......right up there with the "monkey Jesus".  Stand back and watch the outrage.

And yet as an adoptive parent, I LOVE Joseph. :)

I find it interesting - and I'm just putting this out there - Jesus' claim to being the Messiah is in part due to his Davidic ancestry ... which comes from Joseph's side, who 'technically' isn't his father. I'm not sayin ... I'm just sayin. ;)

I gotta believe that's a stoning.

I'm thinking "Saturday Night Live" or "Mad TV" should hire the Anglican Church to write their skits.

It's funny (for a minute), it's controversial (for a minute) but personally I find it ineffective with what they think they're trying to do.

God my be a hard act to follow, but it doesn't hurt to try. If we try to become godlier, maybe we will. After all, God created us in ITs image.

What does that mean, anyway? Does it mean that God godlified us, or that God humanified ITself? Or both?

Standby for the next progressive conference in Melbourne in 2010!  Canada's own Gretta Vosper is the keynote speaker.

(Thinks, maybe we're getting a little too much sun in the southern hemisphere?)

I saw a man on t.v. painting over the billboard with brown paint, was that you BB? 

I love it, and sent them a message saying so.  Wish I could get it on T-shirt!

Fark headline for the above article:

"Catholics predictably pissed off about billboard ad that suggests the second coming might not have been all that great"

The Ancestry of Jesus to David can be linked through Mary His mother as well.

Bolt

It does seem a little over the top and confrontational.

Mind you we could use some more of that at times

Wow! I've been reading on matthew-in-the-city. I like it! Their xmas carols etc. and sermons are quite traditional although it is a progressive church.

Here's another pic. from their website. Oddly enough I've often heard people remark that Jesus would not be happy at all about seeing his body portrayed on a cross around the world. Jesus was about life, not about death!

The Mexican Communist painter Jose Clemante Oruzen makes Jesus a militant leader impatiently destroying his own cross with an axe.

Welcome to Matthew-in-the-City

http://www.stmatthews.org.nz/nav.php?sid=208

God bless our contradictions, those parts of us which seem out of character.
Let us be boldly and gladly out of character.
Let us be creatures of paradox and variety; creatures of contrast,
of light and shade, creatures of faith.
God be our constant.
Let us step out of character into the unknown,
to struggle and love and do what we will.

Leunig, Common Prayer Collection

Haha, I wondered how long it would take until a thread got posted about this!  It did make me laugh... although I can definitely see a TON of people getting extremely offended.

Several modern theologians have come to believe that Joseph was in all likelihood Jesua' earthly father.  Bruce Chilton points out that during his life he was known as a mamzer which is a person of unknown parentage.  It is also likely that Jesus was born in Nazareth.

As I have pointed out elsewhere the Christmas stories are midrashic.,

Looks like a good site.  I've book marked it for later.

Shalom

Mate

Mate, unlike my poor self, your good self has undertaken biblical studies. I recently saw a t.v. programme where it was suggested that Jesus was either Joseph's son - conceived out of wedlock - or Mary was pregnant to an unknown  (earthly) father.

It also suggested that Joseph already had two sons and two daughters from a previous marriage. After the birth of Jesus, Mary and Joseph had two more sons.

What's your understanding of Jesus's family situation?  Any other biblical scholars out there that can enlighten this curious soul?

I also think it's important to mention the "virgin" didn't always mean what it does today.  At one time, it simply designated a young or unmarried woman -- not her sex life.

"Virgin" Mary wasn't necessarily someone with an intact hymen.

The Virgin Birth still disturbs... good! 

What if it WAS true?  What would we do then???

Funny how we put all our energies into disbelief.  

As has been asked before, which do you think is the more likely scenario?  That the laws of nature were suspended in a single case 2000 years ago, or that a teenaged girl lied?

Jesus is just one mythical character in a long line of gods who were said to have been born of virgins.  The amount of effort it takes to disbelieve in the virgin birth of Jesus is approximately the same effort it takes to disbelieve in all the others.  That is, not much.

Pilgrims Progress

My understanding is that Jesus had brothers and a sister.  "Ever Virgin" somehow does not fit in.  So what?

Virgin birth is a common myth for all great important people of the ancient days:  Julius Caesar etc.  Not only that they were known as "Son of God", "God from God", very God from Very God", "Saviour of the world", prince of peace etc.  Then the Jews come along and claim that for Jesus.  That was treason.  This is not to say what I believe about this Jesus.

It looks like maybe there was some politics involved in the writings and thoughts about Jesus.

Shalom

Mate

"Round yon woman with an intact hymen, mother and child"

Mmm, Ninj, sounds too clinical - obviously your explanation must be correct.

(The devil made me say it.) 

 Do you think the billboard achieved its intentions (quoted above)?

1. Did it successfully "lampoon the literal interpretation of the Christmas conception story"?
2. Did it successfully "highlight the real significance of the festival"?

Personally, my opinion is: 1 - Yes, 2 - No.

RAN

I  can go along with that.

Shalom

Mate