Of
course, Bill’s not the first to argue this, nor will he likely be the last. If
there was ever a case of “moving the goalposts,” it’s here. The idea that
Christianity isn’t a religion is just absurd. And yeah, you don’t have to
believe Jesus is God to believe in his teachings, but as Jon Stewart rightly
points out, you do have to believe
that to be a Christian. At the very least, you have to believe he was raised
from the dead, since it is a Cardinal Doctrine of the Christian faith.
[I]f Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet
in your sins. -1 Corinthians 15:17
Furthermore, believing only in Jesus’
teachings is nice, but according to Jesus himself, that wasn’t what was most
important. In fact, Jesus says you can go against his teachings if you want and
he’ll still forgive you. But if you don’t believe in him as God, then you’re in
big trouble.
Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy
shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy
Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men. And whosoever speaketh a word
against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever
speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this
world, neither in the world to come. –Matthew 12:31-32
Verily I say unto you, All sins shall be forgiven unto
the sons of men, and blasphemies wherewith soever they shall blaspheme: But he
that shall blaspheme against the Holy Ghost hath never forgiveness, but is in
danger of eternal damnation. –Mark 3:28-29
And whosoever shall speak a word against the Son of man,
it shall be forgiven him: but unto him that blasphemeth against the Holy Ghost
it shall not be forgiven. –Luke 12:10
Jesus essentially says the exact opposite of
Bill’s “philosophic” beliefs. Listening to some of Bill's other claims in the past, I've often wondered if he's ever read an actual science book. Now I'm wondering if he's even read the Bible. So yeah, Christianity is still a religion. And incidentally,
it’s also still completely wrong.
Thanks for the Jon Stewart clip. It was fun. The comparison between Socrates and Jesus is an interesting one. If you read Plato's Phaedo (which is usually thought to be a "later" dialogue, which probably didn't accurately portray the views of Socrates), Socrates is presented as believing in reincarnation, which we usually put in the category of religion, not philosophy. However, the way Socrates arrives at this belief is not by means of revelation or mystical experiences, but by philosophical argument. Contrast this with Jesus, whose claims to religious knowledge largely depend not upon philosophical argument, but upon revelation or some sort of direct communication with or knowledge of God.
ReplyDeleteMy point is that the line between philosophy and religion may be a little more fuzzy that at first appears, since both often try to answer the same type of questions: What is ultimate reality? Why are we here? Is there a God? Is there life after death?
Probably what separates the two is that philosophy tries to depend upon what can be inferred from human rationality, while religion often depends upon supposedly revealed or mystical knowledge.
BTW, when you say that Christianity is completely wrong, do you mean that it has been completely falsified? Or something else?
I mean that it simply isn't true. I believe it's incorrect in the same way you would believe religions like Islam and Hinduism are wrong. But I of course think they're all wrong. And at this point, yes, I do think it's been falsified.
DeleteBTW, I don't know if you've read much philosophy, but Plato is the guy to start with. He's easy. And the Phaedo would be a good one to start with.
ReplyDelete