Archives for April, 2011

The Pope Benedict's account of resurrection and the hearsay rule!

The Christian Easter story mounts to little more than hearsay as I will show in this knol. But, please do not get very upset. Veneration and awe of the Transcendent is inherent in human nature, but we need to find the most appropriate channels for that rather than insisting on myth and legend of resurrection.

So, buckle up for the bumpy ride!

In a recent book, ‘Jesus of Nazareth: Holy Week: From the entrance into Jerusalem to the Resurrection;’ Pope Benedict XVI has tried to present the case for resurrection. The case is based on the testimony of St. Paul and the apostles as recorded in the New Testament. Saint Paul according to his own testimony came on the scene 20 years after Jesus was put on cross and the authors of Mark, Matthew, Luke and John were not eye witnesses, according to the best university based scholarship of the New Testament.

According to Encyclopedia Britannica:

“Hearsay, in Anglo-American law, testimony that consists of what the witness has heard others say. United States and English courts may refuse to admit testimony that depends for its value upon the truthfulness and accuracy of one who is neither under oath nor available for cross-examination. The rule is subject, however, to many exceptions.”

So, the accounts we have for resurrection are only hearsay, by definition. The details follow:

Jesus' miracle: Surviving the Cross

Jews were not expecting a suffering Messiah or one who will die on a cross, as Deuteronomy said, “And if a man have committed a sin worthy of death, and he be to be put to death, and thou hang him on a tree:, His body shall not remain all night upon the tree, but thou shalt in any wise bury him that day; (for he that is hanged is accursed of God;) that thy land be not defiled, which the LORD thy God giveth thee for an inheritance.” (Deuteronomy 21:22-23) The Pope Benedict XVI has acknowledged this in his recent book about Jesus of Nazareth.