Profound Quotes!!
Farrell Till jftill@midwest.net
Thu, 31 Dec 1998 21:22:51 -0800 (00915189771, 2.2.32.19990101052251.008af410@midwest.net)
At 08:31 PM 12/31/98 -0500, Michael D Fitzpatrick wrote:
>Dear Errancy List:
> I was wondering if anyone on the Errancy List could tell me why
>the following account has such an immediate and heavy impact on those who
>read it. I was carefully examining my own reaction to it--this story
>swept me off my feet and into His arms, so to speak. I imagine that
>Farrell might say that letting oneself be affected by such an account
>seriously impares one's ability to think logically. I have been listening
>to some Sales Training Tapes recently, and they virtually all say that we
>are basically emotional creatures, not logical creatures. In my short
>time on this list, I have already witnessed a number of emotional
>outbursts by believers and unbelievers alike. OK, I'll admit it: The Lord
>Jesus Christ has a powerful emotional grip on my life, and that is why I
>am His forever and forever and forever, world without end. Now be careful
>as you read this account--it is bound to shake up a few doubts.
>
>His forever and forever and forever,
>
>Brother Michael
>
>
> He Built a Bridge
>
<details about building the Golden Gate snipped>
TILL
> Some have asked if this was the greatest bridge ever built. No,
>there was an even greater bridge built 2,000 years ago. The towers are
>remarkable. One tower was raised outside the gates of old Jerusalem; it
>was a wooden structure with a cross beam at the top; it was soaked with
>divine blood and seared by judgment fires. The other tower stands high
>on the "Immovable Mountain of Immortality" and around it on every side
>flash walls of jasper, and over it is the arching rainbow of perpetual
>peace. The span is the longest ever swung by an engineer. It stretches
>all the way from the road to hell to the gates of heaven. It was built
>at an awesome cost to the Chief Designer. As the last rough rivet was
>driven in place by a Roman sledgehammer, Jesus Christ, the Son of God
>died shouting "IT IS FINISHED". Before his bloody body was removed from
>this magnificent superstructure of redemption, the bridge had been
>crossed by a repentant thief. Millions more have crossed it since. For
>written there in bold blazing letters of fire for all men everywhere to
>read:
>
> THERE ARE NO TOLL CHARGES ON THIS BRIDGE.
> ALL TOLL CHARGES HAVE ALREADY BEEN PAID!
TILL
So let me tell you what is wrong with this little tale, Michael. It begs
the question of the historical accuracy of the NT. Without the biased, very
interested NT and apocryphal books, there is no reference at all to the
crucifixion of Jesus. To claim that it happened is to beg the very question
that needs to be settled. Furthermore, to claim that this "bridge" of
Jesus's crucifixion stretches all the way from "the road" to the "gates of
heaven" is to beg the question of the vicarious atonement of Jesus. If we
should assume that a man named Jesus of Nazareth was indeed crucified, that
would in no way establish that his crucifixion was done to atone for the
sins of humanity. Your story merely assumes that it did and therefore begs
another question that you need to prove. You have shown yourself to be an
accomplished question beggar, Michael, but when are you going to do what you
agreed to do when you came onto this list, i.e., affirm that the
resurrection of Jesus is a historical fact?
Let's suppose, Michael, that someone who believes in Islam or Hinduism would
spin a tale like this designed to elicit emotional responses to key claims
in these religions. Would the responses of those who reacted emotionally to
the tale in any way prove the truth of Islam or Hinduism? If not, then
please explain to us how that emotional responses to Christian yarns should
be considered evidence that Christianity is truth.
That's a simple request, Michael.
Farrell Till
Skepticism, Inc.
jftill@midwest.net