Other Religions – Page 2 – Evidence for Christianity

A Muslim critic says when Christians mention 6000 NT manuscripts this is a great exaggeration because 94% of them are after the eighth century. Is this true? Should Christians be concerned?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Manuscripts and Textual Questions, General Apologetics, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: I watched a debate between a Muslim and a Christian. The New Testament has by far more number of Greek/other manuscripts. The Muslim debater said that 94% of these manuscripts come 9th century onwards. It wasn’t clear if he was referring to the Greek manuscripts alone or every manuscript we have of the New […]

Which is the more reliable translation of Zechariah 12:10, the Jewish Tanakh or the typical Christian translation (pierced vs. slain)

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Interpretation, Bible Manuscripts and Textual Questions, General, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible, Versions of the Bible .

Question: I’ve been comparing some “Messianic passages” from the Tanakh (the Hebrew Bible) to the corresponding verses in our Christian Bible (KJV, NKJV, NASB). And I’ve noticed that, in many passages, the Tanakh translation differs significantly from our OT/NT translations. Psalm 22, Isaiah 53, and Zechariah 12, for example, are quite different in the Tanakh, […]

The Quran is 100% perfect, whereas the Bible has many errors. We (Muslims) can enjoy reading the Quran without having to worry about whether it is authentic or not. Response?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Manuscripts and Textual Questions, General, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: Dr Oakes, how do you respond to Muslims’ argument such as this: “Even if your Bible is 99,5% accurate, the Quran is more. It is 100% accurate. Unlike your Bible that have forgery verses added and changed many times, the Quran didn’t have anything like this and perfectly preserved from the start. All our […]

The Quran is God’s verbatim word. It does not have “human words,” like the Bible. Isaiah 53 and Daniel 9 are not prophecies. This is misinterpretation.

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Daniel, General, Historical and Messianic Prophecy, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: Dr. John, Bible Expert Mr. Naveed Khan writes: The Quran consists of God’s verbatim. It does not have “human words” or “interpretations” like the Bible. Christians misinterpret the Jewish scriptures and try to show that Isaiah 53 or Daniel 9 were fulfilled prophecies, but the truth is: they are misinterpretations, nothing else. Moreover, Christians […]

Jesus is not of the “David Lineage” through Solomon, as required by 2 Sam 7:14 and 1 Chron 17:11-14. Therefore he is not the Messiah. Also, he did not build a “third temple” as prophesied in Ezek 37:26-28.

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Interpretation, General, Historical and Messianic Prophecy, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: Jesus is not from the “David Lineage” and he did not fulfill the Hebrew scriptures. Proofs are: 1) Messiah must be a descendent of David through his son Solomon (2 Sam. 7:14; 1 Chr. 17:11-14, 22:9-10, 28:4-6) but Luke 3:31 describes the lineage of David’s son Nathan, not Solomon. 2) Ezekiel (37:26-28) said “he […]

What is your response to Muslims who say that the Qur’an is inspired because it contains poetry of inimitable quality?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Historical and Messianic Prophecy, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: How would you respond to the following Muslim claim made in https://www.islamic-awareness.org/quran/miracle/ijaz ‘The Qur’an in many places challenges the people to produce a surah like it. It appears that the Christian missionaries who call the challenge irrelevent or an utterly subjective criterion are pretty much unaware of how the Arabic poetry and prose compares with […]

Israel (singular) is called God’s servant in the Old Testament but sometimes Jesus is called God’s servant. This is confusing. Also, can God be his own servant?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Interpretation, General, Historical and Messianic Prophecy, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: Israel, in the singular, is called God’s servant throughout the Bible, for e.g. Isa. 45:4; 48:20; 49:3; Jer. 30:10. Also, note that in Jer. 30:17, the servant Israel is regarded by the nations as an outcast, forsaken by God, as in Isa. 53:4; Jer. 46:27-28; Ps. 136:22, a messianic reference. Also, given the Christian […]

Can you respond to a Muslim claim that the early church did not believe Jesus was God and that Constantine changed this?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Manuscripts and Textual Questions, General, Other Religions, Q & A .

