The days are many when I question the foundational principles learned in youth, when I retire to bed at night more uncertain than certain, when I, like a child, want to hide under the bed covers to escape from the world.
Those stories I read as a young boy – the miracles, the healings, the parables, the inspiration and hope, the guidance and correction, the ancient shared wisdom – I remember all that.
I think of numerous personal crises endured and conquered, unmentionable forays into darkness, the return from the far land, a prodigal son reunited with his inheritance, testimony of a life resurrected, forgiveness extended – I think of all that.
And yet, tonight, the term Christian confuses me. Don’t all Christians honor and revere the same Jesus? Or is it possible there were two homeless vagabonds roaming the lands of 1st century Israel? Both named Jesus? Both from Nazareth?
Is there another version of ancient writings telling of a hateful and vengeful Jesus? Have I somehow not read the Gospel of Exclusion, the one that tells white Americans they are better than the other children of God?
And all the verses that I know by heart, maybe I should not believe that “Love thy neighbor as thyself” is truth straight from our Lord. Or maybe “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life” was intended only for white folks, not brown and black skins.
Some of you tell me that white Christians are God’s chosen people, that only those who congregate in certain churches will get to heaven, that it is okay to persecute others who follow a different path or those who name their God differently.
Is it really okay? Some of you say that caging children is acceptable under Christian principle, that denying those seeking safety, security and hope is biblical, that the man and woman who happen to be brown-skinned are not part of your Kingdom.
Others say that destroying our earth’s ecosystem in the name of profit will be justified in the end times because Jesus will rebuild our earth, that those who know the true God will be saved from annihilation.
Are we reading the same scriptures or do you have a different version? Did the other Jesus speak privately to you and not to me? Tell me what verse gives you the right to judge and condemn men who are not exactly like you? I must know.
My Jesus heals the sick, how about yours? My Jesus mends the broken, how about yours? My Jesus feeds the poor and hungry, shelters the homeless, welcomes the refugee, how about yours?
“For many will come in my name….and lead many astray.” Matthew 24:5
“Watch out for false prophets. They will come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves.” Matthew 7:15
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Well said!
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Thanks, Chris
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It is very important to know that not all Christians honour and revere the same Jesus. First of all there are the majority who have taken Jesus into their god, instead of accepting he is the sent one from God. Those fall Christians are in the majority and try to get people away from those who believe in the real Christ, the son of man and son of God, the Nazarene man Jeshua (Jesus Christ).
You may not forget throughout history there have been more people who were called Immanuel, Emmanuel, Jahushua, Joshua, Jeshua or Jesus. At the time the Nazarene master teacher was walking around there also was an other rebellious Jesus making life difficult for the Romans. As such “there were two homeless vagabonds roaming the lands of 1st century Israel” Both named Jesus? But not both from Nazareth. There are enough civil papers talking about both personalities.
Great problem with a lot of North American (mostly evangelical) preachers is that they preach the Gospel of Exclusion, not only telling the white Americans they are better than the other children of God, but also condemning all those who do not believe the same than they and certainly condemning to eternal torture in fire those who adhere the God of Jesus (Who is the Unseen God of Abraham, Who is a Singular Spirit Being and not a three-headed god, like they worship with their Trinity).
Great problem with North American so called Christian sites is that first of all the trinitarian sites spread a lot of hatred against those who think otherwise than them. They not only go so far calling non-Trinitarians not to be Christians but they also sent them hate mail and lots of spam. Other Christians may call themselves lucky when they are not called to be burned in hell (for them an eternal torture place after death.)
North America can boost to have the most conservative religious websites as well as having the most creationists and flat earth believers websites. They not only refuse to accept our world evolves constantly but they also love to damn the people who according to them photo-shop views from space plus those who believe in climate change and global warming.
Those (mostly) conservative evangelical Christians often form a very real problem for Christianity and for Christendom. They find it their task to get people away from Christianity in Christendom, but by trying to proof their god Jesus is the Divine Creator they get even more people not believing in that Nazarene man nor in God, because they present God as a cruel fool who had an incarnation to fake his temptation and death and after that still keeps mankind suffering.
Not showing the brotherly love of Christ they are also able to get people away, not only from Christianity but also from Christendom, where those trinitarians also feel themselves not at home in such community which spread so much hatred and intolerance.
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“You shall have no other gods before me.” is what the link in your article brings people to. But most Americans worship a three-headed god instead of the God of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Jesus and his disciples. Most of Americans also make or have graven images of their gods, going in against the Law of God not to make graven images of Him nor of other gods.
Not only have most Americans made Jesus into their god, instead of accepting him for being the son of God who put away his own will to do the will of his heavenly Father, the Only One true God, the Elohim Hashem Jehovah; they have made money and capital gain into their other god (Manom).
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