If Jesus wasn’t a real historical figure, where did Christian theology come from?
![[Post New]](/jforum/templates/default/images/icon_minipost_new.gif){kind=icon}
Anonymous
It makes sense to aim criticism of religion as a whole at the majority religion. Christianity is the most likely to impact an atheist's daily life, as it's often ingrained in our culture at large. I imagine if an atheist was in a majority Jewish or Buddhist culture, they would spend more time criticizing the religious encroachment on their lives of those religions instead. |
Anonymous
I was following up on comments where people specifically talked about the process they used to pick their religion. I don't see anyone claiming they are Buddhist. I'll check the others as soon as I can - busy week at work. I wasn't closely following all of posts when there was a lot of bickering back and forth. |
Anonymous
Buddists and Jews would probably not bother encroaching on atheists. |
Anonymous
Jewish PP here. Shanah Tovah! Happy New Year, everyone! Though PP's questions weren't directed at me, I'm happy to answer them.
For me, "basic differences" were at first rooted in the biases of the religion in which I grew up (conservative Protestantism). The Christian PP at 09/24/2022 22:04 shares what he finds meaningful in Christian theology in contrast presumably with Judaism (the reference to laws about what we can eat, personal hygiene, and the covenant with God). I'd like to point out that those "basic differences" are based on a Christian understanding of those laws and covenants, and that the Jewish interpretation of them: a. varies. There is a Jewish saying: "Two Jews, three opinions." b. is much more complex than God caring about what we eat or how we bathe, and that being "the chosen people" is not understood in Judaism as a lessening of other people, in the way that I think PP is interpreting all of that. That's not to say that I think Christian PP should convert, or that one needs to have an in-depth understanding of all religions in order to "pick" one. Plenty of people are happy and find deep meaning in the religion into which they were born, and I don't think there's anything wrong with that. Plenty of people do basic comparative religion from the point of view of their own religion and confirm that they like their own beliefs, and that's fine too. It's "enough" for the purposes of choosing a religion if it leads someone to happiness and meaning in their religion.
I was raised in my Protestant church. For me, that meant I was baptized, went occasionally to services and Sunday school, went through confirmation classes, celebrated major holidays in mostly secular ways (Christmas tree, Easter bunny). I also attended church with family and friends who were Catholic, Evangelical, and other forms of Protestant. When I was older, I considered myself agnostic. My dad is pretty much atheist and I took a lot of my cues from him and from The Daily Show and other political satire/comedy that mocked religion. In college, when I began to explore other Protestant denominations, I attended various churches (Congregationalist, Unitarian Universalist, Lutheran, Presbyterian). I also spoke with my devout grandma, the pastors at these various churches, and my college professors and other college staff who were religious (of various religions). When I started exploring Judaism, I attended a synagogue every week and talked to the rabbi and a couple of my Jewish professors. I read books about Jewish thought that were recommended to me (both Judaism 101 type books and books of Jewish thought by authors like Heschel and Kushner). I took a class offered by a visiting Israeli professor about antisemitism and another class on the archaeology of the bible taught by a non-religious professor. After a couple years attending synagogue services, I moved and joined a new synagogue, where I began formal conversion classes and discussions with the rabbis there.
No, I was raised Protestant and now I'm Jewish. I spent some time after deciding on Judaism exploring different denominations. I started out Reform, then became Conservative*, went to a couple Reconstructionist synagogues, then Modern Orthodox for a while. I circled back to Conservative, where I am very happily raising my own family now. *I should note that "Conservative Judaism" has no affiliation to conservative American politics. It's a bad name for a movement that is really about balancing adaptation to the modern world and conserving our traditions. |
Anonymous
|
Did anyone see the religious switching poll done by Pew recently?
https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2022/09/29/religious-switching-patterns-will-help-determine-christianitys-course-in-u-s/ |
Anonymous
thanks - hadn't seen it. Interesting. |
Anonymous
^^^ Must.bump.thread. Because I have no hobbies outside of DCUM. |
Anonymous
Bumping it after 3+ hrs? Yes, that seems desperate. |
Anonymous
As opposed to responding to that bump, which is completely normal in every way. |
Anonymous
Just funny to complain about bumping a thread - by bumping a thread. 
|
Anonymous
I found it interesting not only because of the examples of religious switching related in this thread, but also in a larger sense to OP's original question: Does it matter whether Jesus was divine or where Christian theology came from, if it's not speaking to people today? (Obviously it still speaks to many people, but the increasing rate of religious switching suggests that it's fewer people every year). |
Anonymous
good one -- plus, nothing wrong with reiterating a point, i.e., bumping a thread |
Anonymous
If you say so.
|
Anonymous
Who decides if evidence is "definitive?" There is evidence (fact). Whether anyone is persuaded by that evidence is up to each individual. |
Anonymous
Unbiased people |