Question: Dr Oakes, can you view this article: https://quranandbibleblog.com/2022/01/02/what-did-the-ante-nicene-church-fathers-believe-about-jesus/ What did the Ante-Nicene Church Fathers Believe About Jesus? بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمٰنِ الرَّحِيْم What did the Ante-Nicene Church Fathers Believe About Jesus? Read as PDF “…but of His Son the Master said thus, Thou art My Son, I this day have begotten thee. A… quranandbibleblog.com This came […]

Surely there is life on other planets out there. Does this not make Christianity seem man-made. Why did Jesus come here an not to other planets?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Other Religions, Q & A .

Question: I just had a thought… and it’s disturbing me… Outer space is so vast, there must be other life out there. Now… what are the odds that Jesus came to THIS planet, out of all of them? Why not others? Think about it. There are so many other planets out there, there must be […]

If Jesus’ crucifixion was so evident, why did some early Christian sects deny it–saying it was Simon of Cyrene or Judas Iscariot who was crucified?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Church History, General, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: If Jesus Crucifixion was so evident then why some early Christian sects denied it? Some said: Simon of Cyrene was crucified. Some said: Judas Iscariot was crucified. Some said: someone substituted him. What is your response? Answer: This is a flat-out, blatant lie. Plain and simple. There is absolutely no truth to this claim, […]

Barrabas was crucified instead of Jesus of Nazareth due to confusion created by God. What is your response?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: Barabbas, who is also called “Jesus Barabbas”, was crucified instead of Jesus of Nazareth due to confusion created by God. What is your opinion? Answer: My opinion is that this is one of the most far-fetched and outrageous proposals about Jesus I have ever heard about. Jesus’ mother Mary was at the cross. Jesus’ […]

Rabbi David Kimchi says Isaiah 53 is the “Words of the Other Nations.” They are not Isaiah’s words. What is your response?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Historical and Messianic Prophecy, Other Religions, Q & A .

Question: Radak (Rabbi David Kimchi) explains Isaiah 53 except for the final two verses, as the “Words of the Other Nations”. These words are not Isaiah’s words. Evidently, this is recorded to understand the view of the Gentile Nations at that time. What is the Christian response? Answer: It should not surprise anyone that a […]

Does the Old Testament include anonymous prophecies, as a Muslim critic claims?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: I asked on chabad.org this: How did Rabbis know that Isaiah 8:19-20 belongs to Beeri and Micah 3:12 to Uriah? Are there any other instances of anonymous prophecies in prophetic books? I got the following answer: “I could not find any other examples. There may be more, but I don’t know them and have […]

A Muslim says that according to Midrash (Levit. Rabba 15) Isaiah 8:19-20 is actually written by Hosea’s father Beeri. This proves that Isaiah is not the pure words of the prophet. Your response?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: According to Midrash (Levit. Rabba 15), Hosea’s father, Beeri, was also a prophet, and fragments of his prophecies are preserved in Isa. 8:19-20. It means that works ascribed to well-known Prophets include anonymous portions. On the other hand, Megillah 15a says: when the name of a Prophet’s father is recorded, the latter, too, probably […]

My Muslim friend says there is no evidence from the first century that Christians believed Jesus is God. Is this true?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Manuscripts and Textual Questions, Church History, General, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: A Muslim friend proposed this to me: I have seen this “issue” before and I haven’t done a proper investigation into it. He said there’s no evidence to support Jesus’ divinity in the first century. I believe (although I am yet to see) that there is evidence of early Christians in first century honoring […]

There are many biblical prophecies of the Messiah which do not fit Jesus. Your response?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Interpretation, Bible Manuscripts and Textual Questions, Church History, Daniel, General, Historical and Messianic Prophecy, History, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible, Supposed Inconsistencies in the Bible .

