LAKELAND, FL (The Register) Tuesday, 09 June 2009 - SPECIAL REPORT: Exploring Reincarnation, Past Lives, and the accuracy of the Bible:
Editor's Note: As of today, Wednesday, 20 January 2010, I have made a few additions in italics below -after having noticed I'd missed a few things.
QUESTION #1: Is Reincarnation real??
QUESTION #2: Is the Bible True??
RE: http://abcnews.go.com/Primetime/Technology/Story?id=894217&page=1
Parents Think Boy Is Reincarnated Pilot: Could a Little Boy Be Proof of Reincarnation?
“Six decades ago, a 21-year-old Navy fighter pilot on a mission over the Pacific was shot down by Japanese artillery. His name might have been forgotten, were it not for 6-year-old James Leininger.
Quite a few people — including those who knew the fighter pilot — think James is the pilot, reincarnated.
James' parents, Andrea and Bruce, a highly educated, modern couple, say they are "probably the people least likely to have a scenario like this pop up in their lives."
But over time, they have become convinced their little son has had a former life.”
The ‘Reincarnation’ boy’s father claims to be a Christian (at least ABC aired that in their Cable interview -I remember vividly), but that man’s Bible says that “it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:”-Hebrews 9:27
Whether you believe the Bible or not, neither ABC nor the boy’s parents caught this conflict here -typical glam news media, not asking the hard questions -like how could he claim to be a Christian when his own Bible says reincarnation doesn’t exist. (We must give the boy's father the benefit of the doubt here: His mistake was surely not intentional.)
CONTEXT: Some people in Bible days **believed** in reincarnation -as a folk tale -example: Jesus asked his disciples who people thought he was (Luke 9:18), and one of the answers was: “one of the old prophets is risen again.” (LUKE 9:18-19) -But just because people believed in this ancient urban legend does not mean Jesus taught it.
If the Bible’s correct here in Hebrews 9:27, its claim that reincarnation does not exist (and many believe the Bible is accurate), then what the boy experienced was either:
a) Coincidence
b) Messages from God
c) Messages from Demons
Those that believe the Bible know that ‘lying miracles’ from divination are indeed possible (example: Pharaoh’s magicians did some miracles opposing Moses, and in the end times, there are predicted to be lying wonders from demonic sources -it’s all in the Bible)
PS: I personally believe the Bible is true -–Thus, Hebrews 9:27 is something I accept as true.
*1* Since mankind can not create dinosaurs, even with all the technology scientists have today -and all the DNA samples (both from dead dinosaurs and live animals, like toads frogs), it should be obvious that the dinosaurs sure couldn't have gotten here on their own. This points towards some sort of creator -or 'God' -and, if there is a 'God', who had awesome powers to create life, it seems plausible that he would not have any trouble making sure his message got passed on to mankind -such as a Bible. And, by the way, such a God would have no trouble resurrecting Jesus -or doing modern-day miracles; remember: Even when miracles and such had ceased in Samuel's time ("Now the boy Samuel was ministering to the LORD before Eli And word from the LORD was rare in those days, visions were infrequent."-- I Samuel 3:1, Holy Bible, NASB), and people thought that God no longer did miracle -guess what! --HE DID!! God 'resurrected' miracles back then -and also does so -now-a-days: He changes not: MALACHI 3:6, and is the same Yesterday, Today, and Forever: HEBREWS 13:8
*2* Scripture manuscripts are more numerous than those of all the classics combined! (e.g., Homer, Caesar, Plato, etc.)
*2-a* -- By the way, while there are many historians who agree on things, their writings are not plagarised copies of one another: That hints that, hey, they just may be telling the truth here.
*3* Quotations making reference to said scriptures by both early church fathers AND secular scribes (like Josephus) are very numerous.
*4* Agreement between copies of the same original are near to 100% -ask any Jew today if you don't think those ancient Jewish scribes meant business!
*5* Brief time lapse between event & earliest manuscript minimises error: In other words, the historians and their writings were early and contemporary -so they had good time AND PLACE proximity to the events. Modern-day historians tell us that both the grammar and writing style of the manuscripts in question give evidence -if not proof -that the scriptures in question were early enough to the events to be trusted as reliable eyewitnesses.
*6* Early church fathers would not be persecuted and die for a fable, tale, or lie.
*6-a* The ROMANS back in that the New Testament era would have had no (selfish) motive to let Jesus live -since it was politically expedient for them to have Him killed. Therefore, is seems safe to say that Jesus really was killed; so, if the disciples had said that Jesus was seen alive after having been killed, and they have no motive to lie, then this proves both the accuracy of the Bible as well as the miracle-power of God Almighty to resurrect Jesus -who as shown in other research was also very God Himself and worthy of worship.
