Question for Jews and Christians?

Question

If it was absolutely proven to you the Exodus never happened, would that affect your faith, and do you think it would downplay the significance of the Torah?

This is a hypothetical question. None of you have answered it.

I am asking, hypothetically speaking, if it was proven to you that, and you accepted it, the Exodus never actually took place, would it affect your faith, and do you think it would undermine the significance of the Torah?

I'm not trying to debate the evidence for or against the historical likelihood of the Exodus; I am just curious how you would answer that hypothetical question.

Answer 1

I can't say how it would affect Judaism as a whole, I can only argue as to what it would do to ME personally.

My faith, I think, wouldn't be affected much. The Passover traditions we would have to re-think, but that's all hypothetical as I'm not sure how my religion would handle it. My beliefs wouldn't be much affected, and Torah would lose absolutely none of its significance.

Peace

Answer 2

This is one of those ifs that appears rather moot because it is an if that is less likely to happen than me winning a multi-million dollar lottery ( and I don't even buy tickets )


Now, even if one wants to doubt many aspects of the Exodus story or attribute natural meanings to many of the plagues or dispute dates or some details of events, the defining points of the Exodus story and most central to the identity of the covenant nation, Israel, was the one of collective Divine Revelation to the entire nation at once. If that story didn't happen, someone would have been challenging it with controversy from the very first time the Israelites first began telling one another what they witnessed collective AS a nation.

The significance of the Torah is the eternal covenant given and accepted..the eternal covenant that still exists today. The evidence of the covenant people Israel still existing more than 3500 years later despite all odds against so many attempts to obliterate the covenant people, is evidence that it has significance today.

For 2000 years there has even existed a group that has grown quite large who have insisted that the covenant was done away with..and despite 2000 years of phyical evidence to the contrary right before them..THAT significance doesn't alter their claiming it was.

Now, let's think again, which is more likely in light of those facts?

The following essay is also an excellent response to this question found at Simple To Remember web site..


EDIT: Perhaps YOU don't get it, as I already said, this is one of those what if's that's rather moot.

What if gravity didn't exist?

What if Dorothy really was in Oz?

If the story was not believed to have happened by the people who wrote it and gave it to their children, their children's children, etc , we wouldn't have the Torah to tell us about the story so the question is MOOT. Now, do you get it?

You also really didn't define if it was the entire story of Exodus or which parts you're asking about..are you asking..was there a Hebrew people enslaved in Egypt? Did they leave via the miraculous method detailed? Was there a national Divine revelatory experience before millions of people at once?

Your question is lacking, perhaps that's why no one has answered it to YOUR satisfaction.

However, I did answer it, in detail as it was written.

If it were proven beyond all doubt that the Revolutionary War and the formation of the United States didn't happen and you accepted that would that affect your choice to be an American citizen? ( that's the kind of way this reads to me...same "logic" ) It's a hypothetical but it's rather moot.

Answer 3

That would be a hypothetical. There are disparate dating scenarios for Exodus. A liberal dating scenario takes the northern and southern kingdoms sequentially and leads to an unlikely scenario. A conservative dating scenario takes northern and southern kingdoms somewhat overlapping at times which is more realistic and arrives at a possibly scenario for the Exodus and even a Pharaoh whose body is missing as the Pharaoh of exodus would possibly be fish food. We Christians love these missing body from the tomb stories, eh?

The weight of the evidence I have seen is not in that direction and I would recommend some authors like David Downs. And books like The Gold of Exodus.

Answer 4

The eviction and emigration of Semite tribes from ancient Egypt at the 14 century BC is history, not necessarily the Hebrew tribes, but the Hicos, or hixsos, Semites who conquered Egypt at the 16 Century BC and were removed at the 14 Century BC is a documented fact.
Another documented fact is the existence of troublesome nomads at the edges of Canaan since the 14 century BC, and these nomads were called Habirues by the Egyptians. the name Habirues is probably the Egyptian name for the Hebrews.

Answer 5

What you are asking is quite ridiculous. How about - "if it was absolutely proven that gravity does not exist........" One does not "downplay" the truth or eliminate laws for the sake of arguement. Now, we could argue what would happen if you never asked this question..........

Answer 6

It is all just the claims of man anyway. This is the problem with the bible as a whole. No god wrote anything. So we are left with the existence of god being based on the claimns of man. Conversely, to disagree with the bible means only to disagree with the claims of man. That is too weak a premise for me to be foundational to a faith. It crumbles when the claims of men are proved to be false.

Answer 7

No miracles are required in Judaism. It's a religion of knowledge and wisdom, and works with or without miracles. It's the absence of law that diminishes Judaism.
.

Answer 8

nothing has ever been proved absolute in anything ; the world was flat at one time until new information , knowledge proved otherwise; also thought that the moon was made of cheese ; faith is just that , faith; and I have mine

Answer 9

It is absurd to ask hypothetical questions like yours.

Answer 10

No that wouldn't effect my faith in God!!

Because just for that reason God knew people were going to contradict his word and he made other books proving the same point

Then made a new testament to prove it again

so one book is important

Cuz it makes me see how great God is

in plannin my life

HALLELUJAH!!!