Science Forums 2

[Biochemist]

Originally Posted by orbsycli

I LOVE IT! they use that as evidence he was resurrected?!!?!?
ever heard of grave diggers???
pssshhh, that made my day! thanks telemad.

Orb- You really ought to be a little more careful before you make fun of historical events that have been well researched for thousands of years by thousands of smart folks.

The empty tomb issue is relevant because the tomb was guarded by a contingent of Roman Centurian guards. The guards were placed there because the Jewish leadership at the time was actually afraid that the followers of Jesus would abscond with the body. That part is referenced in the Biblical record.

They went to the Romans (Pilate, as I recall, but I am not sure if he made the decision) and asked for the Centurian guard contingent. You might not be aware of it, but the automatic penalty for a Centurian losing a prisoner was death. Summary execution. Centurians were also usually killed for falling asleep on duty. Typically they were killed where they slept.

Well, guess what. The entire contingent of Centurians was killed because the body was "lost". The execution of the guards is not in the Biblical record, it is recorded in the non-Christian (or anti-Christian) contemporaneous histories. The Bible does record that there was "no small disturbance" among the guards when they discovered that their prisoner was lost. I am not surprised they were disturbed. They were sentenced to death.

It is a little difficult to explain how anyone could have secreted the body away in the presence of the guard contingent. Apparently, it happenned. Hmmmm.

Again, a majority of atheist philosophers and historians acknlowledge the difficulties in getting around the evidence for an empty tomb.