Early Origins of Christianity (~50 CE - 1600 CE)
Hey fellow steemers. So I have posted a bunch of my philosophy lectures, but I also lecture/teach in the area of Religious Studies. My undergrad was in RS with a focus on 4th C. Buddhism and early Christianity; and yes, there are some interesting overlaps between those as well, but that is another story.
That said, here is a lecture/discussion on how "academics" talk about the origins of Christianity. Keep in mind that I am NOT saying anything about faith. One's faith transcends history, and when it comes to faith I am a full follower of Kierkegaard. If you want to know more about what that means, I have posted a lecture/discussion on Kierkegaard so you can find it on my blog feed.
So check it. Feel free to ask any questions, offer your views, etc. If you want to just say your view of Christianity is the "right" view, fine, but again if it remains grounded in faith there is not much I can say other than page Abraham and Isaac. Enjoy!
The overlap of early Christianity and Buddhism looks very much like Christian Gnosticism. Having said that, I've always like the idea that Krishna is punking atheists! God, in that sense, gives everyone what they desire.
By the time we get to 4th C. Buddhism, their is quite a bit of knowledge in India about the "new" religion of Christianity. In fact, some scholars--myself included--see the 4th C. as a transition state from the old-world views of India grounded in Hindu lore, to the more "modern" view created by the necessity of measuring one's religion up and against "others".
But yeah, I could see Krishna being a bit of a punk.