*7* Ancient Israeli scribes would not have recorded so many national shortcomings (e.g., "sinful failures") and embarrassing national mistakes (especially Old Testament) is it were not true. This is is spite of the fact that "History is written by the victors" motive to lie! Another 'embarrassing' thing recorded was in the New Testament: The writers tell us that WOMEN discovered the empty grave of Jesus -that they were the FIRST witnesses. This may not seem odd you you and me, but, you ask any Jewish historian here: Women's place in that society back then was NOT RESPECTED -they were practically not ever allowed to be a witness in a court proceeding -thus, writers who claim the women were the first witnesses had no motive to lie about that socially embarrassing event.
*8* Archaeological evidence supports the many claims made in the Bible -such as Noah's Ark found on Mount Ararat, salt foundation remains of Sodom & Gomorrah, etc.
*9* Biblical scientific claims were accurate. E.g.,
* Burial of dung instead of convenience of leaving it in open is necessary to avoid diseases! “But the flesh of the bullock, and his skin, and his dung, shalt thou burn with fire without [outside] the camp…”-- Exodus 29:14
* Circumcision after EIGHT days (not 7 or 9), since every basic medical student knows that blood clotting factor is maximum on 8th day after birth: “And he that is eight days old shall be circumcised among you…”--Genesis 17:12
* -Earth IS round, as science proved later: “It is he that sitteth upon the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers;…”-- Isaiah 40:22
*10* Bible books written by diverse authors from many walks of life, different time periods & epochs, yet books generally agree with one another. And, there are generally no rebuttals or denials about many of the events claimed in the Bible by contemporary historians -suggesting further that the Bible is reliable.
*11* Many prophecies both by Jesus AND about Jesus -and world events -have been fulfilled with startling accuracy!
*** One example: Ezekiel 37:21, 22 predicts that Israel will be re-gathered & reborn as a nation -and Isaiah 66:7-8 goes on to add that Israel will need only one day to be reborn!
*** Never in the history of the world had such a thing happened before--but God keeps His word. As definitely foretold here and in Ezekiel 37:21, 22, Israel became a recognized nation, actually "born in one day." After being away from their homeland for almost 2,000 years, the Jews were given a national homeland in Palestine by the Balfour Declaration in November, 1917. In 1922, the League of Nations gave Great Britain the mandate over Palestine. On May 14, 1948, Great Britain withdrew her mandate, and immediately Israel was declared a sovereign state, and her growth and importance among nations became astonishing.
*12* Proof's in the pudding: The Bible's message changes lives for the better -with much common sense (book of Proverbs, for example) and direction (book of Psalms, for example) and encouragement: The fact that Jesus was not afraid to come from Heaven and live in a human body -to show us by example that life is not hopeless -that is, he worked a whole lifetime leaving us an example to follow, per John 13:15 and John 14:12). Jesus is also a healer and righteous advocate and defender (1st John 2:1-2). He was/is a 'leader' who is willing to live in a human form -to *show* us BY EXAMPLE that it's not all hopeless --is encouraging. At least to this writer. Jesus earned our respect the old fashioned way: He *worked* for it.
*13* With many eyewitnesses to the original events, the margin of error approaches zero.
*14* The Bible has survived the test of time -even after all attempts to get rid of it and its followers.
*15* Only through a careful sifting process & analysis by many diverse church fathers were the Bible books of the canon recognized as authoritative.
*16* CONCLUSION: Trustworthiness demands not an exhaustive but merely adequate knowledge of the topic at hand, thus the Bible has passed the test with flying colors.
***---***---***
Remember earlier when we ruled out 'past lives' & 'reincarnation' as a possibility? Well, that leaves either (a) Coincidence; (b) Message from God (He can do anything -such as give a person memories or supernatural information -albeit not through reincarnation), or (c) Messages from Demons (While some would say that God wouldn't allow a child to be possessed by a demon -those who believe the Bible know that this is false: Matthew 17:18 and Luke 9:42 record just two examples of such demon-possessed children!)
Now, I'm not saying that this boy was 'possessed' -but I am saying it is quite possible. Yes, 'witchcraft' and 'demons' are REAL! -Here are but a few examples of 'miracles' performed by evil spirits / demons / witchcraft / etc.:
Exodus 7:11-12
* 11 Then Pharaoh also called the wise men and the sorcerers: now the magicians
of Egypt, they also did in like manner with their enchantments.
* 12 For they cast down every man his rod, and they became serpents: but
Aaron's rod swallowed up their rods.
1st Samuel 28:3a,11-12
* 3 Now Samuel was dead, and all Israel had lamented him…
* 11 Then said the woman, Whom shall I bring up unto thee? And he said, Bring
me up Samuel.
