Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was an agnostic, then baptized as an adult. What convinced me about Jesus is that there are too many coincidental things that have happened in my life for there not to be a greater power behind it. I also cannot believe that if the whole thing was a myth, so many people would forward the story through history. Jesus is arguably the most significant person who ever lived. It is beyond me to think there is not at least some truth to his story.

Then why aren’t there any first-hand historical accounts if he was so significant?

Certainly his “story” is significant, but the man?

Why is the Gospel of John not a first-hand historical account? Or Peter's letters? Or Luke's account, which is nothing if not a contemporary account?

Oh, I know! If it's in the Bible, it doesn't count.

Because they aren’t independent historical accounts.

No, it's because you don't like the message.

OP sounds like a douche.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP - Maybe Religious Mentoring is a bad term. Most firms over last 20 years Diversity and Inclusion is a big thing. Even with Religion. At all jobs I had in last 20 years we did things for for all religions except banned from any mention of anything Judaeo/Christian related.

My companies have done stuff for Holi, Diwali, Kwanza, Ramadam even Bodhi day. But against the rules to have a Christmas party, in fact recently the term Holiday Party was banned as it comes from term Holy Day and may relate to Christmas. So now a random end of year event.

Now I have mainly of Asian/India background who run all over Passover, Hanukah, Yom Kipper, Good Friday, Lent etc. Since we are banned from mentioning them and some cultures stick close together outside of work they are not as familar with it.

Heck when I was in consulting or when I helped planned conferences I cant tell you the number of events that would have blown up in my face if I did not step in. The Steakhouse luncheons on Friday during Lent, Booking meetings afternoon of Good Friday that are mandatory when a lot of attendees last names are clearly Italian and Irish. Booking Meetings late in evening on eve of first night of Passover, Yon Kipper or Rosh Hashanai etc. Drives me nuts. Now I am banned from saying hey if you want to a late Friday lunch meeting with Orthodox Jew and Catholics during Lent and Passover and serve Pork - go ahead. Cant tell you why. BTW maybe tell the Orthodox guys that Moses is not a real person.

That is straight-up BS. It is absolutely possible to tell people that a given event might conflict with a major religious observance, or require some accommodation. I mean, it's silly to assume that people with Italian and Irish last names can't attend a meeting on Good Friday--plenty of Catholics work on Good Friday. But saying, "I see you made a reservation at Beefy McSteak's. Have we checked the menu to make sure there are fish and vegetarian options?" Or "This event needs to end by X time, or it's going to run into Yom Kippur." can't possibly be forbidden unless you work for morons who don't care if they piss off clients and customers.

But it's not uncommon that people don't know the details of other religions' holidays and practices.

+1

OP sounds like an annoying, whiny co-worker.

Anonymous wrote:OP - Maybe Religious Mentoring is a bad term. Most firms over last 20 years Diversity and Inclusion is a big thing. Even with Religion. At all jobs I had in last 20 years we did things for for all religions except banned from any mention of anything Judaeo/Christian related.

My companies have done stuff for Holi, Diwali, Kwanza, Ramadam even Bodhi day. But against the rules to have a Christmas party, in fact recently the term Holiday Party was banned as it comes from term Holy Day and may relate to Christmas. So now a random end of year event.

Now I have mainly of Asian/India background who run all over Passover, Hanukah, Yom Kipper, Good Friday, Lent etc. Since we are banned from mentioning them and some cultures stick close together outside of work they are not as familar with it.

Heck when I was in consulting or when I helped planned conferences I cant tell you the number of events that would have blown up in my face if I did not step in. The Steakhouse luncheons on Friday during Lent, Booking meetings afternoon of Good Friday that are mandatory when a lot of attendees last names are clearly Italian and Irish. Booking Meetings late in evening on eve of first night of Passover, Yon Kipper or Rosh Hashanai etc. Drives me nuts. Now I am banned from saying hey if you want to a late Friday lunch meeting with Orthodox Jew and Catholics during Lent and Passover and serve Pork - go ahead. Cant tell you why. BTW maybe tell the Orthodox guys that Moses is not a real person.

