The Point I Was Trying to Make ...

What I was trying to say was that the claims made in the Gospel narrative demand acceptance or rejection. If one accepts the narrative, then the implications are inescapably life altering. If one rejects the narrative, then one must reject it -- including Jesus himself.

Note: Yes, I suppose it's possible to ignore it. In much the same way I ignore virtually everything related to quantum theory. It may very well have profound effects on my existence, but I spend my life without effort extended to explore the topic. That's what most people do with the Gospel, I assume.

But for the person who seriously approaches the Gospel, there is a stark decision -- the resurrected Jesus is either true (with all the implications that come with that), or false. And for the person who determines the narrative is false, the burden is on that person to offer a rational reason for the conclusion. Explain then the empty tomb. Explain then the willingness to die for a known lie. Explain then the profound history-altering effect of Christianity.

Perhaps I spoke rashly when I suggested that a serious evaluation of the Gospel will yield only one sensible conclusion. It was born from a general frustration with people who wish to claim certain benefits from Jesus -- his beatitudes, for instance, though taken from their context and drained of their true meaning -- yet refuse (the conscious act of will) to address the stark decision laid bare in the Bible. That is C. S. Lewis' formulation: Jesus is either liar, lunatic ... or Lord. Make your choice, people.

I'm sorry if I'm coming across strong here ... two reasons: 1) I'm tired, having spent 12 hours total time to go from Tucson to Washington, D.C., and 2) thinking about all the silly conversations I've had with people who use the "Jesus was a good teacher" line but then turn their ears off to any further discussion of it. That's where the "conscious act of will" line came from.

Note: Plus, absent the spiritual and supernatural elements of his teaching, sayings like "The meek shall inherit the earth" are plain silly. Of course they won't. And "Blessed are the meek?" How so, Mr. or Miss. Secular Humanist? They are generally trodden upon quite severely. "Love your neighbor as yourself?" Nice little bromide ... but nobody really believes it or follows it, particularly when one's neighbor is a pain in the ***.

(I told you I don't make a good apologist ... )