Jesus as myth?

[Mendalla]

Is it possible to be Christian and live a Christian life while seeing the Jesus of the Gospels as a myth (meaningful story or cycle of stories)? So use the stories to get at a deeper meaning (e.g. Christmas and Easter representing the beginning and ending of life, and rebirth into a new life without being literal about it) and worship and celebrate that deeper meaning without actually thinking this is all literal, biographical stories about a real person. After all, many of the stories in the Gospels are parables told by Jesus so are clearly meant to fulfill that mythological role (i.e. are about the deeper meaning, not the facts, of the story) so why not some of the stories about Jesus himself being "parables" told by the writers and the early Church?

 

[Mendalla]

So this is, in case you can't tell, my idea of an Easter thread. Thought a discussion about the subject of that story might be a good lead-in since the festival is drawing near. The poll is more a prompt than a serious attempt to gauge opinion, but we can discuss the results, too. I am not answering right now because, as someone not identifying as Christian right now, I'm not sure I am qualified to answer.

Please, let's keep this civil. If you disagree with someone, it is okay to question their answer, but avoid belittling or putting them down and please also give your own answer/response to your own questions. And let's avoid dogpiles if we can. If they don't answer to your satisfaction, just move on.

 

[Waterfall]

One of the interesting passages in the New Testament, is Mathew 28:17. Here we have the remaining 11 disciples, meeting Jesus on a mountain in Galilea after Jesus' crucifixion, and Mathew tells us, " When they saw Jesus, they worshipped him; but some doubted."
Imagine, they were there in the time of Jesus and some of the 11 doubted!
Obviously they were still included in Jesus' inner circle. I find it interesting that the doubters worshipped Jesus.....and thus the "story" begins.

 

[JayneWonders]

So, I responded as "Of course, that's what religious writing is all about"

It's interesting, as I am attending a congregation that has those who are lovers of the series "A Course in Miracles", and are now watching "The Chosen".
They have no question, or do not appear to have any question regarding the truth of the stories.
It makes for interesting times.

 

[Mendalla]

They have no question, or do not appear to have any question regarding the truth of the stories.

That's kind of the mindset I am in, or leaning towards. In the end, it's the meaning of the story that matters, not whether it is historically true or not. Which puts them squarely in the realm of myth (and, really, that's my answer, too). The problem in Christianity is that denying their historicity is taken as equivalent to denying their spiritual validity by a large segment of mainstream and conservative Christianity. And it is hard to get them to see that this is not so. My mother almost hit the roof when I finally outed myself as seeing the Christmas story as myth rather than historical fact and she was actually quite liberal on most fronts (e.g. supported gay ordination in '88).

 

[JayneWonders]

aaah, i probably worded it incorrectly.
I probably should have said they have no doubt in the historical accuracy of the bible.

 

[Nancy]

I'm involved in a Bible Study called "The Death of Jesus for Progressive Christians", and I am currently reading the last chapter. As I do so, I am thinking that I am not as progressive as I thought I was. I believe in the divinity of Christ, but I also know that things didn't happen exactly as the storytellers have told us. There are too many contradictions, and gaps, and other gospels not part of our Bible that might tell a different story. This particular study has some pretty wild guesses in it, which makes me realize that if you read the Bible without some kind of sturdy framework, anything goes.

 

[Luce NDs]

If a person did not question the texts of mortals ... would they ever get to the particular stuff that is beyond what mortals are limited to due to not wishing to go any further than where they are at in the learning curve that is extensive and can go exponential with a little bump?

Then some people are farther out in the unknown than others that really don't like the dark game ... of looking into what is eternally unknown! All this because of forgetting and drop out sectors that get caught in that loop of mind called emotional and hates to know they are in that state. This can go to great extremes in psychopathy where there is no empathy whatsoever ... a dark state indeed ...

Such topics are discussed in Marilynn Robinson's expression about Absence of Mind that parallels D Dennett's Breaking the Spell for those totally entangled in the unknown state so they don't even know where they're at ... especially in the great stacks that the last verse of the GOJ introduces us too ... but seldom read into ... because it is not a simple task ... and then those that do are called lazy! It may because of the requirement of sitting and quiet for the mind essentially to function as strangely as it does ...

It is classed in among the great unknowns ... with alien characteristics forming wild personalities ... thus un doubtable mysteries ...

 

[Delightful Life]

Hang on to your Fundaments!

From the Most Excellent American Gods tv show (modelled after the Great Neil Gaiman's novel) our Protagonist, Shadow, has a confab with our Lord

In Quantum Mechanics, every act of measuring influences that which is measured. There seems to be little in actual "causeless causes" in reality. Your choice of instruments determines what you will find and what you wont find.

Cultures mix and whelm. Appropriation is what cultures (indeed everything) does--reality interpenetrates, influencing and changing.


Humanity is very, very old

Earth is also the home of nonhuman persons. We aren't the only beings with agency.

There are many different types of Christian, from Christian Lifestylers to "Cultural" Christians to...

Christianity implies certain things that if one takes seriously enough...ahem :3

Not all Cultures, BS, etc are the same. They exist in contact with the world and have a sort of "fitness"--those that aren't in accord tend to disappear. Things that continue to exist tend to be more suited

As Above, So Below

No actual #Christians or #Lacanians were harmed in the production of this post
Though some were savagely poodled :3