Controversy!
I love a good controversy – especially when I’m not involved!
John the Methodist really opened up a can of worms over at the Methoblog when he criticized Reverend Mommy’s post about the “Jesus family tomb”.
Actually the posts and all the comments were quite thought provoking and caused me to consider this subject in a new light. I thought about commenting myself but each time I had an interesting thought, I discovered someone else had already wrote something similar.
Personally, I don’t believe they will ever prove this is “the” Jesus and I don’t think it is possible to prove the existence of God – not according to accepted scientific standards at least - so it is a bit of a moot point. But it was (is?) an interesting discussion.
Speaking of controversy, my lovely wife returned from her blog hiatus with a vengeance, posting three times yesterday. The first was a simple but very nice “thank you”, the second was an absolutely scandalous attack on someone who is about to turn another year older… shameful!
And the third is a self-described rant about disrespectful and intolerant Christians. You might guess that this came about because of some real-world events but sadly, she didn’t name anyone 
It’s a very good post though…
Coincidentally, Bluebird makes some similar points in another very good post at You can Hear the Grass Grow.
Just a reminder of why I love the Blogosphere!
Ok Im the first again to post. Im glad you wife is back Art. Its been a hard time for her.
Good post, Art. Regarding the controversy going on over at the MethoBlog, I pretty much agree with you. If you remember, one of my responses on my MethoBlog Profile was, “There is no way that we’ll ever know the complete truth about everything and anything while we are still here on this earth. It’s just possible that we’re not all correct.” I love a good, thought-provoking debate (although I am not much of a debater myself), but it’s going to be after this earthly existence ends before we know those answers. All we can do for now is opine.
I am SO happy to see Miss Stacie back!!
One last question…do you ever sleep? You appear to be online 24/7!
b/c i have no credibility on the methoblog (whereas i do here and every where else. haha) and i don’t have the time to read all the comments (although many are interesting), i wanted to drag this one comment here (regardless of the answers provided there):
Since when does Resurrection mean bodily Ascension? If Jesus was resurrected (which I believe) but then had a spiritual and not a bodily ascension, then wouldn’t that mean that his mortal bones would be left behind?
ummmm… since the idea of Resurrection. Jewish bodily identification should not ever be confused for Western, platonic, dualistic, the-spirit-is-good-while-the-body-is-bad-and-to-be-defiled beliefs. unfortunately, it always is.
and w/o getting all modern (or hopefully Western), the fact that Jesus resurrected means that he bodily conquered death.
and the whole grave controversy? it should be dead in the water.
although i agree that we won’t know everything – possibly ever – and that mystery is a good thing, that’s not the point when it comes to the resurrection of Christ. it was never about feeling Jesus, it was never about a detatched, other-worldly all-spiritual God-being walking around. Jesus literally died (that really can’t be debated. too much evidence). and then, as his followers were ready to die to attest to, he physically came up out of death.
sorry, that should be a post on my blog. but as can be attested, i don’t write much there.
Art, Art, Art,
Since when does someone posting what you thought before you got there serve as a reason to stop someone from posting.
Where would the blogosphere be without repitition? The whole thing is virtually built on the carcasses of dead horses, man.
And in that vein, my post on the Methoblog/Locusts & Honey debate is at http://troubleenough.wordpress.com.
Hahhaha…I love the way you put it Art…I love a good controversy especially when I am not involved kekekek…..good one! Make me laugh!
I will swing by to your wife’s soon
I understand that people want proof of Jesus, but really, just how many men were named jesus at that time? Wasn’t it like a very common name at the time?
But it is interesting to read about.
Why’d you switch blogs or something?
Hi Art. Thank you for your kind words…I visited your wife and I thought it was a good post also.
What do you think the good Lord thinks when he sees all these people and all the controversy over Him? Does He think, “Way to go! Use those brains I gave you!” Or is it more like “HEY you guys! Just love Me and feel Me in your daily life and knock off all the fighting!” I think I will ask Him when I join Him………….until then I will just believe, love, and thank him for my existence. Whne is this big BDAY now? hugssssssssssss
Thanks, Kim, I’m glad too!
Thanks, Vicki. Isn’t it such a fine line between assurance and arrogance? And of course I sleep! Just not much. Seriously, I blog twice a day – once in the “morning” when I get up and then at “night” when I get off work. Those terms are in quotes because I work second shift. And with WP, you’ve also got the ability to edit your timestamp which means you can post into the future! How cool is that?
Jason, you have as much credibility as anyone in my book. There are so many shades of meaning and understanding in this subject that I just can’t make a definitive argument – I just know that the Lord rose from the grave and conquered the power of sin and death on behalf of us all! How exactly did that happen? I don’t know and I don’t know that my knowing how (or not knowing how) changes that one bit!
John, thanks. What can I say? I like to be unique
Strange, if you will…BTW, I can’t access that link:(
Thank you Shionge. I’m sure she will appreciate that.
Beth, thanks. I think that Jesus (or some variant thereof) was a fairly common name. In fact it still is (Joshua). I switched from Blogger to WordPress at the begining of the year but I’m also a “caretaker” blogger on the Methoblog – a place for United Methodist conversation.
Thank you Nadine. It really was good, wasn’t it?
Lorna – EXACTLY!!! The big day is March 30th
I turn 30… AGAIN 
Oh, yes, Art, I know all about being about to edit the timestamp on WP (you can do the same thing with “blooger”). In fact, you should see how many future postings I already have ready to go…including one dated March 30th. Hmmm….
That whole conversation at methoblog made me very tired.
my point in the validity dept. is that li’l ol’ me, a non-denominational calvinist, probably doesn’t carry much water in the united methodist blog.
yeah, Jesus/God rose from the dead. that should be a/the cornerstone tenet in Christianity (if others believe differently, that’s all right. it’s those that call themselves Christians that’s the important part. and i’m not a theologian nor am i interested so much (at least presently) in the question of how precisely right now.
but i don’t think it’s in the least precarious or even argumentative to say that it was a physical resurrection, however that works itself out (as it turns out, it is rather mysterious and wonderously so. i mean, he showed his wounds and apparently walked through walls).
i would like to add that, as Jesus (and, of course, Jude) was a common name back then, Mary was all the more so. or, as the joke goes, an attractive white man runs through the west side yelling for a Maria and only one girl pops her head out? i don’t think so.
What do you think the good Lord thinks when he sees all these people and all the controversy over Him? Does He think, “Way to go! Use those brains I gave you!” Or is it more like “HEY you guys! Just love Me and feel Me in your daily life and knock off all the fighting!” I think I will ask Him when I join Him………….until then I will just believe, love, and thank him for my existence. Whne is this big BDAY now? hugssssssssssss
Can’t we just get into a circle and sing Kumbaya?
We can only condemn doctrinal debate today if we likewise condemn the NT epistolary writers for engaging in it, as well as the whole of the early church.
Well, thanks everybody. I’m not condemning anyone! I thought Lorna made a good statement (I love Kum Ba Ya btw) and John, you brought up some good points too (which I mostly agree with – imagine that!).
Seriously, I’m just not about debating this. Like LP, it’s making me tired…
I have now come almost full circle in my thought on this subject – which is to say that it really does not matter, in this context, because I simply do not believe those bones are the bones of Jesus the Lord. Anything else is a “what if” scenario…