Ok, I'll ask: Christians, regarding easter, what do you specifically believe happend?

[Warren Stupidity]

[geckosfeet]

1. I have been watching the movie "The Man From Earth"

I am inclined to accept the movie characters view of what transpired.

Ooo. Sorry - I was raised xtian but alas, am now agnostic.

[hlthe2b]

2. I have no clue what this movie portrays... Perhaps you could encapsulate...

I never even heard of this movie...

[geckosfeet]

15. "The Man From Earth" - well, it's about a man from earth.

A very "old man".

Rather than cut and paste and copy, here is a link to a review that discusses the plot and story.
review-of-the-man-from-earth-treatment-of-christians-considered

The most troubling point of the story is where our hero admits he’s Jesus Christ. His story is that he, centuries before, had met the Buddha. John admits that the Buddha is the most amazing man he had ever met. (Secular Liberals like Buddha it would appear.) John learned directly from Buddha. Centuries later, John decided to help out the poor misguided Jews by trying to teach them the teachings of Buddha. He taught them that there was one greater than he was (Buddha) but they mixed up the message and thought he was claiming to be the Son of God instead. Then John’s teachings riled people up so much that they crucified him. Using his knowledge of meditation from Buddha, he slowed his body down until it seemed dead. They then buried him in the tomb and he healed and came back out. (Swoon theory!) He tried to leave town but some of his followers saw him and it started a massive rumor about him having been resurrected. He tried to correct them, but having been impacted by this miracle of the return from the dead, they wouldn’t listen to him. Christianity then emerged as a twisted view of the original (and correct) teachings of Buddha based on this unfortunate incident.

I have no doubt whatsoever that we are getting to the heart of Jerome Bixby’s own feelings about Christianity in this part of the story. And that is why this part scares me so much.

on edit - added a bit of an excerpt - watch the movie - it is fascinating

[rrneck]

11. One of my favorite movies ever.

It is a testament to the value of good content. The ideas haunt you for days in spite of the "teevee" production values.

[Walk away]

3. I am just queuing up my regular Easter movie..."Life of Brian"

As an Xcatholic I am convinced Monty Python come closest to portraying the christian epoch.

[Gore1FL]

4. I am not a christian, so I doubt this will help.

What I believe happened is that the Romans made Christianity the official state religion and piggybacked an event in the bible on the same day as the celebration for the Goddess of Fertility (without changing the name).

[Warren Stupidity]

5. Well that first part certainly happened.

We even have historical records from multiple sources all consistently describing the events that established christianity as the official religion of the roman empire.

[baldguy]

6. In fifth grade in Catholic school, I had a Jesuit Brother as a history teacher.

He showed the class Easter celebrations around the world, including the Passion Plays from the Philippines. There, young men allow themselves to be crucified - including using actual nails actually pounded through their actual flesh & actually hanging from an actual wooden cross. This made quite an impression on my 10-yr old mind.

The problem I had with this: these young men survive. They volunteer for these rites year after year. Christ was up on the cross for - What? Four hours? Five hours? Not very long anyway, before He died. When I asked my Jesuit teacher about this, he dismissed it. "Christ had other things to do that day," was his answer.

The thing is: one of the reasons the Romans used crucifixion (and it was the Romans, no matter what the anti-Semites believe) as a punishment was because it was such lengthy and drawn-out form of execution. Victims could conceivably last for days before they died - and often did. And, as with the Philippine Passion Plays, there are many recorded instances of people surviving crucifixion.

So: What actually happened? Assuming the events surrounding the Passion in the Bible correct & accurate (BIG assumption), the either A) Jesus died for real, or B) Jesus survived. The theological implications of either scenario would indicate that the Resurrection is a myth.

