April Fool’s Everyone!

Posted on by

confused Xian manIs magic real? Is it deception or slight-of-hand? Not since 1956 has this happened. It won’t happen again until April 1st, 2029. One thing is also certain; it has happened in the past many times and will keep happening in the future. But why will it not happen again until 2029 when (since 1900) it has only happened four times:  1923, 1934, 1945, and as mentioned 1956? Every 11-years for four cycles, then a 62-year cycle followed by the return to an 11-year cycle for four times. Why this peculiar pattern?

Questions Are Good!

Questions are good in order to better understand. What is so special about today? It is indeed April Fool’s Day (April 1st), but it is also Easter Sunday. However, April Fool’s and Easter together won’t happen again until 2029. Finding answers or at least finding compelling or plausible answers are very good for better understanding our world, even understanding human nature (the observer) much better. Are we astute observers and astute inquisitors? Do we astutely reason and infer to formulate astute maps, astute blueprints, or astute subsequent questions?

I want you to try your best to answer these following questions about Easter and see how many you get correct:

  • When, where, and how did Easter originate?
  • How many women came to the tomb Easter morning?
  • What were the last words of Jesus?
    confused Xian woman
  • How many days did Jesus teach after his resurrection?
  • Who buried Jesus?
  • Did an angel cause a great earthquake that rolled back the stone in front of the tomb?
  • Who did the women see at the tomb?
  • Was the tomb already open when they got there?
  • Did the women tell the disciples?
  • Did Mary Magdalene cry at the tomb?
  • Did Mary Magdalene recognize Jesus?
  • Could Jesus’s followers touch him?
  • Where did Jesus tell the disciples to meet him?
  • Who saw Jesus resurrected?
  • Should the gospel be preached to everyone?
    (line break)

Please feel free to leave your answers in the comments below to determine whether you are a fool on Easter-April Fool’s Day or an informed fool or neither. 😁

Footnote — read what acclaimed scholar Dr. Bart Ehrman has to say about the folklore of Easter, resurrection, and what Jesus did or did not teach in my follow-up blog-post:  An Easter Reflection.

(paragraph break)

Live Well — Love Much — Laugh Often — Learn Always

Creative Commons License
Blog content with this logo by Professor Taboo is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
Permissions beyond the scope of this license may be available at https://professortaboo.com/contact-me/.

39 thoughts on “April Fool’s Everyone!”

    • Excellent point John. Yes, when the very first gospel was finished (70 CE), some 4 decades later, there was NOTHING about crazy flights up into the sky. And in the earliest written letters/epistles (Paul’s letters), the new convert who NEVER met Jesus face-to-face, Paul/Saul doesn’t preach a resurrection Christians wrongly believe today. Paul/Saul teaches a version of Jewish resurrection that has been prevalent in Judaism for centuries. The crazy stories about Jesus’ flight to the heavens develop almost a century later! Then his birth and incarnation develop AFTER THAT!!! 😮

      Some real funky, hocus-pocus stuff being written and spread around, huh? 😉

      Liked by 5 people

      Reply ↓

  2. Reminds me of the conjurers trick: ”Pick a card … any card…..”.

    You know how the rest goes of course. 🙂

    As for the last words of Jesus? Probably along the lines of…

    ”Hey, Mum! Can everyone see my willy from down there?”
    For the the rest of the questions I defer to Life of Brian: ”Er … about eleven, sir.”

    Just read your dialogue with Mel.
    If I may. Perhaps rather than ending your comments with a statement, you ought to always end you comments with a question that he should feel obliged to answer?

    A statement simply allows him to say: ”No it isn’t !” and cuts you dead.

