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