Putting Christ Back in Christianity?

[MineralMan]

In recent years, some Christian denominations and sects have looked less and less like the ideal set for Christians by the man himself, or at least what's recorded about that man in the New Testament. In reading through Matthew again, I'm struck by the difference between the words the New Testament claims were spoken by Jesus and the ugliness coming out of some denominations. Most of his words make a lot of sense, especially when it comes to relations between people.

Where has that message gone for some Christians? Instead of clamoring for Christ to be put back in Christmas, it seems to me that a better start would be putting Christ back into Christianity in many cases.

Now, I'm a strong atheist, but I can read the scriptures Christians claim to follow. And I have. Many times. These days, it seems like fewer and fewer denominations even bother with the red-letter words, but put their focus elsewhere. It just seems odd to me.

[elocs]

1. I think that Christians would be better off basing their faith on the red letter words,

the words of Jesus. My educated guess is that far, far too many Christians have never even read the entire Bible, or even most of it, and far too many are only capable of parroting the verses that they hear from someone else. I think Jesus would just say to get away from him because he doesn't know them.

Yes, it would be good for Christ to be put back into Christianity. I think if Jesus were walking the earth today that a lot of Christians would brand him as a rabble rousing Liberal and a Socialist, and since he was a homeless man they would tell him to get a job. In the end they would do to him what was done the first time.

[MineralMan]

2. Thanks for your response.

It's a long-held belief of mine that few Christians have bothered to read much of the Bible. Odd, since this atheist has read the entire thing half a dozen times as part of my study of the religions of the world. Oh, well.

[Beetwasher]

6. This Atheist (Cultural Jew) Read Both Old And New Testaments (BORING!!!) Several Times

Gah! I was a philosophy major in college and focused on religion. I found Eastern philosophy MUCH more palatable from a literary perspective and ended up focusing on those philosophies, it was way more interesting and practical. I still re-read the Tao Te Ching on occasion (it's a quick read too!).

[toddaa]

15. Zhuangzi is underrated as literature

One of the world's greatest works of literature.

[Glassunion]

3. K&R

I do agree.

When Jesus was asked by his disciples, what commandment that they should hold above all others. Jesus replied to "Love you neighbor as you love yourself". Hence the "Golden Rule" Mat 7:12 & Romans 13: 9-10

My favorite: 1 Corinthians 13: 4-10 "Love is patient and kind; love is not jealous or boastful; it is not arrogant or rude. Love does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrong, but rejoices in the right. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends; as for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. For our knowledge is imperfect and our prophecy is imperfect; but when the perfect comes, the imperfect will pass away." 13:13 "Three things will last forever - Faith, Hope and Love - and the greatest of these is Love"

I have shared the same observations in regards to some of the Christian denominations. I see a lot of hate and intolerance from some of the heads of these churches(and they seem to be the only ones getting the TV time), and it sickens me.

If Jesus walked the earth today, I think he would be upset. All he wants us to do is love each other. All other commandments follow from that. It is hard at times, but on the face of it, it is quite simple.

[madrchsod]

4. i`d give him a month before he`s dead

[Glassunion]

7. Why?

[Angry Dragon]

10. The church leaders would never believe

he was the son of god

[DeSwiss]

11. Your answer concerning this concept is close to being right.....

...however, it was not his disciples but rather a scum-sucking lawyer sent in to trip him up by the Pharisees because he had already pwned the Sadducees earlier.

That fact, plus the fact that Jesus was starting to pull in all the big crowds, feeding them fish sandwiches, making wine from water, stopping storms with his bare hands, healing the blind with dirt and spit, parlor tricks like walking on water, etc. I mean how could they top that? And it didn't matter that he was just "copying what others before him had been said to have done," such as with http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BNf-P_5u_Hw">Hercules, Horus, Dionysus, Mithra, etc, etc., who did similar Feats of Messianic Strength, the fact is he was really starting to make them look like last week's garbage.