    Liked by 4 people

    Reply ↓

    • Hahaha! Well Ark, suffice to say that no one has gotten the questions correct so far. 🤣 But then again, the game is rigged, huh? 😉

      Ahhh, yes. That might be a better tactic, huh? But my real problem with him is truly time; the time it takes to address practically every single word or phrase that is either erroneous or not the full picture/context of the time-period. His Roman and Jewish history knowledge is absolutely horrendous!!! 😩

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply ↓

      • The historic part of your comments are spot on, but to get him to respond in a manner that requires him to address the comment body I reckon you have to phrase them is such a way as to almost force a response, rather than a snide remark.
        Yes, it’s easier from where I now sit – being among the ban(ne)d but reducing a comment to enough content so as to make him dribble a little but not so much as to allow his to come back with a school yard retort.
        Undercut and expose one aspect and the rest are then easier to refer back to.
        But you’re the prof, prof.

        Liked by 1 person

        Reply ↓

        • Some clever tips Ark. Thank you Sir.

          As our “group” has mentioned before (e.g. Nan, Danica), it isn’t so much trying to convince or change Mel that is my ultimate goal — he has WAY TOO MUCH to lose being a church pastor — and it is glaringly obvious he hasn’t nor does he have any desire or interest to LEARN any full contextual history outside of his biased Christian/Christological sources. If he isn’t going to have the fair, open-minded, open heart HE preaches, then perhaps it is his anonymous readers/browsers that might investigate or “cross-examine” my comment’s topics, counter-points, and perspectives rather than just taking his blog-post as gospel or at face-value. Here’s hoping, huh?

          Nonetheless, I will try to incorporate your tactical suggestion Ark. Thanks again. 🙂

          Liked by 1 person

          Reply ↓

          • Oh, I have never had the desire to convert him – (or anyone else I openly interact with) contrary to what Wally may tell us. That is a fools errand and he must come to his senses in this regard in his own time. And for now he has way too much (face) to lose, as you point out, especially in an open forum such as this.
            But your approach is a lot cooler than mine ever was … he pisses me off far too much and I eventually lose/lost it.

            It is the lurkers and those reading along that need to be shown just how ignorant and shallow his arguments are and as indoctrinated as he is, eventually the evidence will be his undoing.

            Whether he admits this or not is another thing altogether, but to simply expose the lies is enough, and providing he is always left with a reasonably phrased question to answer he can’t simply respond nyah, nyah nyah .. or similar.
            So far, you are doing a pretty damn good!

            Liked by 1 person

            Reply ↓

            • Thank you Ark. My approach works with some personality types and flops with others. LOL But that’s why I enjoy a very CROWDED round-table. I thoroughly enjoy diversity and unknown or unfamiliar perspectives! For me, and on a more abstract but relevant philosophical thought, the endless diversity in literally EVERYTHING on this planet and all its species is the Coup de grâs on anything hinting Monism, or in other words, monotheism. The Christian Church(es) are another prime example of never-ending pluralism! Monism or John 14:6 simply doesn’t reflect reality. Period. They are bogus constructs.

              Btw, thank you kindly for your feedback here!

              Liked by 2 people

  3. The women told the disciples, but they didn’t believe them so they went to see for themselves. I don’t believe them either. Funny that his disciples still had no idea he would rise from the dead. I thought they should have known that. “Hey guys, don’t worry. I got this and I’ll see you in a few days”. Something?

    Liked by 6 people

    Reply ↓

  4. I’ll have to go back and brush up on all the specific contradictions. I do know that the gospels don’t line up on any of the accounts. With our modern understanding of the spring mythology around rebirth and resurrection, it is really mystifying how this one fable continues to pervade society as if it were a true story.

    Liked by 5 people

    Reply ↓

    • Danica, that is an excellent ending question! I can answer it simply like this…

      The Roman Empire with its brutal, swift Legions wiping out by 70 CE most all of Jewish dissenting sects surrounding Jerusalem… and Hellenistic Christological Apotheosis (decades & centuries later) becoming the Changeling of the original Reform Movement known as “the Way.” 🙂

      Second Temple Judaism was rot with outlying (Diaspora?) Jewish sects, like Jesus’ movement, who had become highly bitter that the Temple, Pharisees, Sadducees, and High Priests had (in their eyes) corrupted Jewish law and practices with more subtle insidious Hellenistic Roman ones.

