Continuing research into the possibility of the reality of the Exodus, and current data/conclusions.

Ivan Hlavanda said:

I didn't call anyone specifically a liar, but a man in general is a liar.

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Err .. what????

Neogaia777 said:

Read the paper.

It addresses this.

God Bless.

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Ok I did some more reading, and found some good arguments for small Israel as you mention. However, as I found out, some scholars insist the Hebrew grammar of the passage requires elep to mean a literal “thousand.”

Both large and small census interpretations have good arguments. I need to do futher research on this topic. Thank you

Neogaia777 said:

Maybe I just figure with a person like @sjastro, they gotta be unique, etc.

God Bless.

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So, you don't actually see that you're singling out @sjastro to make the case that his beliefs are unique to him(?).. when its perfectly clear to me, that everyone's beliefs are unique to any individual .. Ie: they are their beliefs .. and not something 'owned' by others, or something else.

SelfSim said:

Err .. what????

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Men lie, God does not. If God says something, then we know it to be true.

We already know many times from history, science was wrong / was manipulated with.

Neogaia777 said:

And I'm not at all meaning to be bragging or anything like that, but I've been a student of other people's beliefs for a very long time now, and know all kinds of other people's different takes in the matter of beliefs, etc.

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I wouldn't brag about such a thing. It sounds rather nosy.

Neogaia777 said:

I'm not recommending that he just come out with them publicly on here right now, there's way, way too many ravenous wolves for that, etc, and if he ever does ever choose to speak with me in private about it, I'm most certainly going to be sure that none of you ever get to ever know about it, unless @sjastro think it's ok, or decides otherwise, etc.

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Its up to him .. his choice.

But be warned tho .. this is a man who stood between his cat and a six foot monster red kangaroo .. and also took on a deadly eastern brown snake .. bare handed!

Ivan Hlavanda said:

Men lie, God does not.

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Depressingly cynical worldview.

I feel much pity for you.

SelfSim said:

Depressingly cynical.

I feel much pity for you.

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And why is that? Because I believe in God? Or because I say that people lie, which they do.

Neogaia777 said:

And I'm not at all meaning to be bragging or anything like that, but I've been a student of other people's beliefs for a very long time now, and know all kinds of other people's different takes in the matter of beliefs, etc.

@sjastro's have to be at least somewhat different, to say the least, etc.

I'm not recommending that he just come out with them publicly on here right now, there's way, way too many ravenous wolves for that, etc, and if he ever does ever choose to speak with me in private about it, I'm most certainly going to be sure that none of you ever get to ever know about it, unless @sjastro think it's ok, or decides otherwise, etc.

God Bless.

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No, it's clear you are just being passive-aggressive and it is really offensive. Your ostensible assumption is, that if he doesn't agree with your beliefs about the literal historicity of the Exodus account that his faith must somehow be marginal or eccentric for a Christian. But you've been around here enough to know that assumption is false.

Neogaia777 said:

And I'm not at all meaning to be bragging or anything like that, but I've been a student of other people's beliefs for a very long time now, and know all kinds of other people's different takes in the matter of beliefs, etc.

@sjastro's have to be at least somewhat different, to say the least, etc.

I'm not recommending that he just come out with them publicly on here right now, there's way, way too many ravenous wolves for that, etc, and if he ever does ever choose to speak with me in private about it, I'm most certainly going to be sure that none of you ever get to ever know about it, unless @sjastro think it's ok, or decides otherwise, etc.

God Bless.

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sjastro's view on the Exodus aren't unique; his is actually quite common these days, Neogaia.

And the reason this sounds new to you is that you've only engaged certain portions of the overall field of Ancient Near Eastern studies as they relate to, compare to, or conflict with, the Biblical narratives. You apparently have only gotten ankle deep in the available scholarship.

Broaden your praxis and scope of study and you'll very quickly see that what I'm saying is true.

Ivan Hlavanda said:

So if there is no archaeological evidence for the ressurection of Jesus Christ, you not gona believe it? Is God's word not enough for you? It's called faith for a reason.

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Faith in Christ is just that: faith in Christ. It can't be replaced by faith in a shallow and theologically inadequate interpretation of an ancient religious text.

My religious beliefs are a private matter.
I don’t give much away as far as personal detail is concerned except to identify as a Christian which I feel obliged to do on this site.

What I will state which is not a secret I was a member of the RCC and came from a family excommunicated for not attending church on Sundays.
What I found strange even as a ten year old at the time we were excommunicated by the parish priest, I thought a higher authority such as an archbishop only possessed these powers.

As a result I have problems with organized religion in particular when it identifies itself with political ideology and splinters off into extreme groups such as advocating intolerance towards marginalized groups or engaging in deliberate misinformation about science leading to anti-vaxxing, COVID conspiracies and climate change denial as examples.

BCP1928 said:

Faith in Christ is just that: faith in Christ. It can't be replaced by faith in a shallow and theologically inadequate interpretation of an ancient religious text.

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I wonder what a robust and theologically adequate interpretation would look like ... ?

2PhiloVoid said:

I wonder what a robust and theologically adequate interpretation would look like ... ?

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Like the one subscribed to by most of Christendom.

BCP1928 said:

Like the one subscribed to by most of Christendom.

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There's a wide stream of theological interpretations out there. You haven't found one that seems reasonable?

2PhiloVoid said:

There's a wide stream of theological interpretations out there. You haven't found one that seems reasonable?

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As you point out, there are a number of them, all of which support Christian Doctrine satisfactorily despite their differences. I was educated in Catholic schools, though I am not myself a Catholic, so I tend to favor theirs, but I find no really important differences from the views of other Traditional Christians.