Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!seismo!dimacs.rutgers.edu!aramis.rutgers.edu!athos.rutgers.edu!christian From: sandrock@aries.scs.uiuc.edu (Mark T. Sandrock) Newsgroups: soc.religion.christian Subject: Re: Jesus' resurrection Message-ID: Date: 30 Oct 90 05:20:00 GMT Sender: hedrick@athos.rutgers.edu Organization: University of Illinois at Urbana Lines: 47 Approved: christian@aramis.rutgers.edu mib@geech.ai.mit.edu (Michael I. Bushnell) writes: >Hmm. I hope that my Lord, who consented to being killed by people who >truly hated him, and still asked for them to be forgiven, would not >react so hastily when people make small jokes. My Lord just isn't >damaged that easily. On the other hand, laughing *with* the people >telling the jokes can, and has, resulted in them coming to know the >Lord. Interesting concept, living *with* the "evil"...almost smacks >of that revolutionary Jew who lived with lepers and ate with tax >collecters. What *is* the world coming to, indeed? This is not at all correct! Jesus did not "consent" to being killed. He stood in silence when faced with the hostility of his accusers. And He specifically said on the cross: "...for they know not what they do!" He refused to flee from His death, for the sake of mankind, whom after all He had come in the first place to help. If indeed Jesus had chosen to flee to safety, then would not have doubts about the validity of His Mission and Message inevitably have arisen in the minds of mankind? By refusing to flee, by courageously facing the torment and murder that awaited Him, Jesus therewith set an unbreakable seal of conviction upon the Message He had given to mankind. How mankind has since chosen to interpret and represent the Message of Jesus is a separate issue. The Mission of Jesus stands entirely on its own merit, regardless of the subsequent human activity concerning it. As for laughing *with* people about things concerning one's own faith, this sounds like nothing but simple cowardice to me! If something is not sacred to you (as evidenced by your *deeds*) then how on earth can you expect it to become sacred to someone else? Even if it's too hard to try to speak up at a particular time, one can perhaps then just walk away! I think that Jesus offered His help to those who truly sought in their hearts for it, and not otherwise. He did not humor fools, as evidenced, for instance, in His replys to those who sought to "trick" him with their questions, or with His driving the "money-changers" out of the holy Temple. Would Jesus have stayed with someone who did not respect Him? I don't think so! Regards, Mark Sandrock -- BITNET: sandrock@uiucscs Univ. of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Internet: sandrock@aries.scs.uiuc.edu Chemical Sciences Computing Services Voice: 217-244-0561 505 S. Mathews Ave., Urbana, IL 61801