That is straight-up BS. It is absolutely possible to tell people that a given event might conflict with a major religious observance, or require some accommodation. I mean, it's silly to assume that people with Italian and Irish last names can't attend a meeting on Good Friday--plenty of Catholics work on Good Friday. But saying, "I see you made a reservation at Beefy McSteak's. Have we checked the menu to make sure there are fish and vegetarian options?" Or "This event needs to end by X time, or it's going to run into Yom Kippur." can't possibly be forbidden unless you work for morons who don't care if they piss off clients and customers.

But it's not uncommon that people don't know the details of other religions' holidays and practices.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was an agnostic, then baptized as an adult. What convinced me about Jesus is that there are too many coincidental things that have happened in my life for there not to be a greater power behind it. I also cannot believe that if the whole thing was a myth, so many people would forward the story through history. Jesus is arguably the most significant person who ever lived. It is beyond me to think there is not at least some truth to his story.

Then why aren’t there any first-hand historical accounts if he was so significant?

Certainly his “story” is significant, but the man?

Have you thought about this question?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:22 percent of adults in England do not believe Jesus was a real person.

https://talkingjesus.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/Talking-Jesus-dig-deeper.pdf

But they know that Christians regard him as if he were a real person. I think that’s what OP is getting at. She is surprised that Hindus aren’t aware that Christians regard Jesus as a real person who actually lived on Earth. Honestly, it surprises me too.

Why does that surprise you? What do you know about Hinduism or Buddhism? or Judaism for that matter?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:22 percent of adults in England do not believe Jesus was a real person.

https://talkingjesus.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/Talking-Jesus-dig-deeper.pdf

But they know that Christians regard him as if he were a real person. I think that’s what OP is getting at. She is surprised that Hindus aren’t aware that Christians regard Jesus as a real person who actually lived on Earth. Honestly, it surprises me too.

No, the OP is stating as fact that Jesus was a real person and is shocked that Hindus would not automatically know or share this opinion as a fact.

Hindus know Christians worship someone named Jesus. Whether that person is real or make believe to Christians or to anyone else for that matter, is not something that Hindus sit around and ponder.

They also don't quiz other people to find out if they truly understand Hinduism. Nor do they go around harassing employees or co-workers about their own religion or beliefs.

It really doesn't matter because Hindus don't go around trying to tell people that their religious beliefs are wrong or that who they believe in is wrong.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There are documented accounts of Jesus as early as the first century. Scholars at the time did not debate his existence. But I suppose if you’re an atheist on here no answer is good enough so it’s an easy way to pile it on.

I have no issue with research that Jesus was a historical person. That does appear to be fairly well accepted by scholars. But obviously, that he likely existed says nothing at all about anything else.

I do. There are no first-hand reports and many sources are sketchy.

Do you believe Socrates was a real person?

Yes, there were several first-hand accounts.

OP - Maybe Religious Mentoring is a bad term. Most firms over last 20 years Diversity and Inclusion is a big thing. Even with Religion. At all jobs I had in last 20 years we did things for for all religions except banned from any mention of anything Judaeo/Christian related.

My companies have done stuff for Holi, Diwali, Kwanza, Ramadam even Bodhi day. But against the rules to have a Christmas party, in fact recently the term Holiday Party was banned as it comes from term Holy Day and may relate to Christmas. So now a random end of year event.

Now I have mainly of Asian/India background who run all over Passover, Hanukah, Yom Kipper, Good Friday, Lent etc. Since we are banned from mentioning them and some cultures stick close together outside of work they are not as familar with it.

Heck when I was in consulting or when I helped planned conferences I cant tell you the number of events that would have blown up in my face if I did not step in. The Steakhouse luncheons on Friday during Lent, Booking meetings afternoon of Good Friday that are mandatory when a lot of attendees last names are clearly Italian and Irish. Booking Meetings late in evening on eve of first night of Passover, Yon Kipper or Rosh Hashanai etc. Drives me nuts. Now I am banned from saying hey if you want to a late Friday lunch meeting with Orthodox Jew and Catholics during Lent and Passover and serve Pork - go ahead. Cant tell you why. BTW maybe tell the Orthodox guys that Moses is not a real person.

