Observations

A couple days ago I posted an article on Facebook titled, "Hell Is a Myth -- Actually, a Bunch of Myths," by Jon M. Sweeney.  Jon Sweeney has a very interesting bio and an interesting religious story.  You should check it out sometime.  It would give you a little insight to why he writes the way he does: (http://jonmsweeney.wordpress.com/about/).  

There were a few observations I would like to share from the overwhelming response to this article.  First, was the extreme emotional response, it began on one end of the spectrum with no middle ground.  Many took the article and "shared" it on their timeline, saying, "great article", "good stuff", "things to think about" amongst others.  Then on the other end there were outcries of heresy, apostasy, poison, Satanic, etc.  Some well-intentioned folks gave warnings of the dangers of the article--some spiritual warnings, other warnings about the Huff Post as terrible source to get info. You get my point.  

As with any controversial subject that threatens the status quo, it begins with a little fun, but slowly leads to reaching into the very soul of a person and pulling out what they are really passionate about.  I heard somebody say a long time ago, "Show me somebody's anger and I'll show you what they are passionate about."  Well, I learned very quickly that there were a lot of people passionate about the subject of hell and the "realness" of it.  I tried as hard as I could to understand why folks could be so passionate about it.  I mean, hey, I was the one that posted it so it shows that I'm pretty passionate about it too--maybe just in a little different way.  The only thing that my brain could assume would be this: good intentioned religious people need a way to justify their feelings for justice.  I can understand this...I know some people that I can think of that deserve, in my opinion, a fiery, tortured, existence--forever.  That sounds really harsh, and I'm embarrassed to say such mean things, but I'm sure the thought has come to your mind as well.  Now this thought doesn't stay with me and I usually feel bad the next day for thinking this horrible thought, but I have thought it.  Have you ever been really, really, really deeply hurt where you just couldn't forgive and move on in life?  No matter how bad you wanted to, you just couldn't let it go.  That is where the "calming effect" of hell comes in.  It takes care of all the people who don't believe like we do.  Hell is all about "pay back."  The eternal "told you so."  The, "you got what you deserved" forever.  Hell is human, reconciliation--now that is God! What is the "hell" of the Bible all about?  Reconciliation, or payback...God or human? 

Are we "ok" with folks not believing exactly like us?  What is the "deal killer" where we take our cards off the table and not play?  Is "hell" the deal breaker/killer?  How about this, what if I or whoever has a different view of hell than you do, but still believes in some kind of eternal separation of God...is that ok or not...when will we stop saying "You are not Biblical" if our interpretation of a 2000 year old text is different.  I know I'm asking a lot of questions, but if our interpretation is the only interpretation, and the only right interpretation would that makes us a god unto ourselves?  If God truly made human beings in his own image, I believe that every person has something valuable to offer...regardless of religious affiliation.  I can learn from the Christian, the Buddhist, the Taoist, the Atheist, etc--you get the point.  No one group has a monopoly on an all powerful, all knowing, perfect, unchanging God.  I, personally, think the Bible--the whole thing is awesome, but I'm not going to close my eyes to everything else.  If God spoke the world into existence then the whole universe is God's word.  To neglect certain aspects is to close yourself into a created box where suddenly a created god becomes the deity of that box.  This box can be all of those things I mentioned above--Christianity, Buddhism, Taoism, Islam, and even Atheism.  Why do we feel we need to build fortified cities surrounded by moats that we have to fill with people, and then pull up the drawbridge keeping everybody inside?  It then becomes a "us" "them" battle.  Those on the inside need to fight those on the outside--its totally like medieval movies where cities fight each other.  It's like "Lord of the Rings" where anybody on the outside trying to come in, is an Ork.  Religion launch their propaganda with catapults over the city walls hoping to "strike down the enemy."  Christians (and other religions) launch bible verses (or whatever their book may be) while atheists launch intellect.  Both in boxes--fortified cities launching hate with "politically correct" verbiage like "it's all in love", "trying to save their soul," etc.  

Last point, "hell" is such a minor.  Seriously!  Yes, I know I'm the one posting it, but my purpose was to prove that the minors have become the majors.  I got an email that said, "There are some things we just don't question, and one of those things is hell."  Really...really?!?!  So, we should just blindly accept what somebody told us in order to create fear.  Fear's purpose is to control and have power over, as well as rob a person's identity.  Let's get real for just a second.  Let's talk about the Jesus in the Bible--not the Jesus in church, not the Jesus in the paintings, not the Jesus we ask into our heart while every head is bowed and every eye closed--let's talk about Jesus...the one who claimed to be God, was a Jew, lived 2000 years ago, was a carpenter (tekton to be precise), as well as a religious figure--a rabbi.  

