Was Jesus merely a prophet whose authority was similar to that of Moses, Buddha, Muha

[mee]

Jesus himself taught that he was the unique Son of God (John 10:36; Matt. 16:15-17), the foretold Messiah (Mark 14:61, 62), that he had a prehuman existence in heaven (John 6:38; 8:23, 58), that he would be put to death and then would be raised to life on the third day and would thereafter return to the heavens. (Matt. 16:21; John 14:2, 3)



Were these claims true, and was he thus really different from all other true prophets of God and in sharp contrast to all self-styled religious leaders?

The truth of the matter would be evident on the third day from his death. Did God then resurrect him from the dead, thus confirming that Jesus Christ had spoken the truth and was indeed God’s unique Son? (Rom. 1:3, 4)


Over 500 witnesses actually saw Jesus alive following his resurrection, and his faithful apostles were eyewitnesses as he began his ascent back to heaven and then disappeared from their view in a cloud. (1 Cor. 15:3-8; Acts 1:2, 3, 9)

So thoroughly were they convinced that he had been raised from the dead that many of them risked their lives to tell others about it.—Acts 4:18-33.

 

[Postmaster]

Re: Was Jesus merely a prophet whose authority was similar to that of Moses, Buddha,

I come from a Christian background and since I was child till now still go to church and base Jesus's divinity on faith and I still accept it.

However what I really think happened over 2000 years ago is contrary to what I've been told all my life. I think Jesus was simply a catalyst towards a social, political and religious change and deserves the religious merit for starting this catalyst. Alot of his life from the accounts in the bible are very similar to Ancient Greek and Egyptian mythology, I wouldn't go as far to say he didn't exist at all, I think he was certainly fabricated though, I can't imagine him having a Hellenistic long hair style as he's depicted by Greek Orthodox and Roman Catholic iconary. He was a Palestian Jew that spoke Aramaic that was probably one of John the Baptists followers of a Jewish sect and continued leadership after Johns death.

http://jdstone.org/cr/files/mithraschristianity.html

 

[path_of_one]

Re: Was Jesus merely a prophet whose authority was similar to that of Moses, Buddha,

I think Jesus embodied God's grace and love in a human person. Jesus emptied out himself and fully embodied the Christ- a consciousness of grace and selfless love that comes only from deep understanding of the flaws of humanity.

A few offerings- no complete thought, but rather a few unrelated thoughts...

First, marytrdom is evidence only in the strength of one's commitment, not the truth of one's faith. Arguments that people died for their belief are irrelevant, because people have also died for terrorist organizations, Communism, and nationalism. Being willing to die for something doesn't make your beliefs true or real.

Second, one of my anthropological advisors once said that Jesus was a Buddhistic Jew. Buddhism had already come into the area by the time Jesus was around, and if you read the teachings of the Buddha and know something about the Jewish worldview and religion, Christ's teachings do seem a lot like a synthesis of Buddhist ideas and Judaism.

In terms of divinity and the Jesus story- born of a virgin, celebrated at the solstice, etc. and so on... there are many Pagan gods that were born, died, and rose again; who healed people; who were thought to raise the dead; etc. etc.

For me, that doesn't necessarily mean it's all a lot of hooey, but rather that as a follower of Jesus' teachings, my faith is not about all that stuff that is also found in a large number of other religions. I'm about faith in action- doing what Jesus demonstrated and following what he taught.

When he said take care of orphans, take care of orphans. When he said to give to the poor, give to the poor. I find his teachings quite simple, really. Not really sure why they need to be made into something so complex. Love God with all your heart, soul, and mind. Love your neighbor as yourself. Difficult to practice, but easy to understand.

 

[wil]

Re: Was Jesus merely a prophet whose authority was similar to that of Moses, Buddha,

Namaste Postmaster,

Other than some websites, what do we have of ancient texts of Mirthism that prove the contnentions of the websites?

 

[path_of_one]

Re: Was Jesus merely a prophet whose authority was similar to that of Moses, Buddha,

From what I've gathered, we don't know a ton about Mithraism (at least, I never have found much on it) but we can see more about the influence of the myth of Osiris as well as the influence on Zoroastrianism.

 

[Sancho]

Re: Was Jesus merely a prophet whose authority was similar to that of Moses, Buddha,

For me, that doesn't necessarily mean it's all a lot of hooey, but rather that as a follower of Jesus' teachings, my faith is not about all that stuff that is also found in a large number of other religions. I'm about faith in action- doing what Jesus demonstrated and following what he taught.

When he said take care of orphans, take care of orphans. When he said to give to the poor, give to the poor. I find his teachings quite simple, really. Not really sure why they need to be made into something so complex. Love God with all your heart, soul, and mind. Love your neighbor as yourself. Difficult to practice, but easy to understand.

Yes path of One, I very much admire your perspectives. The way I see it, there is much more power in Jesus' teachings when they are grounded in these simple principles that you spell out above, than in insisting that because someone died and rose again everything everyone who had the power to attach their words to his name said was the gospel truth.

