Philosophy
When thinking about the relationship between the Old and New Testaments one could argue, on the one hand, that Jesus represents a radical departure from, and rejection of, conventional Jewish doctrine; or, on the other hand, that the two Testaments are continuous, since Jesus' birth and reincarnation fulfill the prophecies announced in the Old Testament, and his teachings are an improvement upon, but not a rejection of, the old ways.
From the point of view of morality, believers tend to see a continuous progression and improvement, since we start with a jealous and petty God and end up with a gospel of agape (universal love) and altruism. Atheists agree with the claim of continuity, but morally they tend to lean in the opposite direction: the Bible has gone from really bad to absolutely awful: originally you would be punished for your actions (invariably exaggerated beyond all reasonable recognition, resulting in violent and torturous death); in the New Testament, however, you can even be found guilty of thoughtcrime, to borrow Orwell's coinage, and the punishment no longer ends in death: it follows you through an eternity of ceaseless and disproportionate torture and fiery hell.
But perhaps The Bible ought to be divided into three main parts instead of the traditional two: the Old Testament, the Gospels and Paul. Paul is continuous with the Old Testament, and carries its intolerance and vicious cruelty and totalitarianism to unfathomable new depths. Jesus, however, represents a major break and ideological departure from the legalistic obligations of the Old Testament and from Paul's self-righteousness on steroids.
As philosopher Don Cuppit argues in the following interview with Philosophy Bites, if we do to Jesus what Thomas Jefferson did with the Bible, namely take out all the supernatural attributions, what we eventually find is a philosopher (and no longer a fairy tale) who introduces the world to an unprecedented vision of radical humanism. The Jesus you find in the Bible is a prophet of death. Don Cuppit's Jesus represents a vision of life, fellow feeling and love.
- An Honest Question To Christian Readers
The week before Christmas, I was outside of a grocery store that had a sale on holiday hams. It struck me as odd that the birth of someone who was Jewish would be regularly celebrated by His followers with something that was not kosher, clearly forbidden...
- Merry (sorta) Christmas
We wish a chappy Chanukkah to all our Jewish playfriends and a merry Christmas to all our Christian playfriends...well, sort of a merry Christmas. Astronomers are now saying that Christmas, the day of Jesus' birth is not December 25th, but June 17th....
- Richard Dawkins - The Great Bus Mystery
Educated and moderate Christians know better than to interpret the Bible literally. To do so, they rightly understand, would entail the rejection of virtually all good science. It would take lots of twisted logic (and an unabashed sense of denial) to...
- Rowan Atkinson - Jesus And The Devil
The New Testament is a set of interpretations on the life of Jesus of Nazareth, and a very varied set of interpretations at that, but I think you'll agree with me that none of those interpretations quite compare to British comedian Rowan Atkinson's...
- Elaine Pagels...religious Historian Still Teaching And Writing
Elaine Pagels February 13th, 1943 Quite a scholar and often consulted on PBS specials on theology. She was "...born in Palo Alto, California (1943). She's a professor at Princeton and she's most famous for her work on early Christian texts, especially...
Philosophy
Don Cuppit on Jesus as Philosopher
From the point of view of morality, believers tend to see a continuous progression and improvement, since we start with a jealous and petty God and end up with a gospel of agape (universal love) and altruism. Atheists agree with the claim of continuity, but morally they tend to lean in the opposite direction: the Bible has gone from really bad to absolutely awful: originally you would be punished for your actions (invariably exaggerated beyond all reasonable recognition, resulting in violent and torturous death); in the New Testament, however, you can even be found guilty of thoughtcrime, to borrow Orwell's coinage, and the punishment no longer ends in death: it follows you through an eternity of ceaseless and disproportionate torture and fiery hell.
But perhaps The Bible ought to be divided into three main parts instead of the traditional two: the Old Testament, the Gospels and Paul. Paul is continuous with the Old Testament, and carries its intolerance and vicious cruelty and totalitarianism to unfathomable new depths. Jesus, however, represents a major break and ideological departure from the legalistic obligations of the Old Testament and from Paul's self-righteousness on steroids.
As philosopher Don Cuppit argues in the following interview with Philosophy Bites, if we do to Jesus what Thomas Jefferson did with the Bible, namely take out all the supernatural attributions, what we eventually find is a philosopher (and no longer a fairy tale) who introduces the world to an unprecedented vision of radical humanism. The Jesus you find in the Bible is a prophet of death. Don Cuppit's Jesus represents a vision of life, fellow feeling and love.
- An Honest Question To Christian Readers
The week before Christmas, I was outside of a grocery store that had a sale on holiday hams. It struck me as odd that the birth of someone who was Jewish would be regularly celebrated by His followers with something that was not kosher, clearly forbidden...
- Merry (sorta) Christmas
We wish a chappy Chanukkah to all our Jewish playfriends and a merry Christmas to all our Christian playfriends...well, sort of a merry Christmas. Astronomers are now saying that Christmas, the day of Jesus' birth is not December 25th, but June 17th....
- Richard Dawkins - The Great Bus Mystery
Educated and moderate Christians know better than to interpret the Bible literally. To do so, they rightly understand, would entail the rejection of virtually all good science. It would take lots of twisted logic (and an unabashed sense of denial) to...
- Rowan Atkinson - Jesus And The Devil
The New Testament is a set of interpretations on the life of Jesus of Nazareth, and a very varied set of interpretations at that, but I think you'll agree with me that none of those interpretations quite compare to British comedian Rowan Atkinson's...
- Elaine Pagels...religious Historian Still Teaching And Writing
Elaine Pagels February 13th, 1943 Quite a scholar and often consulted on PBS specials on theology. She was "...born in Palo Alto, California (1943). She's a professor at Princeton and she's most famous for her work on early Christian texts, especially...