      Liked by 2 people

      Reply ↓

      • You always provide such wonderful historical context. But I also wonder why so many people, in 2018, with access to practically unlimited knowledge on the Internet, haven’t pieced together that this resurrection thing is a myth that was incredibly commonplace 2,000 years ago, and not an isolated (much less true) event. Having fallen prey to religion myself, I don’t really have the answer. I do think we are “wired” to worship cyclical events of the universe (the solstice, spring). Our ancestors associated these events with food and survival. Scientists have now discovered that our genes harbor memories, especially when related to survival. That makes me wonder if we are genetically bound to the inclination to worship natural events personified by deities like Jesus. https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/07/140731145845.htm

        Liked by 4 people

        Reply ↓

        • Very fascinating bit about our genetic wiring Danica. Having been employed in the Psych/A&D field for years, I came to better understand PTSD. It is not exclusive to combat veterans only. It has a much broader invasion, precisely what you are saying: “our genes harbor memories, especially when related to survival.” And now doctors have found there are lesser degrees of or minor forms of PTSD from emotional-domestic abuse by parents, spouses, siblings, Aunts/Uncles, total strangers, et al.

          Great mention and link Danica! Thank you.

          Liked by 3 people

          Reply ↓

  7. When, where, and how did Easter originate?

    Bunnied if I know. Long ago, in the Easter? Because… because spring, and rebirth, and flowers and whatnot? Because lambs and chickens and … chocolate? Yes, that’s it. Chocolate! Final answer.

    How many women came to the tomb Easter morning?

    Let’s see. There was Mary with her little lamb, Mary Poppins with a spoonful of sugar (that’ll raise the dead alright), Bloody Mary hoping for a drink, Mary Kay who thought of going into the embalming business and of course Mary Sue, upstaging the entire lot by doing the actual Raising and seducing a bewildered angel. Naturally, this has been heavily edited in later years. Only the lamb still sort of features.

    What were the last words of Jesus?

    “For the last time, Maggie! I said no bunnies!!”

    How many days did Jesus teach after his resurrection?

    It was a weekend seminar on the Roman judicial system that got a little out of hand. Likely an unintentional water-wine incident may be blamed for the lampshade on Thomas’ head as well as his impromptu invention of Middle Eastern acupuncture (it never caught on).

    Who buried Jesus?

    Christianity

    Did an angel cause a great earthquake that rolled back the stone in front of the tomb?

    Yes but it was an accident. Mary Sue’s bra got tangled in a wing and things just went downhill from there.

    Who did the women see at the tomb?

    Whom (sorry, channeling Stannis Baratheon there for a sec)
    The Rock, of course, looking handsome as ever. Which might account for the ensuing confusion as well.

    Was the tomb already open when they got there?

    Yes, which led to an embarrassing incident with garlic and a stake. Yeshua doesn’t like to talk about it.

    Did the women tell the disciples?

    Not about the garlic, or the Bloody Marys. Mary Kay tried to tell them how fetching Yeshua looked with the apricot lip balm, but they weren’t interested.

    Did Mary Magdalene cry at the tomb?

    Yes. When the angel finally got rid of the bra it landed on the lamb, and it got startled and spilled the vodka. Plus, Maggie had hoped for Pina Coladas, horseradish and garlic gave her gas. Major wailing and gnashing of teeth, poor thing.

    Did Mary Magdalene recognize Jesus?

    Not in that makeup, she didn’t.

    Could Jesus’s followers touch him?

    He was a bit ticklish, so he’d rather they didn’t without warning. Accidental water-wine episodes are one thing, but that bread to frogs mishap didn’t go over well.

    Where did Jesus tell the disciples to meet him?

    At the Blue Parrot Bar&Grill in Bethlehem. All you can eat, and Maggie wouldn’t stop whining about the Colada.

