the newly discovered pool of Siloam

Where does the anonymous author of John sat the pool was, and how do we know it is the same pool?What does the accuracy of a landmark have to do with whether jesus did anything?Brian.This message has been edited by Brian, 08-10-2005 02:00 PM

Authentic archaeological sites?Mail me at 0205100j@student.gla.ac.uk and I'll send you some info on biblical artefacts, and a reading list.My own area is Old Testament, specifically Israelite origins, I won't be much help with New Testament archaeology.Brian.Brian.

Really, I thought as our resident expert on Josephus you would have been aware that he wrote about Pilate!On one occasion, when the soldiers under his command came to Jerusalem, he caused them to bring with them their ensigns, upon which were the usual images of the emperor. The ensigns were brought in privily by night, but their presence was soon discovered. Immediately multitudes of excited Jews hastened to Caesarea to petition him for the removal of the obnoxious ensigns. For five days he refused to hear them, but on the sixth he took his place on the judgment seat, and when the Jews were admitted he had them surrounded with soldiers and threatened them with instant death unless they ceased to trouble him with the matter. The Jews thereupon flung themselves on the ground and bared their necks, declaring that they preferred death to the violation of their laws. Pilate , unwilling to slay so many, yielded the point and removed the ensigns. Josephus, Jewish War 2.169-174; Antiquities of the Jews 18.55-59 I would be very interested if you could name a scholar or two who doubted that Pilate existed, I think you will stuggle but I await you reply.You really need to be more critical of your sources. You could really do with taking a few college courses in history, archaeology, and theology, it would make a world of difference to the way you view things.Brian.

Is it the same pool that has just been found? If yes, how do we know it is?Does the existence of the pool mean that Jesus really cured a blind dude?Archaeology is a complex subject, you should take some classes on it. Pool of SiloamThe newly discovered pool is less than 200 yards from another Pool of Siloam, this one a reconstruction built between A.D. 400 and 460 by the empress Eudocia of Byzantium, who oversaw the rebuilding of several biblical sites.

​

The site of yet another Pool of Siloam, which pre-dated the version visited by Jesus, is still unknown. So, how do we know that this new pool is the one referred to by John?Brian.

Tal, how on God's green earth did you get into the army?

Hi Tal,I'd have a few questions regarding post number 23, specifically the claim that:I bring up the example of Pontius Pilate, who was said to not have existed because he wasn't mentioned anywhere other than the bible.1. Do you accept that Pilate is indeed mentioned in external sources?2. Can you name any of the scholars who "were questioning the actual existence of a Roman Governor with the name Pontius Pilate?3. Do you accept that your source is incorrect?Thanks for now.Brian

Little 'amazing biblical facts' such as this one are extremely easy to show up for what they are, food for a weak faith.So many Christians NEED little soundbites such as this to bolster their extremely weak faith, they cannot just accept the Bible for what it is. It appears to me that fundies really think that these 'astounding facts' demonstrate some supernatural force behind the authorship of the Bible, and this in turn convinces them that the Bible really is God's word. What they never seem to realise is that almost all of these 'amazing facts' are easily shown to be untrue.But, Tal will never admit that his source is wrong, because to do so would mean that he would have to accept the possibility that any source he ever uses may also be wrong, and this is traumatic for him at this stage of his development.The original claim also incuded one of my pet hates, this is when a 'scholar' writes something along the lines of: Many scholars denied the ...... Some scholars have claimed..... At that time certain scholars did not believe..... I have no problem with presenting an argument like any of the above, but what freaks me out is that none of these scholars are ever named, and we are never given a reference for any of the scholars who denied this or claimed that, why do they never reference anything when presenting these 'amazing facts'?To argue that 'scholars denied the existence..' without giving the name of one of these scholars is something that a 12 year old would do, it is something that a high school student should learn to avoid very early on in their high school career.It just shows the quality of fundy research. But, what is more alarming, is that adults read garbage like this and are impressed with it!Heartbreaking.Brian.