 

[Postmaster]

Re: Was Jesus merely a prophet whose authority was similar to that of Moses, Buddha,

When he said take care of orphans, take care of orphans. When he said to give to the poor, give to the poor. I find his teachings quite simple, really. Not really sure why they need to be made into something so complex. Love God with all your heart, soul, and mind. Love your neighbor as yourself. Difficult to practice, but easy to understand.

I like your point, at that point in history service to the poor and weak wasn't a popular school of thought in Roman and Greek society. Whereas the teaching of compassion was and is in Buddhism, does sound like an influence on Christianity. How do you know Buddhism made it to the Middle East at that time though? Even at the time of Christ Buddhism was in its infancy? If any Buddhists teachings were included in Christianity we don't know if they were written in the bible independently of Christ’s teachings years after his ascension.

 

[Postmaster]

Re: Was Jesus merely a prophet whose authority was similar to that of Moses, Buddha,

Namaste Postmaster,

Other than some websites, what do we have of ancient texts of Mirthism that prove the contnentions of the websites?

as path of one says hehe

 

[path_of_one]

Re: Was Jesus merely a prophet whose authority was similar to that of Moses, Buddha,

I like your point, at that point in history service to the poor and weak wasn't a popular school of thought in Roman and Greek society. Whereas the teaching of compassion was and is in Buddhism, does sound like an influence on Christianity. How do you know Buddhism made it to the Middle East at that time though? Even at the time of Christ Buddhism was in its infancy?

Not exactly in its infancy. It was about like the spread of Christianity- after Buddhism was taken on by the state, it rapidly spread.

From wikipedia:

Some of the Edicts of Ashoka inscriptions describe the efforts made by Ashoka to propagate the Buddhist faith throughout the Hellenistic world, which at that time formed an uninterrupted continuum from the borders of India to Greece. The Edicts indicate a clear understanding of the political organization in Hellenistic territories: the names and location of the main Greek monarchs of the time are identified, and they are claimed as recipients of Buddhist proselytism: Antiochus II Theos of the Seleucid Kingdom (261–246 BCE), Ptolemy II Philadelphos of Egypt (285–247 BCE), Antigonus Gonatas of Macedonia (276–239 BCE), Magas of Cyrene (288–258 BCE) in Cyrenaica (modern Libya), and Alexander II of Epirus (272–255 BCE) in Epirus (modern Northwestern Greece).

History of Buddhism - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

So, it was floating around by the time Jesus was born.

There are legends that Jesus went with Joseph of Arimethia (spelling?) to the Celts and studied with the Druids and other legends that he went to India and studied Buddhism. But all the similarities between his teachings and these, I think, were available much closer to his usual stomping ground.

If any Buddhists teachings were included in Christianity we don't know if they were written in the bible independently of Christ’s teachings years after his ascension.

Unfortunately, we don't know if any part of the Bible, including the stories about Jesus' life (virgin birth, etc.) were written independently years after his ascension. There were so many documents that didn't make it in the Bible, others that made it in just barely (Revelations), and none of the gospels were written by eye-witnesses as far as we know.

That's where faith comes in. Though I don't believe the Bible should be taken literally or viewed as infallible, I do believe that the Bible can lead us to relationship with God and Christ, and that the Bible contains truth. However it came about, the Bible was inspired by God and so allows me, through both study and spirit, to gain entry to this inspiration.

 

[citizenzen]

Re: Was Jesus merely a prophet whose authority was similar to that of Moses, Buddha,

I like the thread's title: "Was Jesus merely a prophet whose authority was similar to that of Moses, Buddha, Muha"

Poor Buddha, relegated to a "mere" prophet.

No bias there, eh mee?

 

[wil]

Re: Was Jesus merely a prophet whose authority was similar to that of Moses, Buddha,

I like the thread's title: "Was Jesus merely a prophet whose authority was similar to that of Moses, Buddha, Muha"

Poor Buddha, relegated to a "mere" prophet.

No bias there, eh mee?

tis exactly why I came to post just now.

I object to the word "merely"

 

[Vajradhara]

Re: Was Jesus merely a prophet whose authority was similar to that of Moses, Buddha,

Namaste mee,

thank you for the post.

Were these claims true, and was he thus really different from all other true prophets of God and in sharp contrast to all self-styled religious leaders?

firstly, none of the Buddhas have been prophets of any deity... such an idea would be, i'm sure, fantastically amusing in the right context.

secondly the Buddhas authority arose from the Dharma not from the decree or proclamation of some being which creates the defacto position of the Buddhas have greater authority as such authority arises from the Dharma. a primary but not only difference is that a Buddhas authority encompasses the Dharma and its spread whereas the deity you talk about seeks to exercise its authority over the thoughts of sentient beings; the two are vastly different things.

The truth of the matter would be evident on the third day from his death. Did God then resurrect him from the dead, thus confirming that Jesus Christ had spoken the truth and was indeed God’s unique Son?

no.

firstly, rising from the dead seems to be no special thing, nearly all traditions that have originated from the so-called Middle East and Orient contain legends of beings rising from the dead. even the Bible recounts the story of Lazarus who also rose from the dead so your deity isn't even reserved this ability in his own book.

secondly your argumentation is a type of logically fallacy called "affirming the consequent." Logical Fallacy: Affirming the Consequent

Over 500 witnesses actually saw Jesus alive following his resurrection, and his faithful apostles were eyewitnesses as he began his ascent back to heaven and then disappeared from their view in a cloud. (1 Cor. 15:3-8; Acts 1:2, 3, 9)

no, they didn't. but, more importantly... is 500 people seeing something supposed to be pursuasive to me? more than 1,000,000 viewers have seen the terrible youtube video for Chocolate Rain yet i'm pretty much unconcerned with their impressions of how wonderful it is and how much seeing would change my life.

if you find your deity to be appealing, more power to you and it. the only time i'm really concerned is when you and people that share your sorts of views try to make your views mandatory through legislation or other methods. not a big fan of dictatorships am i.

So thoroughly were they convinced that he had been raised from the dead that many of them risked their lives to tell others about it.—Acts 4:18-33.

[/FONT]

many, many more people risked their lives for Civil Rights in the United States yet nobody is going around suggesting that Dr. King, jr. should be considered a deity.

i, honestly, don't get the appeal that the argument from authority or popularity has. perhaps its because i've been an iconoclast since i knew what that term meant.. it's simply never been important to me to be part of the 'in group' nor have i ever been compelled to acquiese to authority due to it being authority.. those idea are inherently anathema to me and contemplation of being forced into such views seems like a suicide of the soul, if we had one.

metta,

~v

 

[citizenzen]

Re: Was Jesus merely a prophet whose authority was similar to that of Moses, Buddha,

Joseph Smith, the founder of the Mormon Church, had witnesses who testified that they had seen the Golden Plates.

Mee, if witnesses and testimony are enough to make something real, don't we have to accept the Golden Plates as well?

 

[mee]

Re: Was Jesus merely a prophet whose authority was similar to that of Moses, Buddha,

Joseph Smith, the founder of the Mormon Church, had witnesses who testified that they had seen the Golden Plates.

Mee, if witnesses and testimony are enough to make something real, don't we have to accept the Golden Plates as well?

well after reading this verse in the bible i would have to say no


However, even if we or an angel out of heaven were to declare to YOU as good news something beyond what we declared to YOU as good news, let him be accursed. Galatians 1;8




correct me if i am wrong but was it not an angel that told him about the goldem plates, ?

 

[emtaksa]

Re: Was Jesus merely a prophet whose authority was similar to that of Moses, Buddha,

I believe that Christ is indeed God as a person, just as I also believe that Rama, Krishna, Shiva, Kali, and many others are God as a person.

What I really like about Jesus is that he taught what I believe really are two great commandments; to love God with all of one's being and to love one's fellow as their own self. A person can expound this teaching and it would result in a whole book or two.

It sounds to me like your faith is strong, mee, and I hope that it helps you grow more and more in love for God and for your fellow human beings.

 

[citizenzen]

Re: Was Jesus merely a prophet whose authority was similar to that of Moses, Buddha,

I believe that Christ is indeed God as a person, just as I also believe that Rama, Krishna, Shiva, Kali, and many others are God as a person.

Are you God as a person?

 

[shawn]

Re: Was Jesus merely a prophet whose authority was similar to that of Moses, Buddha,

well after reading this verse in the bible i would have to say no


However, even if we or an angel out of heaven were to declare to YOU as good news something beyond what we declared to YOU as good news, let him be accursed. Galatians 1;8




correct me if i am wrong but was it not an angel that told him about the goldem plates, ?

According to that verse then you would have to limit your knowledge to a small fraction of what is known.
Besides, then, the letters that survived do not tell you much so if you are to reject everything which is beyond the fragment of what you have been told you are really limiting yourself.

 

[citizenzen]

Re: Was Jesus merely a prophet whose authority was similar to that of Moses, Buddha,

I believe that Christ is indeed God as a person, just as I also believe that Rama, Krishna, Shiva, Kali, and many others are God as a person.

Rama, Krishna, Shiva, and Kali are Hindu deities.

They aren't "God as person".

They are God as God.

 

[emtaksa]

Re: Was Jesus merely a prophet whose authority was similar to that of Moses, Buddha,

Rama, Krishna, Shiva, and Kali are Hindu deities.

They aren't "God as person".

They are God as God.

Hi.

By "God as person" what I mean is that the Ultimate Reality can be experienced as being a person itself, meaning that it has a name like a human being, a personality like each of us, and can relate to us and we relate to it. So, Rama and all of the forms that I mentioned above are God as a person just as they are God as God. But I understand if this is not your own understanding.

 

[China Cat Sunflower]

Re: Was Jesus merely a prophet whose authority was similar to that of Moses, Buddha,

I don't get Jesus. I take at face value what others say about him, how he adds meaning to their lives and so forth, but I don't understand what the heck he's supposed to do in practical terms. He just seems like a good luck charm. A cultural icon of reassurance on a number of levels. That he's the hero of his own promotional material is hardly compelling proof of his deity or indeed his historicity.

Chris