Re: As people become Christians

Pim van Meurs (entheta@eskimo.com)
Mon, 16 Jun 1997 21:06:39 -0400

On Sat, 14 Jun 1997, Pim van Meurs wrote:

> snip..
>
> Are you sure about that ? People have been declared dead even in modern
> days when in fact they weren't. A miracle ?
>

Giraldo: Yes I'm sure Lazarus was dead. Jesus Himself asserted that.

I am sure he did but that is hardly proof. Comes close to circular
reasoning
as well.


> Giraldo: Moreover Lazarus sister Martha was concerned about the bad odor
> when Jesus ordered the stone to be moved away (John 11:38-39). Read
> further to see
> the reaction of the local leaders and how the large crowd will come to
> Lazarus home to see him and verify that he was dead and came back to life
> (John 12:9)
>
> Irrelevant for my question.

Giraldo: Why ? This events weren't done in the middle of the night or in
secret. Large multitudes followed Jesus and in many instances He couldn't
enter
cities for this reason. Are you implying by your remarks that all of
these thousands of witnesses follow Jesus because they had nothing better
to do ?

perhaps but that was not the intent of my remark. I wanted to know how you
knew for sure that Lazarus was dead and not just in a sort of coma ?

Giraldo: Your question has to do with unbelief because a TV crew wasn't
there to
videotape the events, a notary to certify that the events were true, a
lawyer to verify that the notary's certificate was legal, a panel from the
bar to certify the lawyer's credentials as valid, a molecular biologist to
authenticate the papyrous being used was 100% 1st century type and son on.

No, just a doctor to certify the death of the patient would already have
been
a good first step.

Giraldo: But of course, I forgot, to you witness don't count.

I'd rather stick to facts rather than rely on 'witnesses'. Too many
witnesses can be bought or are observing reality through colored glasses.

>
> >Giraldo: How about the parting of the Red Sea ?
>
> >Not necessarily. There is a theory which explains the parting of the
seas
> >by a combination of winds and bathymetry.
>
> Giraldo: Just like it happens today still ?

> Are you under the incorrect impression that the bathymetry of oceans has
> not changed ?

Giraldo: No Sir. Is the Red Sea still being parted today in a regular
basis ?

As I said, bathymetry changes.

> Giraldo: Well Steven's doctors were muted at his recovery and they did
> acknowledge that something extraordinary had happened to him but they
> didn't know what.
>
> At least thet admitted that they did not know what. To extrapolate this
to
> evidence for a deity however is a long leap.
>

Giraldo: Well tell me. Give a hint from the scientific prespective: What
will
cause a cancerous liver (over 90%) to become 100% healthy in less than a
week without any chemical or radiological treatment ? And if your answer
can't be proved in the lab then it isn't valid.

Well, we agree that you have no valid proof supporting your claim. Or do
you
have a lab certified proof of deity intervention ?


> Giraldo: Go to Ghana, ask to see the superintendent of the Foursquare
> Church in
> Africa Horace Sprague, and he will take you to a person who died and
after
> three days was resurrected.

> As I said, were they sure this person was really dead ?

Giraldo: If you stop breathing for 5 days, are you dead ?

Assuming that you did stop breathing. Sometimes shallow breathing goes
undetected.

Giraldo:If your legs began to grow maggets are you dead ?

You might as well be.

Giraldo: If your body began to have a putrid smell are you dead ?

Not necessarily, you might need a good shower.

All hearsay though

>
> Giraldo: Go to Panama and ask for Manuel Ruiz of the Faith Tabernacle
> Church. Ask him to show you the hundreds of people who have been
> supernaturally heal by
> the power of God.
>
> Even better, ask him to show scientific evidence.

Giraldo: Well, there is Dr. Pulido. A neuro-surgeon who had 11 cancerous
tumours inside his skull. He had all of the x-rays to prove. He also has
x-rays today that show his brain without any.

Wow but where is the evidence of the supernaturally healing ?

> Giraldo: Want to do scientific work ? Follow up on these leads and do
some
> research. These stories aren't hearsay. These people are real and alive
> today.
>
> Are they ? And where they ill ? You are willing to believe some
> extraordanary stories. I guess you believe in aliens, UFO's, ghosts,
witch
> craft as well ?

Giraldo: Are you alive ? Are you for real or just a joker with nothing to
do ?
Don't believe in witchcraft ? Let me take you to some pretty amazing men
in the Amazon. They will even read your mind. Believe it or not. But
people like you won't take up any challenge like that. You are afraid and
scared of the truth. Just happy to hurl stones and hide.

So who is afraid of the truth ? You make some spectacular claims. Time to
back
them up with science perhaps ? Superstition is no evidence of supernatural.

>
> A prophecy can indeed be invalidate. After all it is a prophecy. Of
course
> prophecies tend to be vague in describing when things will happen. But
why
> do prophecies, which are simple predictions, not enter the sphere of
> science ? Are you saying that what the incident they prophecy is a
> supernatural one ? What if I prophecy that on monday june 16, 1997 at
> 3:00pm PDT, an earthquake will level SF. Such prophecies have been made
> about the end of the earth etc.

giraldo: Since I know that you don't know the Biblical standard for
prophecy here it is: If a prophet prophesies and the prophesy doesn't come
to pass, then
it is false and the prophet is false with punishement being death.

So if I get lucky and an earthquake does occur I am supernaturally gifted
or just lucky ? Nice to know that the bible still supports killing for
false prophecies.

Giraldo: Jesus told of the exact hour in which the world will end: 'The
hour that you think not'. Any other prediction outside this is false.

So much for a prophecy.


> Indeed. So anything outside this realm is faith.

Giraldo: Faith is the substance of things not seen. Have you ever seen an
atom ?

Yes as a matter of fact, at IBM they showed some great pictures.

Giraldo: Do you believe they exist ? If you can't see them then you must
have
faith that they exist whether this faith is placed in a measurement or
optical enhancement devices.

All based on science, not faith.



> So noone will ever be able to prove the existance of a god ? Faith is
> interesting but why believe in just one god for instance ? Where is faith
> and imagination going to stop ? Especially in absence of proof (or
> disproof) ?

Giraldo: You'll see all the proof you want one nanosecond after you give
your last breath of life.

Perhaps, but perhaps I will have the last laugh ?

SJ: Make no mistake about it, all knees will bow and all tongues confess
that
Jesus Christ is Lord of All in heaven and earth. Whether you believe that
or not that is your future. Demons tremble and so will you.

Perhaps, just to be safe I should convert to all religions ?

Giraldo: The people who are born twice die only once. The ones who are
born once die twice.

More unsupported facts ?