[Editor’s note: This is a series of challenges from a Muslim regarding Jesus to be the fulfillment of Old Testament messianic prophecies. My answers are interspersed among the questioner’s examples in italics] Claim: There are many biblical prophecies which do not fit into Jesus, for e.g. Response: Whether Jesus fulfilled all potential messianic prophecies is […]

If Isaiah is such a great prophet, why do we know nothing of his personal life and character? Obadiah, Joel and Nahum as well.

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Historical and Messianic Prophecy, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: If Isaiah was the greatest prophet in Israelite history from David to the exile, why are his character and personal life not known to us? Same with Obadiah, Joel, Nahum who are obscure figures. Answer: I can tell you have been hearing from Muslim critics, as this is the latest “fad” criticism of the […]

A Muslim web site claims that only 50% of the New Testament is reliable. Your response? What about their evidence for the Qur’an?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Manuscripts and Textual Questions, General, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: Sir, can you view this article: http://mquran.org/content/view/9181/16/ This comes from an anonymous Muslim apologist website written in 2006. He said that the New Testament is unreliable and the 99,5% number that Christian apologists used in their argument are not valid. He claimed that apologists just cite other apologists and only 50% of the gospel are […]

Does the word almah in Isaiah 7:14, which means young woman, not virgin, imply that this is a messianic prophecy?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Interpretation, General, Historical and Messianic Prophecy, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: I am Christian, but am also a very skeptical person. I always challenge what I believe for the sake of truth and if it is truth it will stand. I would like to ask about Isiah 7:14. There is a lot of discussion about the use of the word “almah“. Does it imply virginity […]

How should a Christian respond to the Muslim criticism that Ezekiel 23 uses pornographic language?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Other Religions, Q & A .

Question: How should we understand Ezekiel 23? How should we respond to a Muslim who states that this passage is pornographic (especially Ezekiel 23:19-21) and uses pornographic language? How should we respond to a Muslim if he challenges us to read this passage in a sermon or in front of a child? Are all parts […]

The Qur’an says the same thing as the Jewish prophets in many cases. What is the Christian response to this criticism?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Other Religions, Q & A .

Question: The Koran says the same things that God said to the Jews which the Major and Minor Prophets proclaimed. For e.g. 1) Hearts hardened (compare Quran 2:74 with Ezek. 3:7, Zech. 7:12) 2) Be Kind to orphans & don’t shed each other’s blood (compare Quran 2:83-84 with Isa. 1:17, 59:7) What is the Christian’s […]

What writings should be considered God’s word? Revelation only comes from an angel, so the Quran and Hadith are God’s word, but the Bible is man’s word.

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, General Apologetics, History, Miracles, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: What writings should be called God’s word? The words which are literally said by God himself? Muslims claim that the Koran contain God’s words, not the words of Muhammad. His words are separately recorded in Hadith. Christians claim that every word in the Bible is inspired but the fact is: there’s difference between revelation […]

A Muslim friend asks that if thousands of followers witnessed Jesus’ crucifixion (which he says was a hoax), why did they not try to save him? Did they have no guts?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Church History, General, History, Other Religions, Q & A .

Questions: My Muslim friend says: The Major and Minor Prophets echoed the words of pagans i.e. God has wife, God has sons & daughters. The New Testament authors followed them and create God’s-Son in the form of Jesus to attract Roman public. Also, if thousands of people witnessed his crucifixion (which is a hoax) and […]

Muslims criticize the Bible for having polytheistic descriptions of God, such as his hands, his hair, his children and even his wife (Hosea 2). How do you respond to this criticism?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, General Apologetics, Other Religions, Q & A, Theology and Doctrinal Questions .

