Er, Peter, Maccoby's book doesn't suggest that Jesus never existed, or even that he wasn't a great big deal. He's not saying Paul invented Jesus but that he invented *Christianity* as it has come down to us.
When you jump into a thread without having read the other posts, you're likely to make embarrassing mistakes, as you have here. (Be interesting to see whether John clues you in, or just lets you continue to look like a fool.) --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, Peter <drpetersutp...@...> wrote: > > --- On Fri, 12/31/10, John <jr_...@...> wrote: > <snip> > > --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, > > "authfriend" <jstein@> wrote: <snip> > > > I'd also strongly recommend the book emptybill cited, > > > Hyam Maccoby's "The Mythmaker: Paul and the Invention > > > of Christianity." It's an eye-opener, whether or not > > > you buy all his arguments, and it's a terrific read. > > > > Judy, this book looks controversial by its title. The > > subject has been addressed before. The question > > remains: If St. Paul made up his story, why would he > > die for it? > > Great comment, John! We make up a lot of crap, but to > gladly die for it? All I know is that around 2000 years > ago some guy walking around in a human body woke up to > something HUGE and it's still there today underneath a > lot of conceptual garbage. Whether his name was Bob, > Frank or Rory, I don't know, nor does it matter. He was > a very special and dear doorway into the Big Mystery, > for lack of any other term, of existence. Still there, > right now, always loving, always inviting, always giving.
