Was the New Testament invented by Romans to control the Masses?

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   mgeorge1050posted 10 years ago

   Was the New Testament invented by Romans to control the Masses?
   
   Joesph Atwill claims that a large part of Christianity was fabricated by Roman leaders in an effort to control the masses.  I was shocked when I read this, and I would like to know what others think.

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   Attikosposted 10 years ago

   The Biblical Codex was assembled in the fourth century. Given it's well established that despite some short edited and added passages the works then included in the New Testament were written in the first and second centuries when the imperial authorities were attempting to wipe out rather than to assimilate Christianity, the thesis that a large part of it was Roman invention is not a credible one. I would take Atwill's claims as representative of something other than serious exegesis.

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   Dont Taze Me Broposted 10 years ago

   
   
   Mr. Atwill is just like all the other amateur-Scholar-wannabes who refuse to put in the time and effort to earn a degree in the field, who want to advance their pet theories to sell books and dupe you over. He relies on popular media and the ignorance of the layperson to score points rather than publishing in a credible academic journal or publishing academically. He knows he can’t do that, because he has no clue how academics work, how they think, or what they actually argue on the subject. He might as well claim that Jesus lived on Atlantis, which came from Mars. That theory is about as ridiculous as the notion that Rome invented Jesus. This excerpt about Atwill is from
   http://freethoughtblogs.com/carrier/archives/4664
   that explains all about this quack. Read it and learn something, rather than reading tweets mentioning Atwill from other quacks like Dawkins.
   "Notice his theory entails a massive and weirdly erudite conspiracy of truly bizarre scope and pedigree, to achieve a truly Quixotic aim that hardly makes sense coming from any half-intelligent elite of the era (even after adjusting for the Flynn effect), all to posit that the entire Christian religion was created by the Romans (and then immediately opposed by it?), who somehow got hundreds of Jews (?) to abandon their religion and join a cult that simply appeared suddenly without explanation on the Palestinian (?) book market without endorsement."
   Now, shall we start the countdown to when you delete this question like you do others when your questions are shown to be based on tripe?

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      mgeorge1050posted 10 years agoin reply to this

      My questions are not requests for you to ramble on and on in various attempts to dissect and debunk their meaning.  I am trying to chat about various topics with friends, and you are that know it all dick who longs for a nemesis. I am off religion.

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      Dont Taze Me Broposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      You call my answer rambling? There are only so many characters one can use to answer a question, not enough to ramble and if your attention span is short you can't read or comprehend past one paragraph you are the problem, not me.

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      tsadjatkoposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Talk about rambling on, read your rant to your own question below.I read the offensive comment  you wrote to Taze on your other question before you deleted it.His comments were right on but instead of owing what you said you deleted the whole Q&A

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   mgeorge1050posted 10 years ago

   Some folks seem to think the way to answer these questions is to try and make the person asking the question seem stupid.  I will admit that I have said some things that were offensive to some religions, but I normally do not wish to single out individual authors.  I thought this was a forum of free expression.  Of course constructive criticism is always welcome, but some people are going beyond the point of criticism. 
   Dont Taze Me Bro insists that all of my questions about religion are 'based on tripe'.  What are your long winded ramblings based on, sir?  Give us all some facts.  Can you prove there is a God?  Can you prove Jesus walked on water or rose from the dead?   Who exactly wrote the Bible and when?   Give some real, expert answers, sir. As you are clearly a self proclaimed expert in the field of Christianity.    In the beginning of your answer, all you are doing is trying to discredit Atwill by simple, yet effective name calling.  Then you move on to discredit his theory by asking a series of questions without answers that prove what exactly?  Could you explain, in detail, using a language that all of us laypersons can understand, the answers to all of those questions?  Maybe you could write a hub explaining why Atwill's theories are all bogus.  Of course, since you seem to think the rest of us are all idiots, who would be able to truly appreciate your work?
   You do realize, I have no doubt, that you made a broad statement about 'popular media' and 'the ignorance of the layperson' in your answer.  Well, popular media is popular for a reason, many people enjoy the entertainment value.  As far as us laypersons, I didn't realize I needed to be an expert on religion to ask a question about a news headline.  You are insulting more reader's intelligence than mine with your answers, but I presume that is your goal.  I guess as long as Hubpages has deputy Dont Taze Me Bro around, I will stay away from religious questions.  I have some gardening questions if you want to go over and attack my vegetable planting plans, be my guest.

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      Dont Taze Me Broposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      I havegiven more information to you on your questions than I care to waste on anyone with your mentality of misrepresenting what I say & then resorting to name calling and insincerity only to have you delete what I post becauseit reveals who youa

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      mgeorge1050posted 10 years agoin reply to this

      Name calling similar to what you used in your answer in an effort to debunk Atwill.  Maybe you should read your post again.  Like I said, write a Hub and further explain your position.  How does it feel to have your posts directly attacked?

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      Dont Taze Me Broposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      No, name calling meant to make me look stupid, but it backfired on you,  I had nothing to hide but you deleted it because you made yourself look stupid which btw you are continuing to do. Go ahead republish it - you can for 24 hours.

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      mgeorge1050posted 10 years agoin reply to this

      I have reopened the question.  I offer you a truce again, as I truly do not care about the details of any religion.  I am merely trying to have fun and chat within the community. You are obviously passionate about Christianity.

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      Dont Taze Me Broposted 10 years agoin reply to this

      OK, enough has been said, I agree to a truce. Thank you for republishing the Q&A. We do have one thing in common. I do not care about the details of any religion either. Religion is man reaching up to God. Christianity is God reaching down to man

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