From: hartigan@ac.dal.ca
Newsgroups: talk.religion.misc
Subject: Re: Jesus denied he was God
Date: 16 Aug 92 14:41:03 GMT
Organization: Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada

In article <1992Aug14.165223.16945@news.cs.brandeis.edu>, aaron@binah.cc.brandeis.edu (Scott Aaron) writes:
> In article <19920813225048ECL4JN2@MVS.OAC.UCLA.EDU>, ECL4JN2@MVS.OAC.UCLA.EDU (Jack Newsbaum) writes:
>>That's about the easiest question I've been asked this month. Because
>>Jesus clearly says that none is good but God alone. Since Jesus is
>>rebuking the man for calling him good, it is obvious that his reason
>>for doing so is that he does not want to arrogate to himself an
>>adjective that he believes should only be applied to God. Couldn't
>>be any simpler than that.
> 
> But, to see a rebuke in Jesus' words is an interpretation based on your
> personal thoughts on the matter.  The same goes for those who see a claim
> to divinity here.
> 
> The question Jesus asks is simple.  The interpretation (both views) is FAR
> from simple.

Suppose a man runs up to me and says, "Hey there, my good man, can you tell
me the way to Musquadobit?"  

I reply, "Why do you call me good? None is good but Jesus." 

What do you think I mean? At this point, you have no way of telling. 
But which would you guess?

a) the man is in the wrong to call me good, because none is good but Jesus.
I am pointing out his error, acting in the role of religious teacher.

b) trying to get the man to see that in fact I am Jesus by forcing him to
examine his reasons for calling me good. Now, it might have been clearer if
I had said: " It is well that you call me good, my friend, for I am Jesus."


Another example:

"Hey man, what a nice car!"
"Why do you call my car nice? No cars are nice but Ferraris."

(with the obvious implication that my K-car is in fact a Ferrari?)


The fact is, the standard Christian interpretations of this text stink to high
heaven of post hoc rationalization. They sound like the scrambles of 
people desperate to salvage a very shaky ship. 

I'm not trying to insult anyone, BTW.  Catholic derived Christianity just smells
really fishy. I find it hard to believe that God would demand such intellectual
double-somersaults of his children. How many souls are lost because of the 
incredible confusion surrounding the Bible?  If the text is ambiguous and 
of doubtful reliability, and the Holy Spirit guides members of every sect to 
interpret it differently (and it's impossible to tell the difference 
subjectively between the HS and the Devil) than we are left with effectively
NO guidance at all.  And we are to be judged on our reaction to this
"message?"   Yowza!   To all you Xians: take a look at Islam! I'm no Muslim, 
but at least there you have a reliable text and a theology that does not
reqire copious amounts of Orwellian doublethink from its adherents.


> 
>   -- Scott @Brandeis
> 
>                            I asked Jesus,
>                      "How much do you love me?"
>                      "This much," He answered;
>                         and He stretched out
>                          His arms and died.

Yah. Right. An incarnate God who knew full well that he'd be returning to 
God-form (?) and paradise is a real hero for undergoing an execution that he
KNEW was no more than a minor annoyance. Forgive me for not experiencing
overwhelming waves of gratitude.

Sean Hartigan
hartigasn@ac.dal.ca