And it does. Recorded for all time by those who were direct witnesses to what Jesus said and did. Even in the secular courts of this land testimony of second hand sources is not taken as reliable. No judge or jury in this country would take the word of second or third hand hearsay yet the Catholic Church bases much of it’s beliefs on word of mouth accounts sometimes hundreds of years removed from eyewitness accounts.
>>You? Who are you to say such?<<
As a matter of fact, yes. It’s my personal eternal future at stake. I won’t trust my salvation to anyone but the original and eternal God of this universe. It’s His words and those who were eye witness to His life and words that I will look to for truth. I will not trust the accounts of word of mouth hearsay in my attempt to understand. My salvation is not tied to some organization or group. Majority opinion is not valid.
Matthew 7:13 Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: 1 4Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.
Trust in second and third hand word of mouth hearsay if you want but I will “search the scriptures daily to see if these things are true”. The words of those who were direct witness to what Jesus said and did will be my source of truth. When even secular judges understand that second and third hand accounts are not reliable it’s ludicrous to think that I would trust my eternal future to accounts of someone who only heard from someone who heard.
****yet the Catholic Church bases much of it’s beliefs on word of mouth accounts sometimes hundreds of years removed from eyewitness accounts.****
You realize that both the gospels of Mark and Luke are second hand accounts. Neither was an eyewitness or original disciple of Jesus. Accepting, of course, that the authorship of both are who they are believed to be.
Mark was a companion to Peter and Luke to Paul. So that would make at least two gospels second hand accounts.
Also, there is not one existing original manuscript. All that we have are copies of copies.
And lastly, the written word comes from the oral tradition and not the other way around.
When one accepts the Bible as writings inspired by God, one must do so on faith. A faith in something/someone who exists eternally, who is the creator of all things and who is the sustainer of all things. A faith that is not of our making, but a gift of God and one that is kindled in us by someone telling us about God and Jesus and leading us to His revelation.
Without that faith, the Bible is a collection of myths and legends and familial stories. Just ask any atheist.