Conspiracy theories ∙
Early on Sunday morning, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and found that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance. She ran and found Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved. She said, “They have taken the Lord’s body out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!” –
John 20:1-2
Matthew 28:11-15
11 Now, while they were on their way, some of the guard came into the city and reported to the chief priests all that had happened.
12 And when they had assembled with the elders and consulted together, they gave a large sum of money to the soldiers,
13 and said, “You are to say, ‘His disciples came by night and stole Him away while we were asleep.’”
14 “And if this should come to the governor’s ears, we will win him over and keep you out of trouble.”
15 And they took the money and did as they had been instructed, and this story was widely spread among the Jews and is to this day.
“Around the world, and against all scientific evidence, a segment of the population believes that Earth’s round shape is either an unproven theory or an elaborate hoax. Polls by YouGov America in 2018 and FDU in 2022 found that as many as 11% of Americans believe the Earth might be flat” (theconversation.com).
How can this be?
While dismissing “Flat Earthers” as mildly amusing is tempting, we ignore their arguments at our peril. Polling shows an overlap between conspiracy theories, some of which can act as gateways for radicalization. Discovering how flat Earthers communicate their beliefs and make their arguments reveals how their beliefs become resistant to debunking (Carlos Diaz Ruiz, The Conversation).
Conspiracy theories possess a certain allure that attracts us in various ways. Their proponents often portray them as arcane or covert knowledge known only to a select few.
Indulging in conspiracy theories can be exhilarating and invigorating, often transforming into a celebrated movement or campaign. “Unfortunately, many conspiracy theory believers are thrilled by the opportunity to feel like they have access to forbidden or secret knowledge – a chance to seem smarter than others. It certainly adds to the appeal and immediately undermines the efforts of loved ones trying to pull them out” (News Literacy Project).
“One strategy they use is to take sides in existing debates. People who are deeply attached to one side of a culture war are likely to wield any and all arguments (including truths, half-truths, and opinions) if it helps them win. People invest their identity into the group and are more willing to believe fellow allies rather than perceived opponents – a phenomenon that sociologists call neo-tribalism.”
“The problem arises when people internalize disinformation as part of their identity. While news articles can be fact-checked, personal beliefs cannot. When conspiracy theories are part of someone’s value system or worldview, it is difficult to challenge them” (Tomas Nilsson).
Growing up, my “tribe” was convinced that the Lord Jesus Christ was not the Messiah or the Savior of the world. The whole idea was nothing more than a silly myth concocted by “them.” Only when I studied the facts myself that I discovered His true identity and chose to believe in Him. When did this conspiracy theory begin?
On Sunday, the third day after the crucifixion, the tomb was empty, and the body of the Lord Jesus Christ was gone.
Luke 24:1-3
1 But very early on Sunday morning, the women went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared.
2 They found that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance.
3 So they went in, but they didn’t find the body of the Lord Jesus.
How can this possibly be explained?
The disappearance of the dead body can only be accounted for in two ways. The first possibility is that the body was stolen. The second possibility is that the Lord Jesus Christ was resurrected from the dead, as He had predicted.
Mark 16:6 The angel said, “Don’t be alarmed. You are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead! Look, this is where they laid his body.
The religious leaders would have none of this. It didn’t fit their agenda. So they concocted a story, and a conspiracy theory was hatched. Remains in place down through the centuries.
Matthew 28:11-15
12 And when they had assembled with the elders and consulted together, they gave a large sum of money to the soldiers,
13 and said, “You are to say, “His disciples came by night and stole Him away while we were asleep.”
15 And they took the money and did as they had been instructed, and this story was widely spread among the Jews and is to this day.
REFLECT & PRAY
“One of the common failings among honorable people is a failure to appreciate how thoroughly dishonorable some other people can be, and how dangerous it is to trust them” (Thomas Sowell).
Father thank You that the tomb was empty and He is risen. Enable me to spot and reject conspiracy theories that are baseless and without merit.
INSIGHT
The spin masters spun their web of deceit. The soldiers were bribed to fabricate a false account of what happened. The story told was dubious. In Roman times, it was a punishable crime for guards to fall asleep while on duty, and the penalty was execution. Yet, they claimed to have been sleeping. Additionally, if one were to assume that they were asleep, wouldn’t the noise of the large stone being rolled away have been sufficient to awaken them?
“The elders gave the soldiers instructions about the lie they were to tell the public. It is ironic that the thing the elders feared (theft of Jesus’ body by the disciples, the reason they posted soldiers at the tomb) became the story they concocted to explain the empty tomb” (Richison).
As with many conspiracy theories, there were glaring holes in this one. “It is almost comical that the soldiers are told to spread the rumor abroad that Jesus’ disciples came during the night and stole his body while they were asleep. If they were asleep, how could they know what had happened to the body of Jesus? . . . Matthew appears to have recorded this narrative with some degree of humor, emphasizing how foolish it is to believe the rumor current in his day that Jesus’ disciples had stolen his body” (UBS).
“Anyone who stole the body would have taken the body in the graveclothes. Yet the empty graveclothes were left in the tomb in an orderly manner. This was hardly the scene of a grave robbery” (Wiersbe).
BTW, no one ever produced the dead body. If the goal was to disprove the resurrection and repudiate the nascent church, that is all it would take. So what happened?
HE IS RISEN!
HE IS RISEN INDEED!
¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 10-16-2
© Dr. H 2023
Dr H Reflections 