[SamG]

7. My understanding of the act of crucifixion brings about

final strangulation, as the human body and neck cannot hold open the air channel to the lungs, so the victim dies, after hours of writhing and outright agony of pain in the hands, arms, shoulders, back. Nailing the feet to the cross prevents certain natural human gyrations which might free the victim from the cross (without the hands as they could become detached with the gyrations). Thus nailing both hands and feet to the cross ensures against possible escape by the victim.

Pretty damn ugly thinking, right?

How do I know this?

My Sunday School teacher taught us this in Junior High.

[Warren Stupidity]

12. So generally it was an act of mercy to wound the victim seriously enough to kill him.

Rather than days of agony, a relatively quick death.

[SamG]

17. NO not really, Hanging by a noose is quick, as is

the guillotine, very fast, over in a few seconds or a couple minutes.


Try hanging on a cross for an hour or more as your body tries to muster enough energy to keep your head and neck from falling down toward your chest, cutting off all ability to breathe.

Here's something you can but should NOT try at home, (seriously, read ALL the way through)... try having two people one each hold one of your arms up and behind your back and shoulders pulling them up more and more and away from each other. If you can take it for ten seconds, you might avoid shoulder dislocation, (very painful), and of course, you can tell your friends you've had enough.

The cross suspending your body from the arms is sort of like that but you have nails in your hands, and will feel pain for minutes and minutes, perhaps an hour or more before your body physically cannot fight off the need for the head and neck to fall forward, choking off all air supply. The body will reflexively writhe for a few more moments of furtive attempts to grab another breath, but only to re-ignite the pain in every inch of the body by now, until it is over and the brain dies from lack of oxygen, and the other organs soon follow suit.

[Warren Stupidity]

18. Perhaps my point wasnt clear.

Traditionally a roman soldier stabs Jesus in the chest, and that mortal wound is probably what did him in, given that otherwise crucifixion, as you say, takes a long time to kill. My point was that the soldier doing that would have done so out of mercy.

[SamG]

20. Thanks for that! It's been so many years since I

read that gory story that I had forgotten that detail.

Maybe when Rome became a nation converted to Christianity that part about the Roman soldier was stuck in there, just to give the Romans some dignity, I don't know, none of us ever will know how much of this story is anything but fiction, as inspiring as a modern novel or movie, intended just to reach a target readership/audience for the purpose of conversion and allegiance.

[johnnypneumatic]

27. one possible reason for that

because this was happening during passover, there was a necessity to get it all over with before the sabbath, so as not to be disrespectful of, or interfere with. the Jewish ritual holiday.
so instead of leaving them there for days, they were quickly killed with the spear so they could be taken down before the sabbath which begins friday night at sunset

[rug]

8. This is just for onager.

"He is risen!"

[PassingFair]

9. This is for Rug, in case Onager doesn't see this.

Happy Easter!

[rug]

10. Thank you! It scared my cat.

[saras]

16. I've seen that doll before...

[onager]

22. Well, thanks to both of you!

For cheering up my Easter.

And for Rug...this guy is still dead:

[Thats my opinion]

13. See my post here about this question

[Warren Stupidity]

14. I have no clue what you believe about the death of Jesus.

People of faith seem remakrably reluctant to state what it is precisely that they believe.

[laconicsax]

19. I've noticed that too.

IIRC, some believers worry that by sharing their beliefs, those who don't share them may question them.

[saras]

23. Perhaps because "believe" (like "feel") and "state precisely" are mutually exclusive?

[Warren Stupidity]

25. Are they? One cannot precisely state what they believe happened re the death of Jesus?

I didn't want to provide a list of events, but the gospels provide accounts of what happened, and presumably believers believe these accounts. Or do they? It didn't seem to me to be a complicated question.

[Thats my opinion]

26. It it were a matter of having the right doctrine, it would be imporrtant. But it isn't. nt

[skepticscott]

21. No doubt you regard it

as a Very Complicated Question, to which any Answer you could give in less than 2000 words would probably be wrong.

[pinto]

24. Not a clue. I'm good with that.