Thomas Paine explained why, over 200 years ago. Even priests have some shame, and this is such an obvious lie that they don’t want to touch it.
What’s your initial reaction to the quote in the OP?
“The tombs broke open and the bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life.”
Forget it, Jake, it’s Jerusalem.
St. Basil the Great (circa 330 - 379 CE): “She who has deliberately destroyed a fetus has to pay the penalty of murder…here it is not only the child to be born that is vindicated, but also the woman herself who made an attempt against her own life, because usually the women die in such attempts. Furthermore, added to this is the destruction of the child, another murder… Moreover, those, too, who give drugs causing abortion are deliberate murderers themselves, as well as those receiving the poison which kills the fetus.”
True. And?
And so your previous post was nonsense. If Jesus didn’t drive the Romans out of Israel, and in fact was executed by them as a common criminal, then whatever else he did was irrelevant to a Jew looking for the Messiah.
I definitely agree that much of Christian lore comes directly from what seemed reasonable in a Greek and Roman environment - but if you claim that any of the women Zeus shtupped were virgins afterwards, I hope you are well grounded. Like a lightning rod is.
Maybe the answer is “what happens in Jerusalem, stays in Jerusalem.”
There is no Biblical basis for Mary’s perpetual virginity, and in fact the gospels plainly state that Jesus had siblings. I realize that apologists will claim that “brother” can mean “cousin,” but Greek had different words for them, and Luke uses those different words in 8:19, referring to Jesus’ brothers, and 1:36, referring to Mary’s cousin.
I don’t know or care why Catholics decided to make perpetual virginity part of their dogma.
The idea is that, before Jesus came along, people were saved by obeying The Law and offering the appropriate sacrifices. Then Jesus came along and said (loosely), “you don’t have to do those sacrifices any more, because I’m going to do the Big One for you”.
But OT folks were still saved by Grace.
Yes.
Because banging God’s ma is upsetting to the sort of people who would be early Catholics. I’d assume, anyway.
You are quite a pleasent person, arent you?
I guess I misread it the first time; it sure does seem to refer to the bodily resurrection of these old holy men. The NRSV, which I prefer to the NIV, translates the passage as "The tombs also were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised. After his resurrection they came out of the tombs and entered the holy city and appeared to many. " Still, the use of the phrase “appeared to many” is a little troublesome. Why do they only appear to many, and not all? For that matter, why do they “appear”, instead of simply walking out of the tomb? It suggests to me something a little less than a simple return to physical, chemical life, and more to something more temporary.
Yeah, pretty much. But more important than my pleasant nature, is the fact that I don’t believe that the writings of stinking bronze-age primitives are especially insightful.
I still think you’re misreading something that is straightforward. It DOES say they walked out of the tomb, and into the city. “Appeared to many” simply means “were seen by many.” They weren’t seen by EVERYBODY in Jerusalem for the same reason that the Superbowl isn’t seen by everyone in America, or the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade isn’t seen by everyone in NYC. Some people were otherwise occupied, that’s all.
Well, Danaë was impregnated by Zeus when a rain of gold fell upon her. It never says she was vaginally penetrated, so she might well have been a “virgin” (in some technical senses of the word) afterward.
And Leda just got goosed.
And thus, the “Golden Shower” was invented.