This Jesus came into a corrupt religious system, which was the most popular and accepted religion in the area he lived--and wrecked it.  He challenged the beliefs of every religious leader he came in contact with and questioned everything.  He busted up traditions left and right.  Changed 300 gallons of water into wine and threw a huge party (that's not very conservative now is it).  He hung out with some riffraffs, appeared homeless, used very strong language (calling some of the religious leaders, "sons of hell"), and was finally killed by a some backbiting religious leaders who had Rome do it for them.  If we are supposed to follow this "Christ" as "Christians" we've got a lot of "hell to raise," and I would argue, we aren't doing a very good job--myself included.  If my little pathetic post on hell offended you, would you be offended if Jesus came to your church during offering time and dumped all the plates on the floor--then began to yell?  Oh, my Jesus wouldn't do that--or would he?  What if He told you that the precious church building that people sacrificed their time, money, blood, sweat, and tears through years of building campaigning, fundraising, and bake sales was going to crumble--because it's not the subject--He is.  Would you be mad?  What if He looked at you square in the eyes and said, "You've had it wrong this whole time...you are a teacher/pastor and don't know these things."(kind of like he told Nicodemus)  How would that make you feel?  What if he looked at you and said, "I spoke a whole lot more than what you have in your little Bible" (John 21:25)...would you look at him and say, "Well, my Jesus gave me everything I need in what I've already got--I don't need anything else."  

Maybe Depeche Mode wasn't far off when they wrote the song, "Personal Jesus."  I believe Jesus would rock our little religious world.  He's rocking mine right now!!  I just have to let him be Jesus and not Nate...or what I would like him to be--the punisher and the one who will cast the unbelieving infidels into a fiery hell (I'm sure some of you will send me Luke 12:5 on this one--I'm trying to anticipate it).  Did Jesus preach hell to the religious or unbelieving damned?  Answer this, and you may be surprised that Jesus wasn't Christian and didn't promote the Christian hell.  I believe in the hell Jesus talked about--The Hades, the Sheol, and the Gehanna.  I don't quite yet understand the hell (Tartarus) that 2 Peter speaks of because he is borrowing this straight out of mythology for some purpose--I just can't understand that purpose yet.  I don't believe God is sending people to these places, but self-righteous religious folks who think they have all the answers, send themselves there because they've become a god to themselves...it's a little thing called "idolatry."  1 Corinthians 10:12 in context it is pretty clear--it is written to the religious who think they've arrived--"He who thinks he stands/strong, be careful because you may fall."  Jesus directed hell towards the religious of his day--what has changed?

One Sentence Blog Post

One Sentence Blog Post

Why would a vast, all knowing, all powerful, limitless God who created the entire universe, limit himself to one book, one people, and one religion (or one denomination)? 

Religion Thrēskeía

religion |riˈlijən|

noun
the belief in and worship of a superhuman controlling power, esp. a personal God or gods: ideas about the relationship between science and religion.
• a particular system of faith and worship: the world's great religions.
• a pursuit or interest to which someone ascribes supreme importance

James 1:27
"Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world."

What a tough subject..."religion."  A subject that has been very important to me and a subject I spend the majority of my life studying and involved/immersed in.  It was always a "love/hate" kind of relationship.  Above you see the English definition and then a Bible verse.  Below I want to give an explanation of the Greek word "Thrēskeía" that was translated in English for readers as "religion."

"The Greek word thrēskeía denotes properly both cult and piety. It has a curious history in Greek itself. According to Van Herten thrēskeía was applied only to foreign cults; whereas in fact, in the Augustan period, the word may designate every cult, whether indigenous or foreign. The word is ancient. It appears for the first time in Herodotus and then disappears completely from the tradition to reappear in the time of Strabo. From then on examples multiply both in texts and in inscriptions. The word is properly Ionic, and it did not find its way into Attic, but it later became popular because it was the most convenient term to designate a complex of beliefs and cult practices.
The first uses, two of thrēskeíē and two of the verb thrēskeúein, all in Herodotus in his second book, relate to observances:

“The Egyptians, the neighbors of the Libyans, did not tolerate the regulation of the sacrifice and especially the prohibition of the flesh of the cow” (II, 18).

Elsewhere Herodotus refers to the rules of physical purity to which the Egyptian priests subject themselves. Then he adds:

“They observe a thousand other thrēskeías” (II, 37): these are practices imposed on priests.

