Meanwhile Saint Jesus of Galilee was never ever in any sense a Christian, nor did he found the religion about him, and of course the "resurrection" never happened (could not have happened).
The author of the essays featured below underwent a profound fifty year long research project into every aspect of the Christian religion. He was completely up to date with all of the modern scholarship re the fabricated origins and political purposes of the "New" Testament. He also pointed out that none of the authors of such had any inkling of anything to do with Esoteric Spiritual Religion. Such is of course also obviously also the case with the author of this featured essay.
He even experienced all of the extraordinary ecstatic/mystical/spiritual experiences described in the classic mystical texts, and understood their significance and limitations.

http://www.dabase.org/up-5-1.htm
http://www.dabase.org/up-5-2.htm
http://www.dabase.org/up-6.htm
http://www.aboutadidam.org/articles/secret_identity/idol.html
http://www.aboutadidam.org/articles/secret_identity/beyond_hidden.html

Meanwhile again why not check out this 570 page reference written by the extraordinary modern Christian contemplative Bernadette Roberts. A book which thoroughly covers all of the usual Christian truth claims, both ancient and modern.
http://freddieyam.com/down/roberts.real-christ.pdf

Dear OzSpen,

You claim: “I spent 5 years writing a research PhD degree on the historical Jesus and discovered plenty of evidence to refute your invented information.”

Well I've gone and had a quick look through your PHD and quite clearly you did no such thing. In essence it is just a review of another person's work.

But I was struck by the liberal use of the term of “shipwrecked on the 'rocks' of contradiction”.:

“Crossan's postmodern, reconstructive, interactive hermeneutic was shipwrecked on the 'rocks' of contradiction, inconsistency and self-defeating methodology.”

“It demonstrates how a postmodern, reconstructive, interactive hermeneutic is shipwrecked on the 'rocks' of contradiction, inconsistency and self-defeating methodology.”

“There it was demonstrated how this hermeneutic is shipwrecked on the 'rocks' of contradiction, inconsistency and self-defeating methodology.”

“It demonstrated how a postmodern, reconstructive, interactive hermeneutic is shipwrecked on the 'rocks' of contradiction, inconsistency and self-defeating methodology.”

I realise that writing a dissertation can be daunting so the occasional repetition is going to creep in. But I was curious as to where such a striking phrase comes from.

It seems it was used by Hartshorne in 1948 where he states of Aquinas; “[Though] his doctrine was shipwrecked on certain rocks of contradiction, has he not left us an admirable chart showing the location of the rocks!”

I can not find any other earlier reference to it. Where it is employed in later works Hartshorne is usually acknowledged and/or referenced

Are you able to illustrate where you did so in your dissertation?

Long ago I would talk sometimes to a man who was very well versed in computers.
University degrees, lots of experience, very practical.
I have no university degrees.
I do have a basic understanding of electronics and coding.
I would think about computers, and if we happened to discuss them I would say....
'This must be how it is done. That is the way it must work.'
And he would say, 'yes, that is right'.
Or perhaps, 'yes, nearly, but you have it a bit wrong. You forgot to allow for such and such.'
So I didn't need a degree from a university to understand how computers work.
The important thing here is that you don't need degrees in philosophy, cryptology, or indeed anything, to understand the basics of living and how nature works.
You do need to be observant, questioning, logical, thoughtful, and ready to learn.
You will come to understand that most people around you have life values based on a story.
In other words, based on total fiction.
Well meant fiction, well thought out fiction, which served a purpose at the time it was devised.
But still, all fiction.
To me, it is like trying to build one's life on quicksand. A very unsteady place.
And if the 'truths' are so self-evident, why the need for continual reinforcement?
They perform ceremonies and rituals, and parade around just like actors on a stage.
The difference is that they never leave the stage as an actor will.
They continue with the act all day.
All the world is their stage.
Do I want to stop them?
No.
They must do what they must do.
But they must let me do what I must do as well.
Not try to belittle me, or ram their silly ideas down my throat.
I think, too, that they should avoid playing dress-ups in public places.
Avoid parading around me in costume.
I like public areas to be neutral and placid.
Not divisive places.
But I put up with it all because I live in a democracy, and democracy allows it.

Happy Easter OzSpen

Much of the Biblical account of Jesus from his birth at Christmas to his death at Easter is a hodge-podge mix of fiction and reality. Was there a Jesus Christ, most certainly, and that is confirmed by the Non-Christian Jewish Historian Josephus who made reference to Jesus in his 'Antiquities Of The Jews' circa 94 AD, Josephus writes; "he (Ananus) assembled the Sanhedrin of judges, and brought before them the brother of Jesus, who was called Christ, whose name was James." Was Christ crucified, certainly, and that is confirmed by another Non-Christian Historian the Roman Tacitus, in his 'Annals' written circa 116 AD Tacitus comments on the execution of "Christus" at the hands of the Roman Governor of Judaea, Pontius Pilate. The details of Christs Crucifixion can be disputed, but not the fact of his death at the hands of the Romans.

The Bible portrays Pontius Pilate as a weak vacillating man, with some sense of justice towards the common Jew. That is not true, Pilate was Governor of Judaea for 11 years, and by Roman standards he was a good administrator, ruthless and cold towards the Jews, and any like Jesus who fermented Jewish insurrection against Roman rule were swiftly and un-mercilessly dealt with, without Pilate batting an eyelid. The Biblical account is theatrical and is designed to shift blame for Christs death from the Romans onto the Jews.

Was Christ crucified and entombed on the same day, in fact within hours of his crucifixion. Not likely as the purpose of Roman crucifixion was a slow and agonising death, and the victim would be left to "rot" on the cross as a reminder of Roman authority and what happens to transgressors.

The resurrection and ascension of Jesus, is a matter of Christian faith as there is no evidence for those events, only later Gospel accounts, mostly attributed to St Paul and his followers. The James (brother of Jesus) sect of Christianity which confined itself within Judaism, did not preach resurrection at all, and disappeared with the assassination of James in a political struggle by fellow Jews between 65-69 AD.