Saturday, August 7, 2010

Christian relics

There are many reasons why I don't believe that Jesus Christ was an actual historical figure, but on this post I will focus only on one;the lack of Christian artifacts related to Jesus. To date no one really knows where the alleged tomb of Christ is located the same goes for the actual site of the crucifixion. The sites that the Catholic church has established as the original sites are not based on archaeological evidence but are instead considered to be symbolic in nature. In all truth I think it was just an attempt although a very successful one at the church profiting from the gullibility of the many followers of the Christian faith.

Given the penchant that the Catholic church has had for collecting religious relics, it is hard to believe that they have nothing in their collection that actually belonged to Jesus. Despite the fact that there are no Roman records that even mention the alleged trial of Christ there are also no relics that have dated back to the time of Christ. I can already hear all the Christian clowns clamoring that this is not so, they love to bring up the Shroud of Turin, the ossuary that has inscribed on its side James the brother of Jesus, or even one of the latest finds which turned out to be a dud as well, the Jesus Family Tomb. The bible states that a rich man by the name of Joseph of Arimathaea asked for the body of Jesus of Pilate and was granted his request (Mark 15:43-46). He buried Jesus in a brand new tomb that was intended for himself and then he took the body and wrapped it in fine linen and laid it there. I find it hard to believe that the followers of Jesus did not try to preserve this tomb as a so called sacred place, even more incredible is the fact that no one thought to preserve the burial cloth and even hide it if necessary till Christianity gained its footing in the world.

The "true cross" is all but lost and so are the nails he was supposedly crucified with, not to mention the loin cloth which the bible states that the Roman soldiers cast lots on to see who would win it. Then there is the spear that pierced his side of which supposedly flowed blood and water, let's not forget the famous crown of thorns or the whip that was used to lash him with. For being such adoring followers none of them thought to preserve any of the above mentioned relics as proof to future generations of believers regarding the sufferings and finally the crucifixion and death of Jesus. Regardless of the fact that the church managed to hide many of the original books of the bible and even those too have been lost. Now all we have are copies of copies of copies.

What has happened to all of these relics? Well, they have all passed on to becoming nothing more than mythical lore, like unicorns and dragons. The burial cloth is that hoax from Turin, the spear has now been called the spear of destiny which was supposed to give great power to those that possess it, There are over 30 so called nails of the cross that are venerated across Europe; you can read about it and many other relics on a great article put forth on wikipedia right here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Relics_associated_with_Jesus  the many so called relics that represent the authenticity of the crucifixion and Jesus himself have proven to either have been fraudulently manufactured or misplaced.

The French have really gone out of their way with the legends of Christian relics with such tales as the Holy Grail which some say is the dish,cup or plate used in the last supper. I have personally heard it said in French lore that it was actually the surviving lineage of Jesus Christ, when I first became an atheist I read all sorts of controversial books about Jesus from french lore namely: 'Holy Blood, Holy Grail' by Michael Baigent , Henry Lincoln , Richard Leigh and 'Bloodline of the Holy Grail' by Laurence Gardner , Prince Michael of Albany. I personally think that the author of 'The Davinci Code' stole his ideas from these two books I've mentioned previously. So as you can see just like Jesus the so called holy relics are nothing more than religious folkloric traditions that have been passed on to this day. As I stated many times before, Christianity is nothing more than a conglomeration of plagiarized ancient myths that predated it.

17 comments:

  1. Do you think there was a man called Jesus who taught great lessons and then the miracles and divinity were added later like urban legends are developed even today? Or do you think there never was such a man and it was built up from a group of men like how the mormon church was established?

    I understand what you are saying about all the relics. But to be a "good angel's advocate" what relic exists for any famous person goes back that far?

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  2. I don't think there ever was a man named Jesus Christ. I think he was put together by borrowing religious myths from other pre-existing cultures.

    The earliest relics/artifacts that come to mind for me are those of King Tut. We have his mummy and the many treasures that were found in his tomb etc. He is believed to have died in 1343 B.C (before Christ). We have in museums some of his personal items etc. Read about it here: http://www.site-ology.com/egypt/KT.HTM

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  3. excellent example - King Tut.

