Did Jesus really exist?

The question about Jesus' existence is not new. The debate about this issue is endless. During a long history of Biblical research, a group of antiquity scholars concluded that Jesus the Christ is mythic. That group of people created a movement called mythicism.

The mythical view about Jesus is that they don’t know anything about his family, about his life in Egypt and about him between 12-30 years old. In fact, a group of distinguished Biblical scholars called Jesus Seminars denied the narratives written in the gospels of Mathew and Luke about Christ's birth and childhood. 

The mythical stated that first, the apostles wrote the Gospels in Greek. Second, none of them met Jesus or even met one of the twelve disciples. Third, Gospels were written from distant lands like Rome, Asia Minor and Greece. The authors didn’t know enough about Palestine's geography, and they didn't have a physical description by any means for Jesus. 

The mythical claim is that during the first century A.D, many books and literature were written about Palestine. The authors didn't notice Jesus Christ in their writings. 

Those claims look attractive at the beginning. However, a deeper look will reveal its weakness. Jesus' disciples were almost a hundred and twenty(Acts 1:15). We can conclude that Jesus' movement wasn’t of that size to be recognized in a politically troubled area where Jewish rebellion against the Romans was frequent;y occurred. The Romans crucified many thieves and rebels who challenged Roman authority. 

Paul's letters were the earliest of the New Testament to be written. Apostle Paul didn’t see Jesus, but he had a vision on his way to Damascus on a mission to capture some of his followers. Although Paul never saw Jesus, he met with Peter, John and James, Jesus' brother. Are all these names mythical too?

We conclude that Jesus of history is a real person. He was born and lived in first-century Palestine under Roman rule. Jesus' movement was insignificant with few followers to be recognizable in politically troubled Palestine. The Gospels talked about Jesus' birth and missionary lives. Although questionable from many aspects, it’s still considered a historical document of Jesus' existence. 

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The political economy of crises

In the effort to analyze the mechanism of crises, I will focus on two key points. The first is Globalization, while the second is Western military intervention. The analysis that depends on the political economy of the crises is a better way to provide a clear vision on how to deal with the refugees, famines, poverty, climate change and global warming. 

“The deceptive promise of free trade," a documentary on the DW channel explained how a small village cooperative in Cameron was destroyed by Onion imports from Holland. On the other side, the EU is paying 60 billion euros annually to support the agricultural sector. In Germany, the government subsidizes every hectare of farmland up to 280 Euros annually. Free trade agreements with Cameron prevent the government from doing so. 

In Syria, the war that tore the country off produced the worst refugee crisis since WW2. Over 10 million Syrians were displaced internally and as refugees. Germany alone accepted around 1.5 million Syrian Refugees. The Syrian refugee crisis is the result of a Western proxy war against the central government. Turkey, as a member of NATO, opened up its border for global jihad in Syria. Oil and gas are the real reasons for the outbreak of the Syrian crisis, not human rights and corruption.

In his book “Capital in the 21st Century,” French economist Thomas Piketty discussed the topic of the inequality gap that is getting wider. He explained many reasons behind it. Tax havens were the main contributor to the inequality gap. He suggested a global tax on wealth, and the shutdown of the tax havens. 

The question now is: How to deal with the crises?

Collective efforts won’t succeed. The global tax on wealth that Thomas Piketty suggested requires a worldwide agreement. It won’t happen. I mean the world leaders can’t agree until today on practical steps to deal with Global warming and climate change which is urgent and more important. Wealthy people are the ones writing the rules, they won’t work against themselves. Individuals should act and get more involved with the debate about their future and the future of our planet. Individuals could spread the word, write in the social media and local newspapers, talk to their politicians in the parliament and maybe support young people like them, to represent them, their concerns and their dreams of a better world for everybody.

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We live in a world floated with crises

We live in a world of crises. We can say that the whole world is flooded with crises, and the calamitic atmosphere surrounds us. Wars in Yemen and Syria, Economic crisis looming on the horizon, Freedom of expression level on the decline, Climate Change & Global warming, and finally, the Coronavirus crisis.

I was listening to a talk one day about the possibility of WW3 over Taiwan. As everybody knows, Taiwan is a sensitive subject for China. A few weeks ago, a Chinese warplanes mission, including nuclear-capable bombers, entered the Taiwan air defence zone. But talks about WW3 possibilities are more frequent than before. They are talking about the clash of the titans over Syria, the Americans and Russians. It could be the start point to blow all of it off. The question is about who will pull off the safety pin?

The Syrian refugee crisis is the worst since WW2. Millions of Syrians, almost half of the population, are displaced inside and outside Syria. Western powers struggle in Syria over geopolitical influence and energy concerns. Experts are talking about large deposits of oil and gas located in Syria's coastal area. The Persian kings used to ask for earth and water as a symbol of submission. Americans are more fashionable in their demands. They asked for their share of the oil. Donald Trump was the best American president ever to be elected. He gave a straight shot answer when he was asked about the reason for America's existence in Syria. The answer was for our share of oil. 

Freedom of expression is in grave danger. Many journalists around the world were imprisoned, killed and shot at. However, ordinary people face certain risks when they try to express their opinion. Governments in some countries keep their firm grip on published material, especially books. In countries like China, they have their own version of Facebook and Twitter. The idea of  pre-approval of published material or media has never been accepted by me. It will give an opposite reaction with people, they will start looking for the panned material. Authors and publishers won’t be more happy, free advertisements. 

Finally, I would like to say something, love is easier than hate. The second is not natural to our body. Hates consume our energy and spirit. We need to love each other, our planet needs our love and attention, we need to buy less weapons and more books, we need to stop wars, we need to respect each other. All we need for a better world is love. 

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