Defending The Christian Faith With Apologetics

Scout said:
Do the Old and New Testaments even "fit together" when you examine each one separately on its own? They are collections of texts written by a variety of different authors. We do not even know who most of them were. They are not all consistent with one another either. For example, the modern concept of Hell doesn't get introduced until the New Testament.
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Contemporary conceptions of hell weren't introduced until well after the New Testament, I think. Fire is symbolic for purification throughout the Bible, so the NT can mention it without inventing anything.

For those who wish to attempt to defend the Christian faith through apologetics: Yes its parts do fit together with some minor adjustment, and there supposedly many what are called 'Undesigned Coincidences'. If you really want to look into it, J.J. Blunt's book Undesigned Coincidences... from 1851 is available for free in PDF from here. I've not read it yet. Another one I've heard of is Harmony of the Gospels, the book as well as the Harmony of the Gospels page on blueletterbible.com. http://www.blueletterbible.org/study/harmony/index.cfm

 
I'll add that there are some difficulties with a sola scriptura approach. That's true. In the first place while the NT does fit in a way with the Bible, it cannot establish itself. You cannot pick it up, read it and then understand what you are reading. You're missing too much information. You can do studies like J.J. Blunt's; and you can layer interpretations of what you think everything might mean. You can eliminate some red herrings, but you might find new ones. Such an approach can be beneficial but by itself is theoretical.
 
Scout said:
Do the Old and New Testaments even "fit together" when you examine each one separately on its own? They are collections of texts written by a variety of different authors. We do not even know who most of them were. They are not all consistent with one another either. For example, the modern concept of Hell doesn't get introduced until the New Testament.
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Heck, none of he gospels really fit together, that's why Constantine and the Council edited and abridged them into one.
 
Printed Books = John Mill - Novum Testamentum - CSNTM is the source for a page by page comparison of textual NT differences as of 1707 and is a good place to supplement this work.

It is a matter of interpretation as to whether or not the "modern concept of Hell" appears in the NT. One can read the text as a continuation of Gehenna (except Matt 25:46, where "everlasting" may be a scibal addition). The torment is the torment of separation from G!d and like Christ, souls do not get punished forever.

Pax et amore omnia vincunt
 
Dream said:
while the NT ... it cannot establish itself. You cannot pick it up, read it and then understand what you are reading. You're missing too much information.
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The same can be said for the OT, can it not?
 
Thomas said:
Hence the necessity of Tradition.
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Or a good history book in addition to the Bible.

The advantage of a history book compared to Tradition is that one wouldn't get all the "extras" such as purgatory, infant baptisms, celibate priests, and bans on birth control; which aren't supported by anything BUT tradition.
 
I will agree that Tradition has its pro's and con's, just like a path of non-Tradition has pro's and con's. It's up to each of us to decide for ourselves if the advantages of Tradition outweigh the disadvantages, or vice-versa. I think this can also depend what stage of life's journey that we're on.

I really appreciate Thomas' input on this forum, and have learned a lot from reading his posts; but his view of following Tradition is much stricter than many others' on this forum.

I personally like Buddha's analogy that a boat is no longer needed once it gets you across the river. Sometimes it's easy to get so enamored with the boat that you try to carry it with you always, in which case it can become a burden. YMMV.
 
MarcyWatson said:
There are several ways of defending the christian faith. First, it is very important to read the Bible regularly, both the New and the Old Testament. Understand how they fit together.
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Would you please share with me where they fit together, I mean, the Tanach with the NT? I am all ears. I have never found the connection.
Ben
 
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