Anonymous wrote:22 percent of adults in England do not believe Jesus was a real person.

https://talkingjesus.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/Talking-Jesus-dig-deeper.pdf

But they know that Christians regard him as if he were a real person. I think that’s what OP is getting at. She is surprised that Hindus aren’t aware that Christians regard Jesus as a real person who actually lived on Earth. Honestly, it surprises me too.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP - I greatly respect all religions. But when Jesus was crucified that was a very public event that did occur. He did get documented in a census. He was a figure in history.

Not doubting other religions. Amazing that folks don't realize he was a living person. Not saying they should believe in any religious aspect of Jesus

Sounds like you've been reading the Bible or listening to your minister, but not looking at academic sources. There is no documentation of a census or a crucifixion with many people attending. These are stories in the Bible - not documented fact.

Check Wikipedia for info on the census mentioned in the Bible: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Census_of_Quirinius

Do you get all your information from collaborative, anonymous sources from openly editable websites? I guess DCUM is about the same.

It's simple. Wikipedia provides citations, which can be checked out separately.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There are documented accounts of Jesus as early as the first century. Scholars at the time did not debate his existence. But I suppose if you’re an atheist on here no answer is good enough so it’s an easy way to pile it on.

I have no issue with research that Jesus was a historical person. That does appear to be fairly well accepted by scholars. But obviously, that he likely existed says nothing at all about anything else.

Why would the apostles go to their deaths if Jesus did not do what was written? They had nothing to gain by spreading his Word.

possible answers:

1. because they believed it

2. maybe the stories of the apostles going to their deaths are stores for which there is not reliable historical information

Heaven's Gate.
Indigenous peoples anywhere who chose death over the God of the colonizers.

There are others but I decided to leave out those at all linked, even tangentially, with Christianity.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was an agnostic, then baptized as an adult. What convinced me about Jesus is that there are too many coincidental things that have happened in my life for there not to be a greater power behind it. I also cannot believe that if the whole thing was a myth, so many people would forward the story through history. Jesus is arguably the most significant person who ever lived. It is beyond me to think there is not at least some truth to his story.

Then why aren’t there any first-hand historical accounts if he was so significant?

Certainly his “story” is significant, but the man?

Why is the Gospel of John not a first-hand historical account? Or Peter's letters? Or Luke's account, which is nothing if not a contemporary account?

Oh, I know! If it's in the Bible, it doesn't count.

The Gospels were anonymously written and only centuries later attributed to specific religious personages.

The Gospels were not first-hand accounts. Most scholars think the Gospel of Mark was written first, in about 66-70 ACE. It was anonymous, and even then the tradition was that it was written by Mark based on an account told to him by Peter, so even then it was believed to be a second-hand account. It was written in Greek, for a primarily Gentile audience. The other Gospels were likely written later in the first century, also anonymously, and also in Greek. The Evangelists were writing for different audiences, mostly composed of second-generation Christians. Paul's letters were written a little earlier, but Paul himself does not claim to have met Jesus.

I think the currently scholarly consensus is that Jesus was a real person, who was very likely baptized and crucified. Some of the strongest evidence is that anti-Christian writers in the first and second centuries don't argue that he wasn't real, and seem to accept that he existed. But we have no record of Jesus that was written during his lifetime.

There are purported to be some 33 million gods in Hinduism symbolizing one abstract Supreme Being.
Why would anyone whose mind is busy with Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva, Ganesha, Hanuman, Krishna, Kali, Rama, Saraswati, and Durga among others give a crap about Jesus?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was an agnostic, then baptized as an adult. What convinced me about Jesus is that there are too many coincidental things that have happened in my life for there not to be a greater power behind it. I also cannot believe that if the whole thing was a myth, so many people would forward the story through history. Jesus is arguably the most significant person who ever lived. It is beyond me to think there is not at least some truth to his story.

Then why aren’t there any first-hand historical accounts if he was so significant?

Certainly his “story” is significant, but the man?

Why is the Gospel of John not a first-hand historical account? Or Peter's letters? Or Luke's account, which is nothing if not a contemporary account?

Oh, I know! If it's in the Bible, it doesn't count.

because John never knew Jesus, nor was John around during Jesus's life. The gospel of john was written about 100 years after Jesus's birth https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/religion/story/mmfour.html

"The Gospel of John, sometimes called "the spiritual gospel," was probably composed between 90 and 100 CE. Its style and presentation clearly set it apart from the other three."