels got written! Therefore, even if his accounts about Jesus came from his hand, his information could only serve as hearsay.

Answer 6

The Bible is no different than any other religious texts to ever come into existence. You should really study the evolution of religion from pantheistic and polytheistic to contemporary monotheistic religions.

Once you realize how and why the Bible was written, and what went on with its contents in the 4th century. There is your answer to why most scholars and the academec community do not give credit to the Bible.

Answer 7

It's all a waste of time. You know why? Because if miracles actually happened today, people would still not believe it was God working through that person. These idiots nowdays would attribute it to Thor or Zeus.

Answer 8

“The proof and evidence of the magic invisible puppies that hide in trees that are only revealed to those have a heart for the magic puppies & want them in their lives. Only then can you see the magic puppies! For those that don't want the magic puppies, they receive no evidence because the magic puppies will only respond to those that do want them and have faith in them."

Sound familiar? It should, it’s a word for word argument used by fundies, I just replaced god with magic puppy.

So my question is, how many people realize just how silly and ridiculous an argument is when Fundie Christians claim that you can’t understand that God exists because you don’t believe in him?

Answer 9

I think miracles are hard to believe because they often overbalance the world's nature and what is "logical", therefore, they make it hard to believe. Seeing something is one way of confirming something is real and really happened, so if people can't see something, they'd find it hard to believe it's true.
I think you're right, there are miracles, but you gotta look for them, not expect one to happen.

Answer 10

You know sometimes that even You,

embellish

enhance, or

present your thinking according to your very own

PERCEPTION

please remember there were no tape recordings

video or exact or precise remembrance of most

everything that happens.

Even with a video we still use instant replay from many different angles!

go figure!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

peace ( at every angle)

Answer 11

Like I posted earlier: Faith in God is not for wussies. It takes a lot of guts to believe without seeing. It is simple to believe if something is sitting right in front of you. DUH. The nonbelievers are taking the easy way out. Being a christian is tough. Why you ask- Well:

1 because we have to have unwaivering faith
2 because we have to put up with persecution from nonbelievers and their "proove it to me" syndrome

Hebrews 11:1. Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.