Posts by Doug Mason

18

The Divine Son of God, God Incarnate, Lord, Redeemer, and Saviour of the World

by Doug Mason in

before jesus was born or even if he had never existed—another human being was already proclaimed son of god and, indeed, god incarnate within the same first common-era century and within the same mediterranean world.

in fact, almost all the sacred terms and solemn titles that we might think of as christian creations or even pauline inventions were already associated with caesar augustus, the first undisputed ruler of the roman empire, from 31 bce to 14 ce.. augustus was divine, son of god, god, and god from god.

he was lord, liberator, redeemer, and savior of the world—not just of italy or the mediterranean, mind you, but of the entire inhabited earth.

Doug Mason

Half Banana,

What interesting thoughts you present. The history of the Ancient Hebrews is one of borrowing myths, ideas, and gods from their neighbours. They did not live in isolation. YHWH was taken from their neighbours ("Yahweh and the Gods and Goddesses of Canaan", Day) along with the wife of EL, named Asherah ("When God was a Woman", Stone; "The Hebrew Goddess", Patai; "Did God Have a Wife?", Dever; etc).

As for books dealing with that Roman period: "Jesus Wars", Jenkins; "A New History of Early Christianity", Freeman; "AD 381", Freeman. But I am no aware of any books that precisely focus on listing all the antecedent pagan and Gnostic influences, although it is regularly pointed out that Paul's ideas were deeply influenced by his Hellenistic environment.

Doug

17

Change(s?) to revised nwt

by Saltheart Foamfollower in

i don't think this has been picked up anywhere yet.

the revised nwt released in 2013 is already out of date.

the second half of psalm 51:4 now reads "therefore, you are righteous when you speak, you are right in your judgment" in the online version where the printed version reads "so that you might prove righteous when you speak, and be right in your judgment".. fairly unimportant in itself, but i wonder what else has been changed without telling anyone..

Doug Mason

All of the text has undergone constant change forever. Over the millennia, there have been more changes to the NT text than there are words in it.

There is no universally accepted original text. There is no universally accepted canon of Scripture. (A scripture does not need a canon but a canon needs scripture.)

Doug

18

The Divine Son of God, God Incarnate, Lord, Redeemer, and Saviour of the World

by Doug Mason in

before jesus was born or even if he had never existed—another human being was already proclaimed son of god and, indeed, god incarnate within the same first common-era century and within the same mediterranean world.

in fact, almost all the sacred terms and solemn titles that we might think of as christian creations or even pauline inventions were already associated with caesar augustus, the first undisputed ruler of the roman empire, from 31 bce to 14 ce.. augustus was divine, son of god, god, and god from god.

he was lord, liberator, redeemer, and savior of the world—not just of italy or the mediterranean, mind you, but of the entire inhabited earth.

Doug Mason

Half Banana,

Thanks for your feedback. I managed to download a PDF of Robertson's book and I shall see what help it provides. The epub version has too many transcription errors so I will make the PDF searchable.

The GB claims to mimic the Jerusalem sect of the Jesus-movement. It came to an inglorious end in 70 CE, and probably resurfaced as the Ebionites. The Paulines ultimately succeeded, in opposition to the highly popular Gnostics. The success of the Paulines must be put down to the intervention of the Roman emperors, in which the religious fervour of Constantine's mother Helena played a big part. She initiated the gathering of Christian relics (bits of the original cross, etc.)

Search the www with: Helena Constantine relics

Doug

18

The Divine Son of God, God Incarnate, Lord, Redeemer, and Saviour of the World

by Doug Mason in

before jesus was born or even if he had never existed—another human being was already proclaimed son of god and, indeed, god incarnate within the same first common-era century and within the same mediterranean world.

in fact, almost all the sacred terms and solemn titles that we might think of as christian creations or even pauline inventions were already associated with caesar augustus, the first undisputed ruler of the roman empire, from 31 bce to 14 ce.. augustus was divine, son of god, god, and god from god.

he was lord, liberator, redeemer, and savior of the world—not just of italy or the mediterranean, mind you, but of the entire inhabited earth.