Question: Muslims says: God does not beget nor he has wife nor he has bodily form but prophetic books contains polytheistic concepts about God for e.g. 1. God has bodily form (Dan. 7:9) 2. God has sons & daughters (Isa. 43:6) 3. God treats Jerusalem/Israel as Wife (Isa. 54:5, Hos. 2:2). What’s your response? Answer: […]

New Testament authors manufactured prophecies about Jesus! For example, Matthew 2:23, John 7:38-39. What is your response?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Interpretation, General, Historical and Messianic Prophecy, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Questions: The NT authors manufactured prophecies about Jesus by twisting OT passages out of context to make them say things the original authors never intended. For e.g. (1) The murder of children by King Herod was not prophesied in Jeremiah 31:15 because Jeremiah was describing the deportation of Israelites from Ramah a century before his […]

The story of Putana sent to kill Krishna in the Bhagavad Gita is similar to that of Herod trying to kill Jesus. Could the Bible writers have derived this story from the Bhagavad Gita?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: In the Bhagavad Gita there is the story about Putana being sent to kill Krishna, which seems very similar to the story of King Harold of the Bible being sent to kill Jesus. Could the Bible have derived this story from Bhagavad Gita, or the other way around? You also have mentioned that Bhagavad […]

By the Bible’s own standard of false prophets, the Old Testament includes false prophets. Your response?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Interpretation, Bible Manuscripts and Textual Questions, General, Historical and Messianic Prophecy, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible, Supposed Inconsistencies in the Bible .

[Editor’s note: This question is part of a series which are a believer passing along criticisms of Christianity from his Muslim friend] Question: My Muslim friend replied to me about your points that: 1) If presumably Daniel or Ezekiel talked about an earlier event, it doesn’t mean that whole book is reliable. Unless scrolls of […]

Muhammad had 17 scribes. The OT prophets were written posthumously and had no recorded scribes. The Bible is not reliable! Response?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, General Apologetics, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: Muslims says: Quran was written down in its entirety at the time of Muhammad’s death and the Sira (prophetic biography) of Muhammad lists the names of 17 scribes of the Quran. By distinction, the prophetic books of OT were posthumous writings and scribes are not even named. What happened to prophetic scrolls during Exile? […]

The writings of several of the prophets were destroyed by the ruling class of the Jews. What is your response?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Manuscripts and Textual Questions, General, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: The writings of several prophets were destroyed by the ruling class of the Jews. According to Justin Martyr, the Jews have omitted sayings by Jeremiah and Ezra, as well as the words “from the wood” after “The Lord reigns” in Psalm 95(96):10 (Dialogue with Trypho, 71-73). It means Jews were NOT honest keepers of […]

Muslims claim that Muhammad did a miracle of “splitting the moon,” and that NASA supports this idea. Your response?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Miracles, Other Religions, Q & A .

Question: A Muslim started to debate with me about evidences of Islam, and he immediately shared a link which shows 19 convincing proofs of splitting of moon by Muhammad (a supposed miracle of Muhammad). Actually I almost lost my Christian Faith after reading the website he provided–it really contains shocking empirical evidences of splitting of […]

Is Sura 41:11-12, which talks about a layer of the sky offering protection talking about the ozone layer? Is this an example of the Qur’an being “scientific?”

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Creation, General, Other Religions, Q & A .

Question: I have a question about Surah 41:11-12. It says the nearest heaven was made for protection. Does that mean the Qur’an is describing the earth’s atmosphere/ozone layer protecting it? Is it a scientific fact? Answer: It sounds like you have been looking at the web site of a Muslim apologist. What we need to […]

Does quantum mechanics inform us that matter and even the universe has consciousness? What are the religious implications?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Other Religions, Q & A, Science and the Bible .

Question: The following link I have sent you is to a discussion I found online about some interesting theories on consciousness and free will. The article in question notes that it is quite possible that matter and even the universe itself may actually be conscious, as some scientists now believe. It is claimed that consciousness […]

The gospels promote a pagan man/God idea which was fashionable at that time. Paul is a liar who transformed God’s prophet Jesus into deity.

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, History, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Comments: Can you show the continuity of the chain of transmission of So-called Gospels? These were not revealed by God but promote a pagan concept of God/Son or Man-God which was in fashion during times of Jesus. You will know after your death that what have you done to yourself. Good Luck! For your kind information, […]

In the Qur’an Allah is a God of the whole universe. The God of the Bible is a tribal deity. The prophets of the Qur’an has prophets of many nations. Bible prophets are only Jews. How does a Christian respond to this?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Historical and Messianic Prophecy, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

[Editor’s Note: This is a series of several questions from a Muslim who has criticism of the Bible. Q & As are interspersed] Question: If you read Quran, you will observe that God is addressed as God for All Universe but in case of Bible, God is just a Tribal God addressed as “God of […]

The Qur’an is and always has been a religion for all people, but Judaism/Christianity is a tribal religion, with only Jewish prophets. Your response?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Other Religions, Q & A .

Question: If you read the Quran, you will observe that God is addressed as God for all the universe but in case of Bible, God is just a tribal God addressed as “God of Israel”. Moreover, the Quran says: We surely sent a messenger to every community, saying, “Worship Allah and shun false gods.” but […]

Muslims deny Jesus died on the cross. Can you help respond to an article making this claim?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Church History, General, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible, Resurrection of Jesus .

[Editor’s note: This is a VERY long question, which is simply copied and pasted from a web site. There are far too many issues raised for me to answer all of them in limited time. What I do afterward is give a general response, rather than address all of the issues raised. If this article […]

Do the brilliant mathematical discoveries of Srinivasa Ramanujan received from a Hindu goddess prove that Hinduism is a true religion?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Other Religions, Q & A .

Question: Does Srinivasa Ramanujan receiving mathematical instructions from Hindu Goddess prove that Hinduism is a true religion? It certainly cannot be a mental problem of Ramanujan- otherwise he could not give correct original mathematical ideas. Can you explain? Answer: I really cannot say very much about Srinivasa Ramanujan because I have never met him. Nor […]

You wrote that Judaism did not borrow the idea of resurrection from Zoroastrianism, but I found a lot of evidence that they did. Your response?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Question: In an article in your website you talked about Zoroastrianism on some context. I’m a Christian with a broken faith. I have learned of so many discoveries of made up stories in the Bible when you look from a historical/archeological point of view at the OT. You said in the article you wrote that […]

Do 1 Cor 15:28 and 11:3 prove that Jesus is not God? Why did Lot–a prophet–have sex with his daughters? How can a prophet do such a thing?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Interpretation, General, Other Religions, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Questions: [Editor’s note: These questions are coming from someone in India who is clearly dealing with typical attacks on Christianity from Muslims there] I have 3 questions:- 1. Does 1 Corinthians 15:28 and 1 Corinthians 11:3 proves that Jesus is not God? 2. Why did Lot- a Prophet of LORD God- have sexual relations with […]

My Muslim friend claims that Genesis 21:13-21, Isaiah 42:11 and Isaiah 21:13-17 are clearly prophecies about Muhammad. Your response?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Historical and Messianic Prophecy, Other Religions, Q & A .

Question: My Muslim friend claims that Genesis 21:13-21, Isaiah 42:11, Isaiah 21:13-17 clearly prophesy about Muhammad. How do I respond to him- because I am confused. Answer: There is a grain of truth to the first passage being about Muhammad, but just a very small grain. Let me explain. The Bible makes it plain that […]

How do I defend to my friend when he points out the wars waged by Abrahamic religions. He is losing his faith.

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, History, Other Religions, Practical Christianity, Q & A, Theology and Doctrinal Questions .

Question: My friend is losing his faith because in history we are learning about wars, and some of these wars we are studying include wars that were made because of Abrahamic religions. In these religious wars, a lot of people were murdered and tortured as well as other bad things done to them. How would […]

My Hindu friend says that Jesus taught pantheism, and that the original teachings of Jesus are all lost. He also says the God of Christianity is a disgusting God. What is your response?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Manuscripts and Textual Questions, General, History, Other Religions, Philosophy, Q & A, Reliability of the Bible .

Questions: My Hindu friend asked 4 questions, please help me with how to respond i. Sri Ramakrishna and Swami Vivekananda teach real Christianity. ii. Jesus taught Pantheism and Monism (as said by Swami Vivekananda). He claims that ultimately what is in the Gospels were written 40-100 years after Jesus’s death- and that’s why the real […]

My Muslim and Hindu friends ask me to explain why God told Hosea to marry a prostitute. How do I answer?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Bible Interpretation, General, Other Religions, Q & A, Theology and Doctrinal Questions .

Question: Why did God tell Hosea to marry a prostitute? Many from other religions such as Hinduism and Islam ask me this question. If God of the Bible is sinless how can he tell Hosea to marry a prostitute? Answer; Honestly, any fair-minded person could answer this for themselves. In the first three chapters of […]

Is there mythology in the Bible?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Anthropology, General, Other Religions, Q & A .

Question: Is there mythology in the bible? Answer: The simple answer is no. According to the common, Western idea of mythology, the Bible has no mythology. The layperson’s definition of mythology is something like this: fictitious stories created by cultures to tell themselves about the nature of reality. The key word there is fictitious. If […]

Some propose that the universe is self-thinking and conscious. How would this work if the universe was created? Would this prove pantheism?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Creation, General, Other Religions, Philosophy, Q & A, Science and the Bible .

Question: How would you respond to someone who says the universe is self-thinking and conscious? How would this work in terms of the universe creating itself and also fine tuning? Would that prove pantheism? Answer; As you appear to recognize, you are describing a view of the cosmos known as pantheism. This is a theology […]

What is Kabbalah? Is it Gnosticism? Mysticism?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Other Religions, Q & A .

Question: I have tried to find some info about kabbalah on your site and didn’t find any. If I understand correctly, Kabbalah is an invention of the Middle Ages from Jewish people who were involved in the occult. I even saw something about a kabbalistic upside down Christmas tree which troubled me. I have interacted […]

The Bible says “cursed is anyone who is hung on a tree.” If that is true, my Muslim friend asks how can Jesus be the Messiah?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Other Religions, Q & A .

Question: Recently I got a question asked by a Muslim about the Bible and Jesus. It is this: The Bible says that anyone who is hung on a pole is under God’s curse (Deuteronomy 21:23). Using this verse they ask that if Jesus is the true Messiah by being crucified is he not cursed and […]

Why did God do nothing to Abraham when he had a concubine and to Solomon who had multiple concubines?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, General Apologetics, Other Religions, Q & A, Supposed Inconsistencies in the Bible .

Questions: I have 3 questions to ask you. Why did God not do anything when Abraham has a concubine and when Solomon had multiple concubines? What did Jesus mean when he said that if your eye causes to see a women lustfully pluck it out and when a hand causes you to sin cut it […]

Does the tendency of many Christians to exhibit Eurocentrism harm the way we do church? Is it “Eurocentric” to talk about the inferiority of other religions?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in General, Other Religions, Q & A, Social Issues, Theology and Doctrinal Questions .

Question: Does our Eurocentrism harm the way we live in the church? Some say that our Eurocentric or Western perspectives hinder our reading of religions. Therefore, we cannot talk about the inferiority of other religions as this would be Eurocentric. Answer: I am guessing that you have read an article which claims that Eurocentrism is […]

Is it true that Christianity endorsed Hermeticism at the beginning?

Dr. John Oakes wrote in Church History, General, Other Religions, Philosophy, Q & A .

Question: Is it true that Christianity endorsed Hermeticism at the beginning? Answer; I am going to guess that you saw someone somewhere claim that Christianity borrowed its belief system in part from Hermeticism. The simple answer to your question is a hard no. No, Christianity never has endorsed Hermeticism and especially primitive Christianity certainly did […]