By: Anonymous-Muslim

 

More information on Paul's LIES of "500 Witnesses" exposed

 

Let us read an excerpt to destroy the claim of 500 Witnesses christians assert

My Muslim Brother Abdullah Kareem states the christian position here:

Christians prefer to read the epistles of Paul, the Evangelists who preach the falsehood of Christianity quote Paul and not Jesus. A very popular verse quoted by the sexual sinners is 1 Corinthians 15:5-8 where Paul says five-hundred people saw Jesus after his resurrection.

And that he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve: After that, he was seen of above five hundred brethren at once; of whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some are fallen asleep. After that, he was seen of James; then of all the apostles. (The King James Version)

(From: https://www.answering-christianity.com/abdullah_smith/legend_of_500_witnesses.htm)

This alleged "500 witness" claim is possibly one of the single silliest, easily refuted, and weakest claims Paul puts forth in his alleged writings.  Let us read some throughout refutations disproving Paul's fraudulent assertions:

 

Let us read our first excerpt:

Question: Paul claims that Jesus appeared to "more than five hundred brethren at one time." Does this present a reliable witness to the Christian claim that Jesus was resurrected?

 

Answer: Some Christians maintain that hallucinations or visions cannot explain the supposed post-resurrection appearances of Jesus. They claim that some five hundred people, at one time, cannot be deluded with the same vision. It is true that it is unlikely that two or more people would have the same hallucination, not to mention eleven or even five hundred. The question is, however, if the claims made are true to begin with.

Paul, writing about twenty-five years after the crucifixion contends, without giving a geographic location, that "upwards of five hundred brethren" had simultaneously seen the resurrected Jesus and that many of them were still alive at the time of his writing (1Corinthians 15:6). No information is provided to indicate whether this experience was a visionary revelation or an actual appearance in the flesh. Moreover, Paul does not tell us whether he was among the five hundred, or whether he had heard the story from one of them, or whether it was merely a story that was circulating among certain Christians. This alleged postresurrection appearance is conspicuously omitted in both the Gospels and the Book of Acts.

Had the Corinthians wanted to verify Paul's statement, it would have been, as Paul must have known, virtually impossible for them to do so, considering the primitive means of communication available in those days. Neither did he mention by name any of the five hundred for possible contact by the Corinthians, had they wanted to seek verification. Who experienced this alleged postresurrection appearance, and when and where this supposedly took place is not stated. The whole incident was either an unverifiable rumor utilized by Paul or simply the result of his overzealous missionary activity.

(From: http://www.jewsforjudaism.com/web/faq/faq096.html)

 

 

My dear brother Bassam Zawadi writes:

Christians use this to show that there were over five hundred witnesses that saw Jesus during his resurrection.

How come we have no testimony from any of these five hundred people? How come none of these five hundred people ever wrote anything regarding their experiences when they witnessed the resurrection of Jesus?

This is all hearsay evidence, which is inadmissible.

However, Christians could argue back, 'well Paul would never have made such a daring statement if it weren't true'

However, people we need to think about something. The alleged resurrection took place over 800 kilometers away from Corinthia. Do you think that the Corinthians are going to travel all the way and go and investigate that easily? Plus Paul did not indicate where those 500 hundred witnesses were in order for the people to go and ask them.

There is really nothing strong or special about this 'evidence'.

(From: https://www.answering-christianity.com/bassam_zawadi/five%20hundred%20witnesses.htm)

 

 

Brother Abdullah Kareem writes:

Yet the Gospels never record the legend. Paul, the earliest Christian writer, never mentions the ‘empty tomb’. How do you explain that? Christianity is based on the crucifixion of Jesus, which never occurred. [1]

“…Then Paul went on to refer to an appearance by Jesus to five hundred brethren at once, adding his comment that "most are still alive, though some have fallen asleep." Who were the five hundred brethren? What happened to this tradition? It was not picked up and described in any recognizable form in any of the later Gospels. There have been attempts to identify Luke's story of Pentecost with this Pauline reference, but no consensus has been reached. It is possible that there was a common link between this note of an appearance to five hundred and Pentecost, though a considerable journey must be made before an event that has a risen body form can be identified with one that has a Holy Spirit form. It is enough now to acknowledge that Paul's reference to Jesus' appearance to five hundred people at once is found nowhere in the Gospel tradition. (John Shelby Spong, Resurrection: Myth or Reality? p. 52)

 

and

 

Paul says Jesus was crucified, yet later confesses that Jesus was not real:

In reading this, then, you will be able to understand my insight into the mystery of Christ. Which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit. (Ephesians 3:4) 

Jesus was a spiritual conception, not a real person:

Paul’s reasoning had two major consequences. It not only resulted in further changes being made to what Jesus had taught, but also prepared the way for completely changing people’s ideas of who Jesus was. He was being transformed from a man to a conception in people’s minds. (Muhammad Ataur-Raheem, Jesus Prophet of Islam, p. 70)

The Pauline Christology has only minimally to do with the actual historical Jesus. Hence, the faith in Christ as held by primitive preaching led by Paul was something new in comparison with the preaching of Jesus, it was a new type of religion based god-man of Pagan Religion. (Al Haj A.D. Ajijola, The Hijacking of Christianity, p. 4) 

 

Again for more information go to the great links:

 

 

http://www.jewsforjudaism.com/web/faq/faq096.html

 

 

https://www.answering-christianity.com/abdullah_smith/legend_of_500_witnesses.htm

 

 

https://www.answering-christianity.com/bassam_zawadi/five%20hundred%20witnesses.htm

 

So clearly Paul does NOT mention who any details.  He does NOT say when or where this "500 person appearance" allegedly happened and he gives the Corinthians NO information on who the alleged "witnesses" are and how they can be reached! 

 

Again, Paul was writing around 25 years or so AFTER the alleged events of the Gospels.  He gives no details, names, or contact information for verification of his claims to the Corinthians.

 

With all this in mind it would have been virtually IMPOSSIBLE, as Paul MUST have known, for the Corinthians to even attempt to verify his claims.  The Corinthians had no details or contact information, it was 25 years or so after the alleged Gospel events, the Corinthians were from Corinthia, Greece when the alleged events of the Gospels are supposed to have occurred in Palestine.  This was the 1st Century C.E. the Corinthians could not just pick up a telephone, or get on their computer and write an email, or even use the at this time (1st Century C.E.) the long off in the future Morris Code machine!!!!  The Corinthians would have all had to either get on an old sail boat, not today's engine powered speed boats!!!  Or the Corinthians would have had to do a lot of hiking all over the place and take tons of detours!!!!  Being that it was the 1st Century C.E. they were almost assuredly to busy with attempting to protect their basics of survival food, shelter, clothing, etc. to set off on a long journey to attempt to locate these alleged mysterious unnamed witnesses!!!!

 

Also as we all know Paul's letters came before the Gospels and Acts, so if this claim was strong and had any truth to it, how come NONE of the Gospels or Acts makes mention of it.  Could it be that the author's of the Gospels and Acts realized Paul had made an absurd, unverifiable claim to the Corinthians and they (the latter Christians) just wanted to forget about it!!!!  After reading this information one should be conveinced that this appearance to "500 witnesses" is unverifiable, did not occur, and is NO evidence at all!!!!

 

 

All Praise is Due to Almighty Allah!!!!