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Raelians = Christians = Nuts

• Cults , • Skeptics & Atheists

One evening, while channel surfing, I came upon a debate of the cloning controversy with a clergyman as one of the guests. Of interest were comments the clergyman made about the "nutty" beliefs held by the Raelian cult, clearly implying his own Christian beliefs were somehow objectively less "nutty."

I would have loved to ask the clergyman exactly what about the Raelian beliefs he found so comparatively nutty. Is it nutty that the Raelian leader received his revelation alone on a mountaintop? Sounds a bit like Moses. Is it nutty that the alien scientists allegedly created man in their own likeness? Hmm - that sounds familiar, too. Perhaps it's nutty that the Raelians believe our alien creators will someday return to us. No, that can't be it; Christians have been waiting patiently, nearly 2,000 years now, for the anticipated return of Jesus.

John Bice, The State News: Raelian cult beliefs just as nutty as the Christian majority's

Richard Evans Lee
January 16, 2004 •
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The Bible stands alone...it is unique and based on evidence.In 1889 a schoolteacher told a ten-year-old boy, "You will never amount to very much." That boy was Albert Einstein. In 1954 a music manager told a young singer, "You ought to go back to driving a truck." That singer was Elvis Presley. In 1962 a record company told a group of singers, "We don’t like your sound. Groups with guitars are definitely on their way out." They said that to the Beatles. Man is prone to make mistakes. Those who reject the Bible should take the time to look at the evidence before they come to a verdict. 1. It is unique in its continuity. If just 10 people today were picked who were from the same place, born around the same time, spoke the same language, and made about the same amount of money, and were asked to write on just one controversial subject, they would have trouble agreeing with each other. But the Bible stands alone. It was written over a period of 1,600 years by more than 40 writers from all walks of life. Some were fishermen; some were politicians. Others were generals or kings, shepherds or historians. They were from three different continents, and wrote in three different languages. They wrote on hundreds of controversial subjects yet they wrote with agreement and harmony. They wrote in dungeons, in temples, on beaches, and on hillsides, during peacetime and during war. Yet their words sound like they came from the same source. So even though 10 people today couldn’t write on one controversial subject and agree, God picked 40 different people to write the Bible—and it stands the test of time. 2. It is unique in its circulation. The invention of the printing press in 1450 made it possible to print books in large quantities. The first book printed was the Bible. Since then, the Bible has been read by more people and printed more times than any other book in history. By 1930, over one billion Bibles had been distributed by Bible societies around the world. By 1977, Bible societies alone were printing over 200 million Bibles each year, and this doesn’t include the rest of the Bible publishing companies. No one who is interested in knowing the truth can ignore such an important book. 3. It is unique in its translation. The Bible has been translated into over 1,400 languages. No other book even comes close. 4. It is unique in its survival. In ancient times, books were copied by hand onto manuscripts which were made from parchment and would decay over time. Ancient books are available today only because someone made copies of the originals to preserve them. For example, the original writings of Julius Caesar are no longer around. We know what he wrote only by the copies we have. Only 10 copies still exist, and they were made 1,000 years after he died. Only 600 copies of Homer’s The Iliad exist, made 1,300 years after the originals were written. No other book has as many copies of the ancient manuscripts as the Bible. In fact, there are over 24,000 copies of New Testament manuscripts, some written within 35 years of the writer’s death. 5. It is unique in withstanding attack. No other book has been so attacked throughout history as the Bible. In A.D. 300 the Roman emperor Diocletian ordered every Bible burned because he thought that by destroying the Scriptures he could destroy Christianity. Anyone caught with a Bible would be executed. But just 25 years later, the Roman emperor Constantine ordered that 50 perfect copies of the Bible be made at government expense. The French philosopher Voltaire, a skeptic who destroyed the faith of many people, boasted that within 100 years of his death, the Bible would disappear from the face of the earth. Voltaire died in 1728, but the Bible lives on. The irony of history is that 50 years after his death, the Geneva Bible Society moved into his former house and used his printing presses to print thousands of Bibles. The Bible has also survived criticism. No book has been more attacked for its accuracy. And yet archeologists are proving every year that the Bible’s detailed descriptions of historic events are correct. See Matthew 4:4 and 1 Peter 1:25. Anyone who wants to say the bible is an ordinary book would have a hard time in face of the evidence. That is science...weighing the evidence.

