Every week or two I have been chatting with various Jehovah's Witnesses. They bring me some of their literature to read, and the following week we discuss what I read.
It's usually a very intellectually stimulating time because new ideas are being communicated, different beliefs are colliding, and we are trying to be polite and articulate.
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Like other faithful Christians, the Jehovah's Witnesses told me that the Bible is completely true.I responded by saying that I haven't seen the evidence to support such an extraordinary claim. Then, I showed them a potential contradiction in the Bible, i.e. the genealogies of Jesus in Matthew 1 and Luke 3.
A week later, they brought to me a researched explanation of why the apparently discrepant genealogies are not in contradiction. I appreciated their effort, read their explanation, and formulated a response. It was the following:
The genealogies in Matthew and Luke refer to two different men as the father of Joseph, husband of Mary, the father of Jesus.
Here is a summary of your argument for reconciling this apparent contradiction:
1. If Joseph was the son-in-law of Heli (instead of his son), and
2. If Luke wrote that Joseph was the son of Heli using a Hebrew custom of referring to a son-in-law as a son,
3. Then, Luke's genealogy doesn't contradict Matthew's genealogy when they refer to two different men as the father of Joseph.
If points 1 and 2 are true, then I would agree that 3 is true, as well. Unfortunately, I don't know of any evidence for points 1 and 2. In fact, I know of an orthodox Jewish man who says that there was no custom like the one mentioned in 2, and he knows of not one example of this custom being used in the Old Testament.
Conclusion
Therefore, I cannot say that 1 and 2 are true, and thus, I cannot say that 3 is true. The Bible is apparently in contradiction with itself. Due to this reason, I disagree with the claim of my Jehovah's Witnesses friends that the Bible is completely true.
If anyone, Jehovah's Witness or not, can show me how they know that 1 and 2 are true, please let me know.