Doug Mason

Crazyguy,

I am not aware of the practices you describe. I would not be surprised (although I would need to see verifiable sources), given the Roman insistence on peace (Pax Romana). Constantine intervened in the trinitarian debate because Rome did not appreciate dissension.

We must not think of the "Christian Church" as a homogeneous unit. Right from its start, the Movement was ripped by dissension and disagreement. Paul's correspondence is evidence for that.

The Jerusalem Group was decimated in 70 CE, moving to Pella and likely evolving into the Ebionites. The Jews outside Jerusalem were not so badly affected and we see a spectrum of movements such as the Paulines (followers of Paul), Gnostics, and so on and on.

The Western Church (Paulines, who ultimately formed the NT Canon), were strongly represented in North Africa, particularly Carthage and Alexandria, whereas the Eastern Church formed another block. During these early centuries, up to say the 5th century, Rome was not a dominant force.

However, the bloody "Jesus Wars" of the 4th and 5th centuries in North Africa so weakened the Church that the Muslims moved into the void and Christianity moved northwards, where it became the European religion.

Do not limit the concept of the early Movements through the biased vision of the early Church Fathers.

Doug

18

The Divine Son of God, God Incarnate, Lord, Redeemer, and Saviour of the World

by Doug Mason in

before jesus was born or even if he had never existed—another human being was already proclaimed son of god and, indeed, god incarnate within the same first common-era century and within the same mediterranean world.

in fact, almost all the sacred terms and solemn titles that we might think of as christian creations or even pauline inventions were already associated with caesar augustus, the first undisputed ruler of the roman empire, from 31 bce to 14 ce.. augustus was divine, son of god, god, and god from god.

he was lord, liberator, redeemer, and savior of the world—not just of italy or the mediterranean, mind you, but of the entire inhabited earth.

Doug Mason

Magnum,

I am old and there is so much that I do not know and will never know. I write because I want to know; writing is a strict discipline that forces me to argue with myself.

I am a graduate of the University of Life, from the Faculty of Hard Knocks.

We must keep our minds active, prepared to remain open to change, to new ideas. I learn something every day that I spend writing, and my current project is teaching me so much.

We must never think that we know it all. Recognising that we do not know it all enables us to keep learning, to enjoy the excitement and challenge of discovery.

It is important to question our assumptions.

Doug

18

The Divine Son of God, God Incarnate, Lord, Redeemer, and Saviour of the World

by Doug Mason in

before jesus was born or even if he had never existed—another human being was already proclaimed son of god and, indeed, god incarnate within the same first common-era century and within the same mediterranean world.

in fact, almost all the sacred terms and solemn titles that we might think of as christian creations or even pauline inventions were already associated with caesar augustus, the first undisputed ruler of the roman empire, from 31 bce to 14 ce.. augustus was divine, son of god, god, and god from god.

he was lord, liberator, redeemer, and savior of the world—not just of italy or the mediterranean, mind you, but of the entire inhabited earth.

Doug Mason

Thanks fulltimestudent,

I am reaching the first Draft stage of a study into the first 200 years of the Jesus-followers. Yes, I know that tens of thousands of pages already exist, but a writer writes in order to learn, to understand. I also know that when people read anything, they come away with ideas and thoughts that the original writer never imagined.

I am interested in your guidance, and I shall ponder on it.

I have another most interesting quote from that same book that throws the conventional "substitutionary death" theory out the window.

Doug

18

The Divine Son of God, God Incarnate, Lord, Redeemer, and Saviour of the World

by Doug Mason in

before jesus was born or even if he had never existed—another human being was already proclaimed son of god and, indeed, god incarnate within the same first common-era century and within the same mediterranean world.

in fact, almost all the sacred terms and solemn titles that we might think of as christian creations or even pauline inventions were already associated with caesar augustus, the first undisputed ruler of the roman empire, from 31 bce to 14 ce.. augustus was divine, son of god, god, and god from god.

he was lord, liberator, redeemer, and savior of the world—not just of italy or the mediterranean, mind you, but of the entire inhabited earth.

