32
votes
How do Trinitarians explain the almost exclusive use of singular pronouns to refer to God in the Bible?
If I might put this in simple language, the Trinitarian position is that there is one God, and he exists in three persons.
It is entirely correct, grammatically and philosophically, to refer to God in ...
- 31.5k
17
votes
Accepted
What crime was committed by the "thieves" crucified with Jesus?
Survey of Roman law
A now deleted (near) duplicate of this question asked if a claim that the Roman law forbid the crucifixion of thieves, so I'll start with that question, which is highly relevant to ...
- 7,743
16
votes
What was the Early Church’s view on socialism?
To what extent was the early church "socialist"?
Acts 4:32-37 (NASB95)
And the congregation of those who believed were of one heart and soul; and not one [of them] claimed that anything ...
- 5,929
16
votes
How many different people in the New Testament are called or claim to be "Brothers" or "Sisters" of Jesus?
Matthew 13:35-36 answers:
Is not this the carpenter’s son? Is not his mother called Mary? And are not his brothers James and Joseph and Simon and Judas? And are not all his sisters with us?
The ...
- 29.7k
14
votes
How do Trinitarians explain the almost exclusive use of singular pronouns to refer to God in the Bible?
The Christian who experiences the presence of the Holy Spirit within himself, that is to say within his own spirit, experiences the fact of unity of spirit - that unity of person which joins himself ...
- 23.6k
14
votes
What is the Biblical basis for prohibiting sex outside marriage?
It's one of the 10 commandments: Thou shalt not commit adultery (see Exodus 20:14)
The 18th chapter of Leviticus is devoted to condemning all manner of other sexual sins, lest any seek for loopholes ...
- 11.2k
13
votes
What was the Early Church’s view on socialism?
Modern-day Socialists would be unlikely to view the first century Christians as Socialists, despite a few similarities. This dictionary definition of socialism states that Socialists believe in a
&...
- 26.8k
10
votes
Accepted
Was defining the New Testament originally condemned as heresy?
It is impossible to know for sure without asking the person that said it, but I believe it is most likely, given her description of the individual in question, the historical time frame and the ...
- 2,134
10
votes
Was casting out of demons done in the Old Testament by any Prophets or was it started in the New Testament?
There are no explicit references to exorcism in the OT. However, in a possible foreshadowing of Christ, David caused an evil spirit to depart from Saul multiple times by playing the harp (1 Sam 16, 18,...
- 334
10
votes
What was the Early Church’s view on socialism?
Dan Walden, a Christian writer who has written on socialism from a Christian perspective, addresses a related question in the essay, "Was Jesus a Socialist?":
Jesus was obviously not a ...
- 101
10
votes
Does this quote from Origen prove the Bible is corrupt?
No, the quote does not "prove" that the Bible is corrupt. This is clear from the very book that you're quoting; Metzger and Ehrman note that Origen often based such claims "on ...
- 176
9
votes
Accepted
Were any of the early church leaders Gentile converts to Christianity?
This question already has a lot of answers, but I feel like the most basic answer is missing!
The answer is yes, and we need look no further than the Bible.
Titus himself was a gentile convert. We ...
- 1,514
9
votes
Accepted
Is there a term for a theological principle that if a New Testament text is unclear about something, that point is not important for salvation?
It's a corollary of the Protestant doctrine of the clarity or perspicuity of scripture, that the essentials of faith are explained in the scriptures so clearly that anyone can understand them. As the ...
- 19.7k
9
votes
How many different people in the New Testament are called or claim to be "Brothers" or "Sisters" of Jesus?
TLDR: No one seems to specifically claim to be a blood sibling of Jesus in the New Testament. However, 4 siblings are named by other people in the Gospels, and two are possibly corroborated by the ...
8
votes
What explanations have scholars proposed for the rejection of the Didache from the Canon?
Lee McDonald says in The Biblical Canon that the most common criteria in identifying what was and wasn't canonical for the early church was apostolicity, orthodoxy, antiquity, and use, and ...
- 15.2k
8
votes
Besides Paul, were there any other enemies of the early church who converted to Christianity?
In Peter's sermon at Pentecost he accuses the members of his audience of delivering up Jesus to be crucified:
"Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested
to you by God ...
- 4,926
8
votes
Accepted
Why is the Bible seemingly silent on the love which the God the Son has for God the Father?
I believe that the answer to this is something related to the narrative's approach.
We can infer from what we know about the godhead, that the Son loves the Father, but the focus in the gospels ...
- 1,505
8
votes
What specific thing in the Bible separates the Old Testament from the New Testament?
There's a little bit of history to the titles Old Testament and New Testament that needs to be explained.
We begin with the Greek word διαθήκη (diatheke) which has two major distinct sub-senses and ...
- 19.7k
8
votes
A story in the Bible where Jesus tested the faith of a sinner?
This question does not really fit the criteria for here, but here are a couple of suggestions anyway. First, your recollections of that 4-year-old sermon may be partially incorrect, plus the speaker ...
- 26.8k
7
votes
Accepted
What explanations have scholars proposed for the rejection of the Didache from the Canon?
Since the Didache was discovered in the late 19th century, scholars have provided a number of rationales, ranging from the typical standards of canonicity (late age, mysterious authorship, poor ...
- 42.3k
7
votes
Did St. Paul ever claim prophethood?
Paul did not explicitly claim to be a Prophet although there were occasions where he acted as one (cf. Acts 13 & Acts 27), however he did claim to be personally called as an Apostle by the risen ...
- 12.5k
6
votes
What Biblical evidence is there that the Apostles feared for their lives after Jesus was crucified?
Some commentators think so. John 20:19 is the best indication:
On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus ...
- 42.3k
6
votes
What Biblical evidence is there that the Apostles feared for their lives after Jesus was crucified?
Yes. First off, we know that Jesus told them to prepare to defend themselves and see to their own safety. Shortly thereafter, he was imprisoned, taken to trial in what would today be called a "...
- 31.3k
6
votes
Do any Church Fathers directly connect "speaking in tongues" with anything other than existing human languages?
Francis Gumerlock provides a survey of the views of church fathers in "Tongues in the Church Fathers." He concludes that "the early church had no such concept of the gift of tongues as unintelligible ...
6
votes
Why did Jesus use parables to teach?
James E. Talmage discusses this in his book "Jesus the Christ" (read online here)
An excerpt from this chapter:
To the chosen and devoted followers who came asking the Master why He had ...
- 366
6
votes
Was casting out of demons done in the Old Testament by any Prophets or was it started in the New Testament?
I don't think there is any other reference to casting out out of demons other than what's stated above about David. BUT Jesus said this in Matthew 12:27 NLT
And if I am empowered by Satan, what ...
- 161
6
votes
Question on "The Forged Origins of the New Testament" and Josephus
As regards the OP first question about biblical manuscripts, we need to distinguish between Constantine asking for copies of Scripture, rather than compiling Scripture.
The link in the OP asserts the ...
- 13k
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