Jesus was a dangerous, deranged individual

Pro: "The problem is that Jesus never originated this concept." He never said he did. Neither have we. * Pro: "It even shows up in the Jewish Talmud, in Leviticus of the Old Testament, and in the Islamic Quran." Jesus was a Jew. He quoted the Jewish writings regularly and on purpose. The Quran came 700 years after Jesus life. * Pro: "So the concept of respecting those around you and treating them as you would want to be treated is hardly exclusive to Jesus." We were already aware of this. * "Jesus imagined himself as a messianic figure that would liberate "his people" from Roman occupation and elevate them above everybody else in the Asia Minor region." Actually he taught peace and never tried to conquer anyone, nor did he hint at an attitude of battle or conquest. He even taught "rendering unto Caesar what is Caesars and obeying the laws." * Pro: "Like the 20th century figure David Koresh" Jesus was being...himself. David Koresh pretended to be Jesus. Jesus taught peace. David Koresh used automatic weapons. Jesus fortold that people would come claiming to be him. * Pro: "..assisted in no small part by the area's Jewwish establishment that saw a real threat in Jesus and whom Jesus so famously hated (and tried to overturn)." Jesus forgave those who were crucifying him and never tried to overturn anyone. * Pro: "A popular portrayal of Jesus is that he was loved by almost everyone he came in contact with." (John 15:18) "If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first." - Jesus (Matthew 8:34) "And behold, the whole city came out to meet Jesus; and when they saw Him, they implored Him to leave their region." (Isaiah 53:2) "He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him." (Matthew 10:22) "And all nations will hate you because you are my followers. But everyone who endures to the end will be saved." - Jesus Isaiah 53:3 "He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide their faces he was despised, and we held him in low esteem." (Mark 6:3) "Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? Are not His sisters here with us?" And they took offense at Him." (Luke 4:28) "And all the people in the synagogue were filled with rage as they heard these things" (Luke 4:29) "and they got up and drove Him out of the city, and led Him to the brow of the hill on which their city had been built, in order to throw Him down the cliff." (Luke 17:25) "But first He must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation. (Luke 23:18) But they cried out all together, saying, "Away with this man, and release for us Barabbas!" (John 1:11) He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him. (John 5:43) "I have come in My Father's name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, you will receive him. -Pro must read a different Bible than ours. * Pro: "As we plainly see from Matthew 27, the Jews of Jerusalem overwhelmingly disliked Jesus for claiming he was their Messiah." We are aware of this. It's a central theme to our religion and sermons. * Pro references: (Luke 22:36) "He said to them, "But now if you have a purse, take it, and also a bag; and if you don't have a sword, sell your cloak and buy one." Telling them to be ready to defend themselves yet surrendering himself with no resistance can hardly be deemed violent. It's common sense to defend yourself. * Pro: "Here Jesus is demanding that people love him more than their own families, even if it means possibly killing them. He demanded that his followers have that kind of loyalty." Fortelling the future and giving a command are 2 seperate things. * Pro: "This is clarified in Luke 14:26" Which hardly applies to Westerners living in 2016. In order to follow him at that time in history, you realised your family probably would most likely turn against you, and you would be targeted for your faith. Muslims who convert to Christianity even today are very familiar with this concept. Their family will turn on them, their apostasy is punishable by death per Sharia Law, and their lives are in full danger. * Pro: "He that curseth father or mother, let him die the death." Death to Jesus was spiritual death and had nothing to do with the physical. * Pro: "Matthew 12, Jesus says it's okay to break his father's laws, by breaking the Sabbath day." Nope. He said "the sabbath was made for man, not man for the sabbath." The Pharisees hating him is a compliment. They were known for murdering people in the street. * Pro: "At this, they picked up stones to stone him, but Jesus hid himself, slipping away from the temple grounds" He doesn't look violent or deranged. Quite the opposite. * Sermon on the Mount(3 minute video reference) http://youtu.be...