Jesus did not rise bodily from the dead

First it is a great pleasure to be debating neonix on this issue. I read some of your debates and can tell that I am in for a challenge. Is there enough historical evidence to believe in the resurrection? That is what we are debating. I anticipate a good debate from both sides.==Opening Arguments==1) Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence To begin with, I would like to use this syllogism from the Krueger-McHugh debate [1]:1. If a claim is extraordinary, then in the absence of extraordinarily strong evidence in its favor, the claim may be considered false.2. The claim that a Jesus rose from the dead is an extraordinary claim. 3. Therefore, in the absence of extraordinarily strong evidence in its favor, the claim that Jesus rose from the dead may be considered false. 4. There is no extraordinarily strong evidence for the claim that Jesus rose from the dead. 5. Therefore, the claim that Jesus rose from the dead may be considered false. What do I mean by an extraordinary claim? I will define an extraordinary claim as a claim that contradicts accepted physical laws or our common sense, everyday experiences of the world. Based upon my understanding of an extraordinary claim (and most people would agree), the resurrection of Jesus is an extraordinary claim. In the absence of extraordinarily strong evidence in its favor, this claim may be regarded as false. My attempt throughout my opening argument is to accomplish three things: (1) To show that the Bible is unreliable as a historical document, (2) To point out areas in which we must doubt the claims of Jesus' resurrection, and (3) To show that there is absolutely no strong evidence to support Jesus' resurrection. 2) What's the evidence? a) The Bible cannot be relied upon as a historical document 1) Contradictions concerning the resurrection account When examining evidence for the resurrection of Jesus, one is certainly surprised to run across contradictions which cannot possibly be reconciled. This is indeed funny because the Bible claims that it is inspired (lit. God breathed) and that the resurrection is the fundamental key of Christianity. In Paul's own words "if Jesus did not rise from the dead; then our faith is in vain and we are still in our sins." Therefore, one must ask the question why the gospels contradict itself in this fundamental key point. Contradiction 1: The chronology of Easter week All four gospels agree that Jesus was tried first by Jewish athorities, and then sent to a Roman court before being sentenced to death by Pilate. However, on closer elements, these agreements are very superficial. We have, in total, three different sequences of events. This is a table that shows where each of these issues lie [2]: Mark's Chronology Luke's Chronology John's Chronology Thursday Night(14th/15th Nisan) Taken to high priest's house Night trial of the Sanhedrin Thursday Night (14th/15th Nisan) Taken to high priest's house No mention of trial at night. Thursday Night(13th/14th Nisan) Taken to the high priest'sfather-in-law's house. Informal interrogation by the high priest. Friday Morning(15th Nisan) "consultation" with scribes, elders and the whole council Handed Jesus to Pilate Trial before Pilate Friday Morning (15th Nisan) Trial before the Sanhedrin Handed Jesus to Pilate Trial before Pilate Friday Morning (14th Nisan) Handed Jesus to Pilate Trial before Pilate Mark 14:61-64[On Thursday night]Again the high priest asked him, "are you the Christ, the son of the Blessed one?" "I am." said Jesus...The high priest tore his clothes. "Why do we need any more witnesses?" he asked. "You have heard the blasphemy." Luke 22:66-71[On Friday morning]At daybreak the council of the elders of the people, both the chief priests and teachers of the law, met together and Jesus was led before them...They all asked, "Are you the Son of God?" He replied, "You are right in saying that I am." Then they said, "Why do we need any more testimony? We have heard it from his lips. Contradiction regarding the time of Jesus' death This is a table made by Steve Wells of the Skeptic's annotated bible. [3] This outlines the problem that one gospel says that Jesus was killed the day before passover, and another states the day AFTER passover. after noon on the day before the Passover meal Mid-morning on the day after the Passover meal John 18:28 Then led they Jesus from Caiaphas unto the hall of judgment: and it was early; and they themselves went not into the judgment hall, lest they should be defiled; but that they might eat the passover. John 19:14-16 And it was the preparation of the passover, and about the sixth hour: and he saith unto the Jews, Behold your King! But they cried out, Away with him, away with him, crucify him. Pilate saith unto them, Shall I crucify your King? The chief priests answered, We have no king but Caesar. Then delivered he him therefore unto them to be crucified. Mark 14:12 And the first day of unleavened bread, when they killed the passover, his disciples said unto him, Where wilt thou that we go and prepare that thou mayest eat the passover? Mark 15:25 And it was the third hour, and they crucified him. Because all three synoptic gospels insist that the Last Supper was a Passover Seder, they therefore must maintain that the crucifixion occured on Passover day 1; not passover Eve as John claims. [4] b) The resurrection accounts contain events which are doubtful to historians. Mark 15:42-47 When evening had come, and since it was the day of Preparation, that is, the day before the sabbath, Joseph of Arimathea, a respected member of the council, who was also himself waiting expectantly for the kingdom of God, went boldly to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then Pilate wondered if he were already dead; and summoning the centurion, he asked him whether he had been dead for some time. When he learned from the centurion that he was dead, he granted the body to Joseph. Then Joseph bought a linen cloth, and taking down the body, wrapped it in the linen cloth, and laid it in a tomb that had been hewn out of the rock. He then rolled a stone against the door of the tomb. Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses saw where the body was laid. There are many problems with the above passage that need to be pointed out. 1) "When evening had come" shows that it was aready Sabbath had started. This is a problem because no transaction is allowed; yet Joseph purchased a linen shroud on that day. The working and arrangement of the passage does not permit the interpretation that Joseph bought the shroud earlier. Likewise, Jesus would probably have not been burried on Sabbath. Based on this difficullty, theologian Nineham concluded: "Perhaps the simplest explanation is that the story originates from a cyce of tradition which knew of no chronological tie-up between the crucifixion and the Passover." [5] This is also highly doubtful historically because Joseph was part of the same Sanhedrian to condemn Jesus. Conclusion Based on the difficulties in the gospels surrounding their most fundamental claim, the Gospels should be rejected as historical evidence. The gospels contain procedure difficulties which would have been unheard of based on Jewish law and custom. Thank you, good luck with your opening arguments.______________Sources1. The Krueger-McHugh debate: "Theism or Atheism." http://www.infidels.org...;2. Tobin, Paul. The Rejection of Pascal's Wager: A Skeptics Guide To Christianity. http://rejectionofpascalswager.net...;3. Wells, Steve. The Skeptics Annotated Bible. http://skepticsannotatedbible.com...; 4. For more on this difficulty, see this video to the right of the screen. http://www.youtube.com...;5. Nineham, St. Mark. p434 quoted http://rejectionofpascalswager.net...;