Such is also the meaning of the verb thrēskeúō (II, 64; 65) “to follow minutely religious prescriptions,” and always with reference to the Egyptians.

The idea is thus that of “observance,” a notion of practice rather than belief. Thanks to scattered testimony we can reach further back into the history of the word. The substantive thrēskeía derives, curiously enough, from a present tense in -skō which we have in the form of a gloss in Hesychius: thrḗsko: noô and also thráskein: anamimnḗskein “cause to recollect.”
Thrḗskō in its turn is susceptible of analysis: it goes back to a verb *thréō which is attested by enthreîn: phulássein ‘guard, observe’.
We can add a further link to this chain of words: *thréō presupposes a root *ther-, and this enables us to attach to it the adjective atherés which is glossed anóēton ‘senseless’ and, what is more interesting, anósion ‘impious’. Finally, atherés lies at the base of the Homeric present tense atherízō ‘to neglect, make light of’.

All these data link up and are complementary to the notion which the word thrēskeía itself evokes: that of “observance,” “rule of religious practice.” It links up with a verbal stem denoting attentiveness to a rite, preoccupation with being faithful to rule. It is not “religion” as a whole but the observance of the obligations of cult." [Benveniste, Indo-European Language and Society] -
Aryan Hyperborean Heritage

The idea of "observance" is very profound.  I struggle with idea because for a long time I thought it was about "beliefs."  Even though I think "belief" is important, I also think "beliefs" are very personal.  Religion becomes a HUGE PROBLEM when beliefs are argued.  Belief forges its beginnings in experience.  Experiences forge their beginnings in upbringing, environment, and cultural conditioning.  Therefore, beliefs will differ--even within the same religion--because experiences differ and are personal.  Experiences shape us, yet struggle to answer complex questions that come up.  For instance, in one of my Facebook posts I asked you to share with me questions you have for me to research and blog about.  Here is a list of questions from real people, that a "belief system" have not answered:

• Prayer--what in the world is it.  Everybody does "it' differently.  Is it real?
• Jesus
• Shift in moral consensus over time
  How can we claim that the Biblical text is infallible, inspired, useful, etc. when our own moral understanding as human beings has changed so drastically since its writing?  I'm not talking about moral growth, I'm talking about how the Bible endorses things, especially in the Old Testament, that we openly reject today as immoral (women as property, slavery, violence, etc.).
• Doctrinal confusion
  I heard a quote recently to the effect of "God is not the author of confusion (1 Cor 14:33), but can you think of a book that has caused more confusion that the Bible?" (I believe it was Sam Harris).  If we really have a divine hand guiding believers on earth, why the incredible doctrinal fragmentation?  How does that make Christianity superior to other religions that also can't decide internally exactly what they believe (Islam and Buddhism spring to mind as good examples)?
• World religions and cultural origins of belief
  Why does a person's religion depend so heavily on your place and culture of birth?  Most people are completely convinced of the truth of their religion (or non-religion), and that is mostly determined by how they were raised.  Why isn't a true religion transforming lives and "winning" over the "false" ones?  Could it be that the power of religion is largely internal and doesn't really arise from an external source?
• Biblical references to demonic "miracles"
  Why does the Bible talk about magic, witchcraft, etc. as though it was real and could have real effects on the world? (Saul and the witch of Endor, Pharoah's magicians duplicating Moses' miracles, etc.).  As far as we have seen in the modern world (basically since cameras and recording equipment have become commonplace), events like these just don't happen.  What differentiates the supposed reality of those evil supernatural occurrences from the good things that God does, and since we don't see occurrences of either happening in the modern world how are we to react to descriptions of "evil" miracles or demonic power?
• People who feel the Holy Spirit
  How do we square the fact that people across different cultures and conflicting religions experience similar feelings of divine inspiration, guidance, peace, etc?  Surely they can't all be right, so does that mean that a lot of our interaction with the Holy Spirit is imagined or simply arises from within our own minds?  It's a bit hyperbolic, but suicide bombers likely feel the same conviction about the correctness of their actions as we do of ours.

...and the list goes on and on.  I received several emails with questions for me to answer, a bit overwhelming actually.  I will never be able to get to all of these, so I thought I would attempt to address all of them by speaking about religion in general.   By giving you what I believe would be for me to create more problems in the world of "religion."  That is what people fight over, because everybody truly believes their perspective is the right one without taking into consideration what formed that belief. 

