Dear Jon,

Barbara Thiering caused quite a stir with her
book, "Jesus The Man," and I'm not surprised
that some would brush it aside, especially
religious leaders. However, I recommended the
book to you because I had assumed that you
had an open mind and would be be interested in
a different take on the topic.

Dr Thiering developed her interest in religion
with a master's degree in theology, followed by a
PhD in 1973. She began teaching at the University
of Sydney in 1967, joining the School of Divinity in 1976,
and lectured in Old Testament, and Hebrew Theology.
Her studies led to the Dead Sea Scrolls and a 20 year
research project which produced remarkable findings.

On Palm Sunday in 1990 the ABC broadcast, "The Riddle
of the Dead Sea Scrolls," a documentary based on her
research, creating a nationwide controversy, the effects
of which are still continuing to this day.

Dr Thiering has been a Member of the University of Sydney
Board of Studies in Divinity 1973 to 1991. Some people may
find it somewhat unsettling - what she has written -
but it does make for interesting reading. Of course you'll
never, ever know - unless you read it for yourself.

THe same mockers of the supernatural Creator believe in the idiotic notion that this earth resulted from a mathematical impossibility.

Runner...I have my pop-corn and coke:)

Science has what we realist need, and religion gives the mind somewhere to go.

See!.....everything is with-in all what we need.

Cant we share the best of both worlds?

CACTUS

Runner, you mean 'mathematical improbability'

IT only took the Christian Church 1900 years to agree on the notion of the immaculate conception. In 1854 Pope Pius IX defined:

"The Blessed Virgin Mary, in the first instant of her conception, by a singular grace and privilege of Almighty God, and in view of the foreseen merits of Jesus Christ, the savior of the human race, was preserved free from all stain of original sin."

Not only was Jesus born of a virgin but a special virgin, unlike billions of others its claimed she alone was without original sin. My point is Christians are willing to change their belief when it suits them to do so. Its possible that early Christians made up stories about Christ to win converts. Could have gone something like this:

Heathen: "What's so special about your bloke?"
Christian: "Ah well, He could walk on water."
Heathen: "That's nothing special the other blokes messiah could eat fire."
Christian: "Well not only could my bloke walk on water, he could turn water into wine, feed 5,000 with a couple of fish and a bit of bread. heal the sick, and wait for it raise the dead."
Heathen: "Gee, raise the dead, now that is something. I'm in."
Christian: "Okay convert now I'll tell you the Christmas story, you'll love it, goes like this......."

lexi...i too have read jesus the man
and i found it an easy read...it fills in much of the curious stuff borrowed from other legends..[that im surprized..we havnt heard mention of..so far]

you can lead a horse to water..etc

its sad that the church swallows the big lies[like evolution of genus]..yet allows the silly little ones[like jesus...lol..being god..or dying yet not dying for our sin]..not to mention the many other litle things..jesus dun...'because it was written'..he would do them..

never the less i believe in the jesus
even if they didnt name him..[emmanuel]
he yet did..as the messiah did...do
till they took off his head..

but what hurts me..is they ignore..the satan clause
completly...[heck if you got sperm...that can impregnate thousands of teqnical virgens...but as jesus the man says...a virgen is simply[was then simply...an unwed woman]

we cant comprehend the basic things
without knowing what was really meant by virgin
or feeding 4000/5000 jews food..[all they lol wished
[without the riteual of handwashing jars..none could have eaten]
forget the dirty hands..look at the seating arrangment

NO ONE DARED to eat
but had food..they added back onto the plate
thus more came back than went in..

[heck i can do the trick today..
just give me dirty [unclean]..hands
[they sumply womnt eat..without the ritual of handwashing]

same thing with water into whine
no one would dare drink the best whine from a toilet
[and thats how the water jars are...little more than toilet's]

jesus should have said
give them the toilet waters

but heck this is xmass
lets exorsize at least..one demon..this year
lets egsamine..the satan clause..sepperate the saint from the messanger..carrying the real message