    Who saw Jesus resurrected?

    A yellow-necked mouse. It had hoped to build a nest in what looked like a fancy, dry and safe cave when Yeshua’s alarm went off. Thus the saying “Poor Church Mouse”, because the rodent was traumatized for life and could bear neither white robes nor alarm clocks ever again.

    Should the gospel be preached to everyone?

    Verily I say unto thee, go forth and mix those bloody awful Marys no more. Just chug the vodka straight and thou shalt be done with it, crazy womenfolk. And no more shagging winged messengers – no Mary Sue I don’t care if he literally rocked your world – it messes with the ozone layer somewhat fierce and in 2000 years we’ll never hear the end of it. Peter, thou shalt share the shrimp cocktail, I can’t have Maggie bawling again.
    Now go forth and stop being asses to each other. Yeshua out.

    Liked by 3 people

    Reply ↓

  8. I am of the opinion that the women arrived at the tomb, and found someone making off with the body. The women were told to lie, or face a similar fate.

    Thus the contradicting takes on the matter. Lies always have a way of contradicting themselves. Hmmm the entire babble is a huge contradiction. “Light bulb moment”

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply ↓

    • Shell, that is certainly a very plausible conclusion seeing that nothing was ever recorded about the “missing body” and who was and who wasn’t there… UNTIL many decades later. Though Paul’s/Saul’s letters were written about two decades after the execution, he makes an assertion that 500 people saw Jesus. This is very unlikely for three primary reasons: 1) Corinth would not have had that many believers 20-years after Jesus’ execution, 2) why didn’t the four gospels and Acts include this enormous number/news? They were all written much later than 1 Corinthians! And 3) seeing that Jesus was considered a revolting Jewish King and executed, why didn’t this news quickly reach Roman authorities and be recorded in Roman records? Answer: because it never happened.

      “Light bulb moment!” 💡 😄

      Thank you Shell for your comment!

      Like

      Reply ↓

  9. Pingback: An Easter Reflection | Professor Taboo

  10. PT, I logged in your site to see if you are ok but turns out I never get your post and miss all the publications. Ugh. So sorry to miss so much, for genuinely enjoy reading what you have to say.
    Not so long ago, my teenage son started reading the bible (I never did) and he asked me if I knew that Adam lived more than 800 years old…and Noah up to 500. At that point, I said you lost me right there. How could anyone continue reading these unproven facts? What a nice fairytale, it seems to be. Or maybe it was written on April fools day?

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply ↓

    • Hahaha, oh Luda. You should get more familiar with how WordPress sets up their notifications of followed blogs; how to manage them all. 😉 Here’s a WordPress Help page on doing just that: ☺️

      https://en.support.wordpress.com/following/

      Regarding your son’s questions Luda, I’ll just give you GENERAL parental advice from one parent to another — I have two children of my own. Please, please encourage them to be independent thinkers! Tell them there is NEVER any question that is stupid or embarrassing or any number of questions that are too many. Asking, evaluating, examining, contrasting, and comparing info, data, results, etc, only helps them better understand WHAT they are studying. MAKE THEM explain to you — or someone with high intelligence — in their own words what they have discovered and learned! Regurgitate… don’t just memorize or parrot stuff. Also, be sure they know the difference between independent (less bias or unbias) sources and dependent (partial or favoring or having tunnel-vision) sources. This might be one of the most critical life-lessons you and your husband can teach your children! 🙂 ❤

      Thank you so much for reading and commenting Luda!

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply ↓

      • Oh, computers are another planet for me, too. Grateful for the link. I will contact customer service to guide me on Monday. Tried so hard to add you as my instant notification, but the prompts that they are suggesting are missing in reality.
        You are so profound, PT. We only suggest unbias and alternative sources of info. Parenting is hard and kids challenge at all times. Definitely absorbing your advice and passing it on.

        Liked by 1 person

        Reply ↓

Go Ahead, Start the Discussion!