* 12 And when the woman saw Samuel, she cried with a loud voice: and the woman
spake to Saul, saying, Why hast thou deceived me? for thou art Saul.
Matthew 7:21-23
* 21 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord,
shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father
which is in heaven.
* 22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have
we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy
name done many wonderful works?
* 23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew
you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.
Matthew 24:24
* 24 For there shall arise false Christs, and false
prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were
possible, they shall deceive the very elect.
Mark 13:22
* 22 For false Christs and false prophets shall rise,
and shall shew signs and wonders, to seduce, if it were possible, even the
elect.
2nd Corinthians
11:13-15
* 13 For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves
into the apostles of Christ.
* 14 And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.
* 15 Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the
ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.
Revelation 13:12-14
* 12 And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth
the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly
wound was healed.
* 13 And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven
on the earth in the sight of men,
* 14 And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles
which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell
on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound
by a sword, and did live.
Revelation 19:20
* 20 And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought
miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of
the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into
a lake of fire burning with brimstone.
-Getting back on track!
-but in any event, ABC dropped the ball here and did not question
the family on the very clear conflict here: How could this boy's family claim to be Christians -when their own Bible said that reincarnation was not permitted by God! (Again: We must give the family the benefit of the doubt and not assume they violated the Bible intentionally.)
Editor’s Note:
After publication of this article, I found some Bible verses which are often-times used to support the theory of reincarnation. Here they are with my commentary:
* Jeremiah 1:4-5 says that the Lord both knew Jeremiah and ordained him to be a prophet before he was born. However, God’s knowledge is all-knowing -Jeremiah need not be born and alive in a ‘past life’ for God to know all about him!
* Matthew 11:13-15 and Matthew 17:10-13 show Jesus referring to John the Baptist as Elijah. MY THOUGHTS: This seems to be allegorical in comparison, a description of John’s work, not literal. Luke 1:17 (NKJV) supports this interpretation by saying that John the Baptist would: “go before Him [Jesus] in the spirit and power of Elijah,” to lay the groundwork for Christ’s ministry by turning “the hearts of the fathers to the children,” referring to Malachi 4:5-6. (To put this puppy to rest, please notice John 1:21, which quotes John the Baptist as DENYING that he was Elijah!)
* John 3:3 where Jesus tells Nicodemus he must be ‘born again’, this is not literal reincarnation in the physical sense. Clearly, the meaning here is a spiritual rebirth.
* John 9:1-3 shows where disciples ask Jesus whether a man born blind could have sinned to cause this -the clear implication that the sin had to have been committed *before* his having been born. Jesus did not directly address reincarnation, but he did say that neither than man nor his parents sinned. Thus, this appears to be a case of urban legend -not unlike that in Luke 9:18, where some people ask whether Jesus was “one of the old prophets is risen again.” Just urban legend and folk tale.
* Galatians 6:7 talks about sowing and reaping, which some construe to mean that they are reaping ‘karma’ from a past lifetime, but, in context with the verses that follow, it would appear that this refers to this one lifetime only.
* Hebrews 7:2-3 is often used to argue that Jesus was Melchizedek (king of Salem, priest of the Most High God), however, Jesus was only being *compared* to this high priest. Heb. 9:3 (NKJV), which say: “without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life,” does not mean he was not born -it only means there was no *record* of his birth -thus showing the unique nature of his priesthood -and comparing Christ’s similar ministry -with no beginning or end.
* So, while the ‘context’ (and conclusion) of Hebrews 9:27 is that The Christ need only die once, the predicate or basis (used to *make* that conclusion) must also be correct: Namely, that *all* humans live only one lifetime -and that Christ, being human, would do likewise. Thus, Heb.9:27 clearly argues *against* reincarnation & past lives. Reincarnation (the claim that you will *not* die) is the same lie that Satan/Lucifer told Eve in the garden of Eden: “And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die:”--Genesis 3:4 (KJV). This is a lie! Hebrews 9:27 has it right: you live only one life, and afterwards, you die. The occasional cameo appearances of dead people -such as Elijah and Moses at the Mount of Transfiguration were Spiritual manifestations -were orchestrated by God, Himself -not physical lives. They appeared ‘in the spirit’ as Paul mentions in 2nd Corinthians 2:3: ‘out of the body’, e.g., in the spirit body. (Likewise, when God allowed the Witch of Endor (in 1st Samuel 28:15) to see the prophet, Samuel, who was dead (1st Samuel 28:3), Samuel was not ‘reincarnated’: She saw his spirit, not his body.) Moses, Elijah, and Samuel did not reincarnate: They appeared in a spirit body -at God’s command: 1st Corinthians 15:44: “…There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body.” Therefore, the original interpretation of Hebrews 9:27 is correct: God does not allow Reincarnation /&/ ‘past lives.’
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