From:  (Nigel B. Mitchell)
Newsgroups: aus.religion.christian,aus.religion,nz.soc.religion
Subject: Re: News: Persecution / Human Rights
Date: Thu, 04 Mar 1999 12:26:24 GMT

I hesitate to take this discussion off on two different directions,
but earlier today I wrote the following:

--

The evidence, some of which I have mentioned before, which
supports the proposition that the Bible was written by people of
faith who were inspired by God to pass on their experience and
understanding to others, includes:

* The fact that the Christian religion spread rapidly throughout
the Roman Empire, and later the world, despite the death of Jesus
and the martyrdom of many of his early followers.

* The fact that millions of people over the past 2000 years have
found comfort, hope, joy, fellowship, healing, and many other
benefits in practising the religion based on the teachings of the
Bible.

* The fact that, despite many errors and inconsistencies, the
basic underlying message of the Jewish/Christian understanding
that God has love for the people he has created and wishes those
people to reflect that same love for each other and for him is
discernible throughout the Bible.

* The fact that in reading the Bible, celebrating the sacraments
of the Church, and sharing the fellowship of other Christian
people, I experience in my own life the very things that the
Bible authors wrote about - love, joy, peace, hope, etc., and so
do millions of other people.

You might have alternative explanations for each of these things,
but can you disprove them?

--

Tigger responded (in part of a long post, to which I have since posted
a further reply) by snipping the first paragraph and giving reasons
why she feels that none of these points prove the existence of God. 

I would like to point out that I offered these points as evidence
supporting the proposition that Bible was written by people of
faith who were inspired by God to pass on their experience and
understanding to others. Nothing more, and nothing less. 

cheers

N+

Nigel B. Mitchell