| A young college woman sits down at her desk | | | | "Maya" which means illusion. The Hindus |
| on the first day of a course on comparative | | | | essentially believe that material objects |
| religion. She thinks it's a good deal. She | | | | don't really exist. The ancient Greek |
| gets college credit for a casual review of | | | | Olympians similarly had a disdain for the |
| her own Christian faith and gets to learn | | | | material world. |
| about other world religions. | | | | |
| | | | To them, anything physical or material was |
| The professor enters the room fashionably | | | | lower than the realm of spirit and was |
| late. He's casually dressed in frumpy clothes | | | | corrupt. This is why many people of the |
| and his hair is in a thin gray ponytail | | | | ancient world had a hard time accepting the |
| that's so tight it stretches all the wrinkles | | | | Christian doctrine of the incarnation. |
| out of his face. What follows in that first | | | | |
| class and throughout the rest of the semester | | | | The incarnation is the Christian doctrine |
| is a battle for the souls of the students in | | | | that Jesus, Himself being divine, was born as |
| the class. | | | | a baby and grew to manhood. In other words |
| | | | God took on human flesh and dwelt among us. |
| The professor's secular, atheistic, | | | | |
| materialist bias is revealed from the first | | | | The Olympian, Hindu-like religion dominated |
| time he opens his mouth. He nevertheless | | | | the thinking of the Pagans of the ancient |
| gives all religions a modicum of respect | | | | world. It is from this soil that Gnosticism |
| except for traditional Christianity for which | | | | grew. Gnosticism was a syncretism (mixture) |
| he reveals unvarnished disdain. | | | | of Christianity and Olympianism. Full blown |
| | | | Gnosticism didn't appear until the second or |
| The professor, when dealing with the | | | | third centuries AD. |
| Christian faith, attacks it in a manner | | | | |
| commonly used in comparative religion classes | | | | The sacred texts of Gnosticism were written |
| in college. His bright shining lie is the | | | | in the second and third centuries which |
| claim that in the early centuries of | | | | removes them a long way from the historical |
| Christian history there were several | | | | events of the life of Jesus and the apostles. |
| "Christianities," each with their own sacred | | | | Traditional Christianity and its sacred texts |
| texts, competing with each other on a more or | | | | which comprise the New Testament were |
| less equal basis to become the dominant | | | | mainstream and generally accepted from the |
| mainstream branch. | | | | earliest days of church history long before |
| | | | gnosticism reached full flower. |
| (Incidentally, the murder mystery thriller, | | | | |
| The Da Vinci Code, promoted the view that a | | | | The best scholarship shows that the books of |
| feminist Gnostic sect had the greater claim | | | | the New Testament were written in the first |
| to be the true Christian faith.) The truth is | | | | century. They were universally accepted by |
| far different. The truth is that traditional | | | | the early Christians and were later formally |
| apostolic Christianity, which is the | | | | codified as the New Testament. |
| Christianity of the New Testament, was the | | | | |
| mainstream form of Christianity from the very | | | | The Gnostic writings attempt to connect |
| earliest days of the church. | | | | Christ to a Greek philosophical and religious |
| | | | worldview. The Gnostic writings make little |
| The Gnostic sects are very different from | | | | mention of real events of real history. The |
| traditional Christianity and are by no means | | | | traditional gospels and epistles of the New |
| on an equal scholarly footing with the | | | | Testament rightfully connect Christ to the |
| traditional Christian faith. | | | | Hebrew worldview and make many references to |
| | | | real events that occurred in real history. |
| Nevertheless, this "60's geek" professor with | | | | |
| his persuasive words is able to shake the | | | | The New Testament shows that Jesus was the |
| faith of some young Christian students. A | | | | promised Messiah of Israel who came in |
| careful student who takes some time to do | | | | fulfillment of over 300 Old Testament |
| some research will see through the "strawman" | | | | prophecies. No other faith, including |
| the professor has set up. | | | | Gnosticism, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, |
| | | | Shintoism and Jainism has anything to compare |
| The "strawman" tactic is commonly used in | | | | with the Old and New Testament record of |
| debates and lectures. It consists of | | | | prophecy and fulfillment of prophecy. |
| distorting Christianity into a strawman of | | | | |
| inaccuracies and contradictions and then | | | | Most sacred writings of other faiths contain |
| attacking the strawman and giving the | | | | no prophecies at all. I have often said that |
| impression that Christianity has been | | | | the many hundreds of Bible prophecies and |
| disproven. | | | | their fulfillments are like God's signature |
| | | | on His holy book and prove that God inspired |
| Let me give a thumbnail sketch of early | | | | the writing of the Bible. |
| church history. The religion of the ancient | | | | |
| Greeks was Olympianism which is similar to | | | | The professor in that comparative religion |
| the Hinduism of present day India. The Romans | | | | class would do well to look into the matter |
| essentially adopted Olympianism but referred | | | | of prophecy and fulfillment of prophecy. If |
| to the various gods by Latin instead of Greek | | | | he does he will find that traditional |
| names. | | | | biblical Christianity is beyond compare! |
| | | | Gnosticism is a faith different from |
| Hindus believe that the material world is | | | | Christianity and it came centuries later. |