Doug Mason

Before Jesus was born or even if he had never existed—another human being was already proclaimed Son of God and, indeed, God Incarnate within the same first common-era century and within the same Mediterranean world. In fact, almost all the sacred terms and solemn titles that we might think of as Christian creations or even Pauline inventions were already associated with Caesar Augustus, the first undisputed ruler of the Roman Empire, from 31 BCE to 14 CE.

Augustus was Divine, Son of God, God, and God from God. He was Lord, Liberator, Redeemer, and Savior of the World—not just of Italy or the Mediterranean, mind you, but of the entire inhabited earth. Words like "justice" and "peace," "epiphany" and "gospel," "grace" and "salvation" were already associated with him. Even "sin" and "atonement" were connected to him as well. …

All those assertions, terms, and titles were at home within Roman imperial theology and incarnated in Caesar the Augustus before they ever appeared in Pauline Christian theology and were incarnated in Jesus the Christ. (The First Paul: Reclaiming the Radical Visionary Behind the Church’s Conservative Icon, pages 93, 94, by Marcus Borg and John Dominic Crossan, HarperOne 2009)

35

Born Twice - Die Once .... Born Once - Die Twice

by Perry in

jesus taught that we must die unto ourselves, and allow the holy spirit to take up residence within us.

some people get saved by simply inviting jesus into their hearts, to be the lord of their life.

this serves as a countering force within the born-again christian to counterbalance the will of the flesh, which is still unsaved in this life and destined for destruction in imitation of our lord himself.. attempting to live the christian life without having this spirit within you is a waste of time at the minimum, and dangerous on the downside.

Doug Mason

Perry,

Rather than work through the many issues one by one, I invite you to wait for a short until I commence a thread, naming it: "The Jesus-movements' First 200 Years".

Doug

35

Born Twice - Die Once .... Born Once - Die Twice

by Perry in

jesus taught that we must die unto ourselves, and allow the holy spirit to take up residence within us.

some people get saved by simply inviting jesus into their hearts, to be the lord of their life.

this serves as a countering force within the born-again christian to counterbalance the will of the flesh, which is still unsaved in this life and destined for destruction in imitation of our lord himself.. attempting to live the christian life without having this spirit within you is a waste of time at the minimum, and dangerous on the downside.

Doug Mason

Perry,

While you complain about the way that the Watchtower modifies the text of the Bible to suit its own beliefs, this is exactly what the NT writers also did when they referenced their own religious writings. There was no canon of Hebrew Scriptures at the time (hence the many times they cited texts such as 1 Enoch).

When you look at "heresies" (opinions) through the eyes of the Church Fathers, you are reading only their opinions. One person's "orthodoxy" is another person's "heresy".

It is simply an accident of history that the Paulines became the state religion and were thus able to determine that their writings would form Scripture. The bulk of the NT is made up of wriitngs by Paul, by people who pretended to be Paul, and by people who supported Paul. Little survives from the supporters of the Jerusalem Church (such as Matthew and James). Although Peter was a leader at Jerusalem, little is known of him, while 1 Peter and 2 Peter were written by Paulines decades after Peter's death. Likewise, the Gospels were written many decades after the events they describe, and some owe their thoughts to Paul.

Doug

20

WT Article - David Versus Goliath—Did It Really Happen?

by ttdtt in

https://www.jw.org/en/publications/magazines/watchtower-no5-2016-september/david-versus-goliath-real/.

the article ends with this:.

there is no real basis for doubting the truthfulness of this historical account.

Doug Mason

The writers were not recording literal histroy. They were wrapping religious teachings within a story (parables). This is a simple and effective method for teaching people because they were illiterate. Because they relied on oral communication, a story provided the excellent vehicle for memorising the lessons being taught. A prime example of this is the myth of the Exodus. It provided the vehicle for enshrining religious ideas that were contemporary with the time the events were being written (some 600 years after the "Moses event").

Doug