So the Pharisees did as any other group of crooked-ass politicians worth their salt (and who thought they could lose their rubes) would do, they sent in a jive-ass lawyer to do their dirty work. And the lawyer tried to get Jesus to openly admit that he was god so his bosses could then later charge him with blasphemy. But this guy must have been a graduate of Falwell's Liberty College or something, because Jesus pwned his butt as well:

Matthew 22:23-40
The same day came to him the Sadducees, which say that there is no resurrection, and asked him, Saying, Master, Moses said, If a man die, having no children, his brother shall marry his wife, and raise up seed unto his brother. Now there were with us seven brethren: and the first, when he had married a wife, deceased, and, having no issue, left his wife unto his brother: Likewise the second also, and the third, unto the seventh. And last of all the woman died also. Therefore in the resurrection whose wife shall she be of the seven? for they all had her.

Jesus answered and said unto them, Ye do err, not knowing the scriptures, nor the power of God. For in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven. But as touching the resurrection of the dead, have ye not read that which was spoken unto you by God, saying, I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? God is not the God of the dead, but of the living. And when the multitude heard this, they were astonished at his doctrine.

But when the Pharisees had heard that he had put the Sadducees to silence, they were gathered together. Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him, and saying, Master, which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.

That last part was critical, because what he was saying ran contrary to the old eye for an eye paradigm as well as a number of others. Proof once again that Jesus was a liberal socialist commie. Contrary to whatever http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gtzIga-33Hk">Faux Snooze and their bone-headed teevee watchers believe.

I'm sorry, I don't mean to show off, but it's at times like these when all those PK moments of sitting there in church day after day and night after night -- and all this kind of information inextricably comes flooding back to me.

- And I couldn't stop it if I tried......

[Igel]

13. The usual misquote.

In Matthew, Mark, and Luke, the first commandment, the one above all others, is to love God with all your heart.

Loving your neighbor is "like" that one. It's #2.

It's hard to get things like being told to tithe mint and rue out of loving one's neighbor, just as it's hard to get love for God out of a commandment to love your neighbor. But out of a love for God the two lesser commandments, the nearly trivial and the absurdly important, follow.

Then again, IMHO many churches insteading of saying love for man follows from a love for God, they substitute love for man for love for God. Much less restrictive that way.

[DeSwiss]

5. Well put.

K&R

[MineralMan]

9. Thank you.

[CJCRANE]

8. Good idea. nt

[Manifestor_of_Light]

12. jesus was not a nice guy all the time.

He was in favor of the OT laws; he saw no problem with sending people to hell that didn't like his preaching, or the mass murders of the psychotic god of the OT; he said "I come not in peace, but with a sword" to set families apart, and many other cruel and illogical things.

Most Christians ignore those statements. There are many of them, over one hundred, in the four
gospels.

One very GOOD thing about the Eastern religions is that they don't have to dance around the contradictions in the scriptures of the Abrahamic religions. I much prefer studying the Buddhist scriptures. No contradictions in them that must be explained away with dubious logic.
It's morality that can apply to any time or place because it doesn't have stupid rules in it from a superstitious Bronze Age society that knew nothing of science or inquiry.

We can explain the miracles of the NT with modern science. Read Rudolf Bultmann.

Furthermore, we have no independent evidence that Jesus was a real person, as he had exactly the same life story and characteristics as Mithra, Apollo, Osiris, and many other ancient gods;

and there is nothing unique in the moral code of Christianity. It is a syncretic religion put together to consolidate political power by Constantine and adopted pagan customs & holidays (Christmas and Easter).

Not to mention the magical thinking involved in prayer. To me, praying is no different than a Wiccan enacting a spell. They are both trying to change reality with a ritual.

No thanks.

[Manifestor_of_Light]

14. Let's put Saturn back in Saturnalia, then.

TOGA PARTY! :bounce: :party: