Dear Editor

Re: In response to “We are living in a time of prophesy”

It’s so cool to watch Christians threaten each other with Hell. What a blast! (By the way, which Hell? There are four of them - four very different words translated to the pagan word Hel).

Mary, whose virginity was invented by the author of Matthew in order to satisfy a so-called prophecy was based on an incorrect translation.

The original word “almah” or “young maiden” was mis-translated when the OT was translated to Greek (Septuagint) - not to mention that the passage from Isaiah had nothing to do with messiah’s in the first place. If the original author had meant to refer to a real “virgin,” he would have used the word “betulah.”

Mary’s virginity is the result of a poor translation. Note that the first gospel written, Mark, has no virgin birth. Luke embellished Matthew’s version, based on a bad translation. 

The author(s) of John, however, took a look at the three gospels written before, and voted “no,” leaving the virgin birth out of his version - which recreates a completely different Jesus for theological purposes.

Niuveve rightfully discounts these idols of Mary, but believes in a Jesus who surely did not exist as depicted in the texts. Paul was the first author (50’s AD) and he did not know a thing about a physical, human Jesus. His Jesus was a demigod, a celestial being.

Paul knows nothing of virgin births, genealogies, baptisms, disciples, ministry, miracles or sermons. All he knows is the crucifixion, and his only sources are scripture and his own visions.

A decade or more later, the author of Mark (~70AD) invented Jesus’ person, probably taking a formerly underground or “secret” religion, out into the open by giving it a persona. Matthew and Luke embellished Mark, and then John rewrote Jesus, turning him into a god.

When you read the NT in chronological order, you can see the progression of Jesus from man to god, and you can see the impact of the Orthodox - Catholics as they molded it, and refrained from using other scriptures that supported Ebionites, Marcionites, Gnostics and others who had differing ideas of Jesus.

And we have not a single, solitary, original piece of any of it. It wasn’t “inspired” enough to guarantee that we could ever know exactly what was originally written.

You are both arguing over imaginary, invisible beings that live in the sky. Let us know where the unicorns are, while you are at it!

Patrick Gannon