Re: Gypsy Taub Interviews Nudists Julie and Rich

On Tue, 03 Mar 2009 10:08:54 -0600, "Terry J. Wood"
<[email protected]> wrote:

...
>This web page called "The Problem of Paul" excerpt from: The Mythmaker: 
>Paul and the Invention of Christianity by Hyam Maccoby might be of 
>interest:
>
>http://www.positiveatheism.org/hist/maccoby2.htm 

One of my teachers was an archeologist and Biblical scholar from
Angelicum who was at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem working on the
Dead Sea Scrolls and on leave. From listening to him I came to see how
the kind of superficial analysis Hyam and many others do is way beyond
our actual knowledge of those times and places. There are so many
different possibilities. When I see someone so sure as Hyam, I wonder.

As an example of a different possibility, I offer an interpretation
that fits the facts, doesn't require miracles, and is wildly different
from the typical approach. Remember, this is only a possibility.

Imagine that Jesus was trained by Jews in Egypt in the arts that we
see monks and magicians do today (think Houdini) as well as the
beliefs that were resounding in many places from India to Africa at
that time about non-violence and oneness with God. 

Jesus then uses his magical powers to bring us to this radical notion.
I believe He did die on the cross the way some monks can die today and
then come back to life. They are not medically dead according to our
definition today, but they would be considered dead back then. Jesus
did it to show us the unimportance of death compared to the importance
of doing God's will. His followers got the message, including Paul. 

The details are, like death, unimportant.

Jesus tells us and shows us over and over that we become children of
God, like Him, one with God, indistinguishable from God, when we do
God's will. When we separate ourselves from God's will, we sin like
our parents, and whatever benefit we could have brought ourselves and
our children, is lost. These are natural consequences. They are true
whether we mouth a belief in God or not.

While I have no more proof for this speculation than Hyam, at least I
didn't miss the fact that Jesus was non-violent, and its implications,
particularly that His followers took it up, however reluctantly. 

I believe that Jesus was God, as any of us is, whenever we are one
with God in doing God's will. In my experience, people seem to know
this. They know when they are doing good or not, and when we are doing
good we feel right about it. We become strong and fearless. Death
really does cease to have meaning. We are one. 

I believe God in fact has chosen to act no other way in this World
than through us. If we don't make a good World, we don't have a good
World. Period.

In my view, this mighty responsibility is ours to bear, and was the
real cross Jesus took on Himself for us. We have to supply the magic.
There is no other magic. Either we do it, or it doesn't get done.

Discussions like Hyam's are neat but how are they doing God's will?
How are they doing good for anybody? Even himself. That is the
question I ask. I'd be delighted to hear a positive answer. Maybe the
fact that Terry finds it interesting is enough. 

As far as nudism is concerned, who among us does not feel we are doing
good when we are natural in the presence of other nudists. We look far
and wide for an explanation of the joy we feel. It is because we are
doing God's will, and it makes us strong, caring and happy.

We really do need to teach that to our children and to the World.