Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!dimacs.rutgers.edu!aramis.rutgers.edu!athos.rutgers.edu!christian From: tblake@bingvaxu.cc.binghamton.edu (Thomas Blake) Newsgroups: soc.religion.christian Subject: Re: The missing body/Empty tomb Message-ID: Date: 28 Apr 91 22:39:12 GMT Sender: hedrick@athos.rutgers.edu Organization: State University of New York at Binghamton Lines: 67 Approved: christian@aramis.rutgers.edu In article sandrock@aries.scs.uiuc.edu (Mark Sandrock) writes: >Think about it now: that which is perfect cannot be subject to change, or >else it could not have been *perfect* from the beginning! Why? Why does a change mean that something perfect either is closer to perfection or farther from it? It is now something different, and it can be perfect both as what it was, and as what it is now. If I took a perfect stool, and added a back to it to make it a perfect chair, does that deny that it was a perfect stool to begin with? >And to argue that "With God all things are possible" is to distort and >misuse this wonderful wisdom, since in the trivial sense many things ARE >impossible for God, such as evil, imperfection, etc. And for God to act >against His own Will, His own perfect laws, would show an imperfection, i.e., >the need for a change or an interruption in the working of these laws. Why? God created imperfect human beings, (right?) And who is to say we know all of the laws of creation, (sometimes labled laws of physics or laws of nature), scientists have not ceased to explore these laws. Indeed, the more we learn, the more questions we have. >Yes, Jesus WAS seen by many following His death on the cross, but it was >NOT the physical body of Jesus which was seen. It was His spiritual body, >or better said, His soul, which naturally at that time still manifested >the wounds that He had so recently been forced to suffer. It was given >to those close to Jesus to be able to see and hear that which normally they >would not see and hear for the sake of strengthening their faith in Jesus >and the truth of His Message. > >This is the reason that those who had been close to Jesus did not immediately >recognize Him. It is also the reason He was able to enter into a locked room. It would seem logical to me that a creator capable of creating the cosmos should be able to re-animate human flesh. Before Jesus death, he demonstrated the ability to walk on water, and Peter too demonstated this ability, so violation of the "laws of physics" does not appear to require that the physical body no longer lives. Is the act of walking though walls more difficult than walking on water? Both require something outside the laws of physics we know. As for not recognizing Jesus; These people were in a state of shock, they had seen the man die! Quite often, when I run into someone I know in a different context, I don't recognize them at first. (Since I don't expect to see them.) For instance, seeing a co-worker in a store may leave me at a loss for a time. These people had seen Jesus die, probably they didn't expect to meet him on the street. Perhaps he took on a different appearance, we have a occurance of him being transfigured before his death as well. >As for the physical body of Jesus, one would have to assume then that it was >in fact taken from the tomb, by persons unknown and for reasons unknown, but >I expect that in the future this too shall be made clear. Why does one *have* to assume this? You are willing to accept the miracle of Christ's resurrection, but *only* if it was not bodily!? The workings of souls and spirits have yet to be explained by "physical laws". Why do you accept one apparant lack in "physical laws", but outright reject another? >I hope these explanation will prove helpful to serious questioners. Perhaps to some. I assume you were a serious questioner, and that these explanations proved helpful to you. They have not proven helpful to me. Tom Blake SUNY-Binghamton