Early Christian Writings

[bk.ru]

I do not know if some of you know this, but there were a lot more than 4 gospels. The chap we decided which gospels should be chosen for the bible said that there should only be four, as their are only "four corners to the earth".

I suggest you read: http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/

As you will notice... a lot of the Christian stuff was written before Mathew, Mark, Luke and John. You will also notice by the dates on that site, when the different Gospels were written. Notice how many that were not included were written before the four just mentioned?

The word of god is bigger than you think, and you should not let some old bishop of the RCC decide which gospels you should read. Make the choice for yourself.

[Neo]

Maybe merge this with your early history thread? Pretty much the same topic.

[bk.ru]

I was thinking about doing that, but most of the threads are derailed by dodo and a lot gets lost.

[Neo]

I was thinking about doing that, but most of the threads are derailed by dodo and a lot gets lost.

Yes, it's a pity as these early writings give an intriguing view of the times.

[Mr TB]

QUOTE:

"I suggest you stop with your contempt, trying to bring the bible in disrepute with your reckless postings... This early christian writings will you explain how they were found to be true...

We will examine and dispose of the common arguments for dating the Gospels late,
and for rejecting their traditional authorship. With this, I will also offer two
caveats:

Authorship and date are important; but equally important, if not more so, is
whether what is in the Gospels is true. Regardless of who wrote the Gospels
and when, if they reflect reality correctly, then it points to their being
written by eyewitnesses, or having eyewitnesses as their source.

Thus, even if the traditional authorship and earliest dates are disproved - and it is my
contention that the arguments against them are inadequate - it matters very
little, we may surmise, who wrote them and when. (Hengel [Heng.4G, 6] notes
that we have only one biography of Muhammed, written 212 years after his
death, which used a source from about 100 years after his death, and yet "the
historical scepticism of critical European scholarship is substantially less"
where Muhammed is concerned!)The following is a quote concerning then authorship and date of ancient writings..."

[Mr TB]

SECOND QUOTE:
"We shall find in our investigation to follow that these assertions are
unwarranted, and are counter to the evidence available. We assert in turn that:
There are excellent reasons for maintaining the traditional ascriptions of
Gospel authorship, when standard tests for such determinations are applied;
There is no reason to date ANY of the Gospels later than 70 AD, although such
dating may be permissible in the case of John;
There is no reason to suppose that the Gospel authors took creative liberties
with the events they recorded, to the point of fabrication."

[Neo]

There is no reason to suppose that the Gospel authors took creative liberties with the events they recorded, to the point of fabrication."

Then why are the gospels not in agreement?

[Pr⊕phet]

theres also the OT with how the Tora came to be... (found this while looking for gevurah)



is the fifth of the ten sefirot, and second of the emotive attributes in Creation.

Gevurah appears in the configuration of the sefirot along the left axis, directly beneath binah, and corresponds in the tzelem Elokim to the "left arm."

Gevurah is associated in the soul with the power to restrain one's innate urge to bestow goodness upon others, when the recipient of that good is judged to be unworthy and liable to misuse it. As the force which measures and assesses the worthiness of Creation, gevurah is also referred to in Kabbalah as midat hadin ("the attribute of judgment"). It is the restraining might of gevurah which allows one to overcome his enemies, be they from without or from within (his evil inclination).

Chesed and Gevurah act together to create an inner balance in the soul's approach to the outside world. While the "right arm" of chesed operates to draw others near, the "left arm" of gevurah reserves the option of repelling those deemed undeserving. (Even towards those to whom one's initial relation is that of "the left arm repels," one must subsequently apply the complementary principle of "the right arm draws near").

Ultimately, the might of gevurah becomes the power and forcefulness to implement one's innate desire of chesed. Only by the power of gevurah is chesed able to penetrate the coarse, opposing surface of reality.

The numerical value of Gevurah, 216, is 6 times 6 times 6. The tablets of the covenant that Moses received at Sinai were 6 by 6 by 6 handbreadths. The Torah was given to Moses and Israel from "the Mouth of the Gevurah." It is most significant that the name of no other sefirah is used by our sages to connote God Himself, other than gevurah (In the Bible, God is referred to as "the netzach [eternity] of Israel" (Samuel 1 15:29), but not as netzach alone). Here, gevurah implies God's essential power to contract and concentrate His infinite light and strength into the finite letters of Torah (especially those engraved on the tablets of the covenant, the Ten Commandments).

Gevurah = 216 = 3 times 72 (chesed). Each of God's 72 hidden Names possesses three letters, in all--216 letters. Meaning inheres to words and names. The ultimate "meaning" of every one of God's Names is His expression of love (chesed) for His Creation. Each Name expresses His love in a unique way. The components of each word and name, the "building blocks" of Creation are the letters which combine to form the words. The letters, "hewn" from the "raw material" of "pro-creation" (the secret of the reshimu, the "impression" of God's infinite light which remains after the initial act of tzimtzum, "contraction") reflect God's gevurah.

The two hands which act together to form all reality, chesed (72) plus gevurah (216) = 288 = 2 times 12 squared. 288 is the number of nitzotzot "fallen sparks" (from the primordial cataclysm of "the breaking of the vessels") which permeate all of created reality. Through the "dual effort" of chesed and gevurah, not only to form reality, but to rectify reality (through the means of "the left arm repels while the right draws near"), these fallen sparks are redeemed and elevated to return and unite with their ultimate source. In a universal sense, this is the secret of the coming of Mashiach and the resurrection of the dead.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geburah

[Pr⊕phet]

...i'm beginning to think more and more that some of the ideas in the bible is distorted from what it should be and actually has some truth to it - but are as one would say muddied waters

[Mr TB]

Then why are the gospels not in agreement?

With your tertiary background... you should know by now it is suspicious if the account of 4 eyewitnesses are exactly the same...

Maybe you are just to harheaded to accept that the accounts are true, you can not disprove it... jealousy and skeptic chauvinism just shows it...

[Pr⊕phet]

see:
http://mybroadband.co.za/vb/showpost.php?p=903531&postcount=26
http://mybroadband.co.za/vb/showpost.php?p=912777&postcount=30
http://mybroadband.co.za/vb/showpost.php?p=926190&postcount=97
http://mybroadband.co.za/vb/showpost.php?p=934235&postcount=98