    What are you thoughts on the existence of Paul and the apostles?
    Did they get together like Jo Smith and his cronies and make up a story?

    What is your thoughts on when the NT books were written? Believers usually peg Paul's letters from 50-60 a.d. and the rest a decade or so latter.

    I am struck at how little Paul says about the life of Jesus. Wouldn't that be a rich source of instruction, but instead he almost exclusively writes about the last 3 or so days. The gospels are like the Star Wars pre-quels.

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  4. Here is one for you. The bones of John the Baptist found in Bulgaria. LOL

    http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2010/08/03/remains-of-john-the-baptist-found-in-bulgaria/?hpt=C1

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  5. I sure hope your apostasy was based on something more solid than the supposed absence of Christian relics. Especially given that the NT itself puts absolutely zero weight on such things.

    Just curious -- were there things going on in your life of a moral nature that coincided with your apostasy? The reason I ask is because, these two often seem to go hand-in-hand.

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  6. Like I stated in the blog there are many reasons why I left the faith and don,t believe in god. There is no archeological evidence for Jesus, the gospels are copies of copies and no original scriptures are extant, there is little secular evidence for Jesus and even that is suspect to have been tampered by the church.

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  7. You have, I suppose, read the Case for Christ?

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  8. @RK I have not read that book is it new? I have read other books that try to make a case for the existence of Jesus. But the evidence they present is pretty flimsy at best. Consider also that no one even has a clue as to what Christ looked like. In one of my earlier posts I put up a link to show the many depictions of Christ. It is interesting that Christ himself never wrote anything. And the words attributed to him in the bible are written by others.

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  9. If I were you I would get ahold of The Case For Christ by Lee Strobel. I agree it is interesting that Christ himself never wrote anything. If you have a chance to read it, please post and let me know what you think of it at http://thewaytheBallbounces.blogspot.com.

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  10. Thanks I will try to find it and when I do I will post my opinions on it. I have read several classics on the historicity of Christ but I just don't buy the arguments for his existence in those books. I will get back to you on that one my friend.

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  11. What are you thoughts on the existence of Paul and the apostles?
    Did they get together like Jo Smith and his cronies and make up a story?

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  12. ex-minister regarding the apostles and Paul I do believe that some of them may have existed but it is not my specialty. My interest has been mainly in Christianity as a whole and Jesus in particular. I know that the bible is a mix of some facts with fiction, and based on that some of the things said there cannot be relied upon.

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  13. Good job on the blog. No, Jessus did not exist. Or if he existed he was a totally different man from what the bible claims. He might have been a scholar but certainly not the son of a god and he didn't do any of those miracles. I am really surprized how people can still have these childish beliefs and deny everything that is set out in front of them if they would just think. I am so sick and tired of them I wish I could find more atheists in the communities I've lived in but alas it's always jessus or allah or something responsible for everything whwewver I go. Good job on your blog. Keep up the good work and know that whenever they judge you and insulte you and force you to believe in their illogical bullshit...and you feel down know that you are not alone.

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  14. Dead Sea Scrolls - take a look...i will pray for you.

    Follower of Jesus

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  15. The dead sea scrolls anonymous,seriously! First of all the dead sea scrolls have nothing to do with Christianity. They do contain copies of many of the O.T. books with some additions we don't have in our standard O.T. Also, they include communal laws and societal laws relative to a Jewish religious sect called the Essenes. The scrolls themselves predate Christ by at least 150- 200 yrs. In conclusion the dead sea scrolls are not Christian relics as you suggest. By the way pray if it makes you happy but I don't believe in your God or your prayers.

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  16. " By the way pray if it makes you happy but I don't believe in your God or your prayers."

    Sad....

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  17. What's so sad, the fact that Christianity is a myth or that you enjoy talking to yourself aka praying? Do you realize where you are? This is an atheist blog and I can guarantee you that you will not find anything on this blog to support your superstitious beliefs and delusions. I know that telling you that there is no imaginary guy in the sky is like telling a child that there is no Santa Clause. Sorry to burst your bubble. Thanks for your one word comment though.

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