From: u9245669@athmail1.causeway.qub.ac.uk
Subject: Christianity and repeated lives
Organization: UTexas Mail-to-News Gateway
Lines: 38

>There is a paragraph in the New Testament which in my opinion, clearly makes
>a positive inference to reincarnation. I don't remember which one it is off of
>the top of my head, but it basically goes like this: Jesus is talking with the
>apostles and they ask him why the pharisees say that before the messiah can 
>come Elijah must first come. Jesus replies that Elijah has come, but they did 
>not recognize him. It then says that the apostles perceived that he was refering 
>to John the Baptist. This seems to me to clearly imply reincarnation.

This was a popular belief in the Judaism of Jesus` time, that Elijah
would return again (as he had been taken in to heaven in a chariot and
did not actually die).  However Jesus was referring to John the
Baptist not in the sense that Elijah was reincarnated as John
(remember Elijah didn`t die) but that John was a similar prophet to
Elijah.  John was a fiery preacher, he wore sackcloth and wandered
rough through Israel preaching the coming kingdom.  The verses that
describe him (in Mark`s gospel) can be linked to OT references about
Elijah.  Hence John was similar to Elijah and Jesus was drawing the
parallels between the two just as he drew parallels with the Suffering
Servant in Isaiah (and other messianic figures) and himself.

A brief reply but I don`t have time to look up all the relevant stuff.

Suffice to say there is a very strong explanation.



Rick.

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Richard Johnston                             Queen`s University
73 Malone Road                               Belfast
Belfast                                 
Northern Ireland                          
BT9 6SB                                   

u9245669@athmail1.causeway.qub.ac.uk
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