- False Christian Beliefs: God's Procreation & Faith
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- Moshe Ben-Chaim
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- Reader: I discovered your website during the Alan Keyes -
MSNBC controversy and have read some of your articles from time to
time. I am not Jewish, I am a Roman Catholic. I have sometimes
wondered at the opinions expressed here regarding the falsity of
Christianity in light of the Bible. I do not expect Rabbi Ben-Chaim to
endorse Christianity (!) but it would be nice if he could refute what
we actually believe rather than what he thinks we believe.
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- Naturally my religion seems far-fetched and pagan when it is not
properly understood. Two questions I have: He has written in some of
his articles that God could not have a son. He said that bearing
offspring is a occurrence in nature only. Yet in Christianity, we
interpret the Genesis account of man's special creation "created
in the image and likeness of God" to mean more than man's
endowment with reason. It also means (partly) that man's nature as a
creative and procreative being are also images of God.
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- 1) Is there something about the Divine nature which prevents Divine
procreation? (Let us remember that the Christian notion of Divine
procreation is not like the Mormon one, in which God has a wife and
well...um, you know.)
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- Mesora: Procreation has one
definition, that definition is limited to biological organisms. The
entire question of God and procreation is as absurd as the question
of, "Can gravity procreate?" Something as gravity, and God
which are not physical, but metaphysical, and certainly not organisms,
cannot procreate.
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- Reader: The Christian doctrine of God
begetting a son is rather more subtle. It involves God and his
knowledge of himself. God has a self image. And since he is God, this
self knowledge is perfect and his self image is perfect; so perfect
that this image, in fact, shares entirely the Divine essence and
nature and power. Therefore the image is also God. Hence God's
"son": a human term to define a supernatural phenomenon. In
another of the Rabbi's articles he says that Christians take their
religion on blind faith, as if this faith was not based on any logic
or historical events. Which is untrue, of course.
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- Mesora: Your
statements follow no rational laws or reason. They are here say. It is
heresy to propose God as akin to humans in any way. A self
image is based on the existence of a human psyche. Anything such as a
rock, plant, fish, an animal, and God, do not fall into the class of
humans, and therefore have no psyche, and no self image.
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- Regarding historical events, reason does not deny accurate,
historical accounts which your people experienced. It is in fact the
opposite. Only that which is provable history is what should be
followed. Reason denies that which is not your history, I mean, the
fabrications perpetrated by a few conspirators to spread stories such
as Jesus performing miracles, walking on water, and healing the blind.
Judaism and reality do not deny that the Creator of our reality can
alter natural laws. But man cannot. Man is the created, not the
Creator, and by definition, man is governed by laws, and cannot
control them. If man cannot prevent his own flesh from burning when in
contact with flames, how can he propose to do so for objects outside
of himself? We do not ascribe miraculous powers to even the leader of
the prophets, Moses. When asked by Pharaoh to halt the plagues, Moses
prayed to God to do so. Moses recognized he was a created being, and
not the Creator of the laws. Therefore, Moses knew he could not
control anything other than what his muscles could move. This is man's
limit in his range of function.
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- Reader: 2) Please explain how the Christianity is different
from Judaism when it comes to accepting things on faith or on the
testimony of the fathers of the religion.
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- Mesora: To continue on the heels
of my last thought, I was saying that reality demands there is a
Creator Who has exclusive control over all laws. This is why we say
that Jesus and all men have no abilities. When do we say that miracles
did occur, or that someone was a true prophet of God? Only when we
find mass witnesses of an event, an event which the mind can easily
grasp. There cannot be a fabrication en mass of a lie. There is no
such human motive. If masses attest to an event easily grasped, (not a
belief), such as Ceasar's rulership of Rome, Alexander's acts of
conquering, David's kingship over Israel, then all such history is
true. We find no alternate accounts for those periods, but unanimous
acceptance. Such stories spread as truths, as it is impossible that a
history would be accepted by a people if it was not true. Furthermore,
they would not spread a false account of their own history.
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- In contrast to an 'event', a false 'belief' can spread because it
does not have to stand he test of reason, as belief is contrary to
reason and proof. Anyone can believe. Belief whether events transpired
is not a function of rational analysis, and therefore worthless. It is
for this reason that Christianity demands blind faith. Christianity's
originators knew very well that to attract followers, they needed to
go unopposed. They also desired a semblance of religion and therefore
kidnapped Judaism as their sheep's clothing. "Blind faith"
became their main tenet - the perfect platform to eliminate rational
dispute against their premier - which was amidst Judaism's rational
thinkers. You will find that all other religions attempt to mislead
others with a fable of an individual who spoke with God. Since such
stories do not have witnesses, you either believe that false prophet
or you don't. You have no proof against what he perpetrates, so in
some people's hearts, they truly feel he is a prophet.
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- But Christianity ignores one blaring truth: The mind was given to
man. God wished that mankind engage it in all areas, especially in
religion, the approach to the Benefactor of this mind. How
unappreciative to simply engage blind faith, and ignore our primary
gift of reason and intelligence.
- Judaism is the only religion based on rational laws, tracing back to
a historically proven event of God giving the Torah to Moses and the
Jews on Mount Sinai in the year 2448 of our current count of 5763
since Adam and Eve.
- This event was witnessed by 2.5 million Jews, and would not have
been globally accepted as truth - even by Christians - had it never
occurred. Those who deny this event, must also deny all history.
Reason demands all history is true - including Sinai - he only time
when God revealed Himself to a nation, selecting them as the bearers
of His laws for all mankind to follow. Deuteronomy 4:33-34, "Has
any nation heard the voice of God speaking from amidst the flames like
you heard, and lived? Or has God come miraculously to take a nation
from the nations with miracles, signs wonders, and with war and with
an outstretched arm and a mighty hand and with a strong arm, and great
wonders as all which God your God has performed for you in Egypt in
front of your eyes?"
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- I wonder how other religions have the blind, ignorant audacity to
make claims of divine selection, while simultaneously maintaining as
true, this text from the Bible. Again we see Christianity's defiance
of engaging reason, even though God gave intelligence to all mankind.
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- Reader: 3) If it were true that Christians check their
intellects at the church door, what about Alan Keyes, a Roman
Catholic. Could a man who scrutinizes everything else in life with
insight and clarity neglect to scrutinize something as all important
as his religion? "Does this make sense?" Thank you for your
time. Sincerely, Jill
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- Mesora: I appreciate your humor.
Yes, a brilliant mind may be uncritical in a given area. God gave us
many years on earth. In time, hopefully we use our intelligence to
reexamine all our decisions, be they scientific, or religious. I
cannot speak for Alan Keyes' decision. Obviously I do not agree with
other religions based on my preceding arguments.
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