Jesus

      Okay, I've got to hand it to the Christians: they sure picked an enigmatic character to follow. Very little is known about Christ, which makes some people wonder did he truly exist, or was he just made up by some guys who wanted to start a cult well over 1,500 years ago? While I don't personally doubt that Jesus is based on a real person, I'd like to share a few arguments against his existence, and also ask the theists among you what good he really was.
        Obviously, the only real mentions of Jesus anywhere in the Bible are in the four gospels. But what of them? To the Christians, they're "eyewitness accounts." But are they really?
         First of all, the oldest Gospel is Mark, and it is thought by scholars to be no older than 70 AD. That's over 35 years after Jesus' supposed death. And this biography is incredibly skimpy...It starts with John the Baptist bathing Jesus and ends with two frightened women running from Jesus' tomb (modern Bibles have "extra" passages after that, but they don't appear in the original manuscripts). There is very little in between these two events. It's interesting that the oldest Gospel is actually the smallest. But then stories grow every time they're re-told. Also, Mark, who was a foriegner knowing very little about Palestine geography, tells of when Jesus cast a demon out of a man and made them go into 2,000 pigs, who all jumped into the Sea of Galilee. Mark says that this occured in the land of Garisenes...which is 31 miles north of the shores of the Sea of Galilee...those pigs must've had to run a really long way. To top it off, for them to know that the pigs jumped into the Sea would mean that they would've run after them all that way. So I'd say if the Gospel of Mark is wrong in this area, who knows what other mistakes he's made? And since the other Gospels all just expand on Mark, who knows what is hogwash in them or not? Also note the fact that Romans kept impeccible records on EVERYTHING, including crucifixions, yet records from the time show no records of Jesus, or anyone similar, being crucified.
          So there's apparently little evidence for Jesus. But even if there was, why do people respect him so? Because he "died for our sins?" This is never really explained. If he "died for our sins?", how come we still sin? Did all people go to hell before Jesus died, regardless of sin level? Or did he just free us from the consequences of sin (such as Hell)? Why didn't God sort this out during the creation? Or is he even a loving god, like people say he is? Some may say Jesus is god in the flesh. I ask how this is so. If Jesus WAS God, who did he pray to? Why did he scream out on the cross "Lord, why have you forsaken me?" Perhaps he just didn't know he was God, which is also ludicrous. God is omniscient, remember?
           And it's not like he volunteered or anything. He was executed by the government. Just as people who've commited serious crimes are executed by the government to this day. Gee, how come they aren't "dying for our sins?"