re: "For Easter, the Strangest Story Ever Told" (The New York Times, April 6, 2023)
Or someone honestly writing down what they remember someone sincerely telling them, they themselves having been zealously told that by someone who knew someone who had been there to witness it all from Jesus's birth to his death.
But this does not really matter. No matter how sincere eyewitnesses are, it is irrational to believe something impossible in the absence of impossibly strong evidence. The Christian god, all three of him, is in the same position as every other god: a persistent failure to present a shred of direct supporting evidence for their existence. Every single god on Earth is equally well attested by solid evidence of its existence.
Should jurors believe that the accused was not guilty of murder because an eyewitness, or several, sincerely reported that the the alleged victim got up after being shot through the head several times and then walked away into a passing cloud? But we know that even more mundane eyewitness testimony sincerely believed is often not what happened. Under stress, or simply under creative interviewing (not necessarily intent on corrupting), memory becomes flexible.
Hearsay evidence, however sincere, just isn't a good reason to believe anything that matters.
_______________________________
The above comment was submitted by Felix Qui to The New York Times article.
It is published there at https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/06/opinion/easter-christian-tradition.html#commentsContainer&permid=124249344:124249344
No comments:
Post a Comment
However strongly dissenting or concurring, politely worded comments are welcome.
Please note, however, that, due to Felix Qui's liability for them, comments must comply with Thai law, and are moderated accordingly.