Posted by: telion | January 16, 2004 10:07 PM

You're right telion.

Posted by: AJ Barnhart | January 20, 2004 7:32 PM

I quote you: "They wrote on hundreds of controversial subjects yet they wrote with agreement and harmony." Here is a tiny sampling that should leave one to question your quote: Jesus said that he'd come not to bring peace but division and war (Matt. 10:34, Luke 12:51). Paul claims that God brings peace, not confusion (1 Cor. 14:33) and that Jesus preached peace (Eph. 2:14-17). Jesus said that God was greater than he was (John 14:28). Paul says that Jesus and God are equal (Phil. 2:6, Col. 2:9). Jesus appears to have believed in the concept of "once saved, always saved" (John 10:27-29). Paul says that those who sin after becoming Christians have thrown away their salvation and are beyond hope (Heb. 6:4-6, 10:26-27). I could go on... the book is full of contradictions. As for it being attacked: through that book so many have died... it's teachings have over and over again set one human against the next. Surely it being attacked is understandable... As for it being copied so much: it has been translated so many times, that surely it's truest meanings have been lost... and many theologist agree that it has been corrupted over time because society after society has changed things to suit their societal tendacies. About your last comment: could you point to where we can see this for ourself? if anything, more and more scientist are debunking the book. In a whole anything to do with the book or it's religious followers is not science...

Posted by: solitaryOne | January 23, 2004 9:40 PM

Nutty? Dead people walking around? Virgins giving birth? Talking animals. People living for hundreds of years. People swallowed by whales. Worldwide floods. I don't know why you think that is nutty. I see stuff like that every day on the SciFi channel.

Posted by: Badguy | January 25, 2004 3:51 AM

God (excuse the pun) don't you just love (hate) christians. How can you say the bible proves anything. The reason why all these people spoke of the same thing is because there ancestors were forced into beleiving it. I believe that the bible holds some truth in it's STORIES but i also think it's pure idiocy to base your whole life around it's lovely little bed time stories

Posted by: blah blah blah | January 27, 2004 1:39 PM

I don't have the luxury to address all of the misunderstandings above, but I will offer some comments on the most serious of them. This is the claim that Paul teaches that one who sins after coming to know Christ is beyond hope. Please consider the following commentary... "The exhortations against apostacy and to perseverance, are urged by many strong reasons. The sin here mentioned is a total and final falling away, when men, with a full and fixed will and resolution, despise and reject Christ, the only Saviour; despise and resist the Spirit, the only Sanctifier; and despise and renounce the gospel, the only way of salvation, and the words of eternal life. Of this destruction God gives some notorious sinners, while on earth, a fearful foreboding in their consciences, with despair of being able to endure or to escape it. But what punishment can be sorer than to die without mercy? We answer, to die by mercy, by the mercy and grace which they have despised. How dreadful is the case, when not only the justice of God, but his abused grace and mercy call for vengeance! All this does not in the least mean that any souls who sorrow for sin will be shut out from mercy, or that any will be refused the benefit of Christ's sacrifice, who are willing to accept these blessings. Him that cometh unto Christ, he will in no wise cast out. (Heb 10:32-39)"

Posted by: Moontown_Rabbit | October 10, 2005 10:50 PM

How do you feel?

Feel free to share your feelings about Raelians = Christians = Nuts. Please stick to the theme of the entry. Disagreement is fine. Homophobia, racism, and kindred expressions of hatred will be deleted. This site is one of my hobbies. I genuinely enjoy hearing from people and hate moderating or killing comments. Forthright disagreement is fine as long as it is civil.
My thanks,
Richard

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