Instead, I will try as hard as I can to stick within the parameters of the definition of "Thrēskeía..."  WARNING: I'm sure my context will influence me and I probably will subconsciously get into my beliefs--that I apologize for, and I hope you can look beyond my context and into your context, and apply it. 

Rather than belief, Thrēskeía focuses on observance.  Therefore to be "religious" would to become an "observer."  To observe is the action of watching or noticing something.  Observation also includes collecting data about that which you are observing and then acting based upon what was collected.  Now it gets really deep here because this is where the lines between science and religion get really blurry. 

Follow me very closely...In quantum physics, which deals with the behavior of very small objects (like our own little subcultures we all live in), it is not possible to observe a system (our own subcultures) without changing the system, and the "observer" must be considered part of the system being observed.  Is this what was meant by writers like, Paul, James, and John when they spoke of "being in the world but not of the world?" The only way to see the world for how it really is, is to metaphysically separate yourself from that which you are entrenched in.  You must, in essence, step outside of yourself and observe it from a distance.  When you see that which you are in, from an outside perspective, you can then act upon it accordingly.  That is why successful organizations bring in outside consultants who have no idea about their organization to suggest changes.  The people within the organization sometimes become blinded by being "in it" for so long. 

Have you ever told one of your kids to stop doing something, and they have no idea what you are talking about because they don't realize they are doing it.  My son is a prime example.  He developed a few habits that were so much a part of him, he subconsciously acted upon them and didn't even realize it.  As a matter of fact, when I told him what he was doing he would argue with me because he truly believed he wasn't doing them--until he saw them from an outside perspective.  We told him we were going to video tape him doing it so he could see it for himself.  Have you ever recorded yourself either on video or audio and say, "I can't believe I sound like that or act like that."  It is because you are observing yourself from outside yourself.  This is the beginning of understanding religion in its truest sense.  It is honestly looking at what you are in for what it truly is--both the beauty and ugliness.  It is to unbiasly collect the data from what you have observed and changing it based upon the facts.  For the people of the Bible, they were so immersed in their subculture that orphans and widows were a common thing.  Therefore, since it was so "normal" and "common," an every day occurance, nothing got done--these people were neglected.  The culture was becoming self-centered and people were trying to convert others by "beliefs" rather than changing their subculture into a better place.  I've been in towns where most people go to church and have similar beliefs, but the poverty level, crime level, and morality level was no different than a town were church attendance was much lower.

So much of religion today is based on converting people to our beliefs and experiences rather than stepping outside of ourselves and looking at our world for what it really is, what it is supposed to be, and what it can become. If we observe our world without stepping outside our self then we will just try to create the world we are observing into what we already are, rather than what it really needs.  This is the problem with religion, especially Christianity.  Why do you think there are so many denominations?  We must "be in it, but not of it." Your question is ready to be answered right outside your self.   Lech lecha my friends!!

Codependency

codependency |ˌkōdəˈpendənsē|

noun

excessive emotional or psychological reliance on a partner, typically a partner who requires support due to an illness or addiction.

Here is what the wonderful Wikipedia says (or as I like to call it; "THE GREAT AND POWERFUL OZ"): "Codependency is defined as a psychological condition or a relationship in which a person is controlled or manipulated by another who is affected with a pathological condition (typically narcissism or drug addiction); and in broader terms, it refers to the dependence on the needs of, or control of, another.^[1] It also often involves placing a lower priority on one's own needs, while being excessively preoccupied with the needs of others.^[2] Codependency can occur in any type of relationship, including family, work, friendship, and also romantic, peer or community relationships.^[2] Codependency may also be characterized by denial, low self-esteem, excessive compliance, or control patterns.^[2] Narcissists are considered to be natural magnets for the codependent." -http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Codependency

Please, stick with me on this blog...I'll try not to be too teachy or bore you.  I discovered this the other day and I think it has some huge implications and some really freeing applications...but it will take some courage.  Read this carefully:
 
John 2:12-16 (NCV)
¹² After this, Jesus went to the town of Capernaum with his mother, brothers, and followers. They stayed there for just a few days. ¹³ When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover Feast, Jesus went to Jerusalem. ¹⁴ In the Temple he found people selling cattle, sheep, and doves. He saw others sitting at tables, exchanging different kinds of money. ¹⁵ Jesus made a whip out of cords and forced all of them, both the sheep and cattle, to leave the Temple. He turned over the tables and scattered the money of those who were exchanging it. ¹⁶ Then he said to those who were selling pigeons, “Take these things out of here! Don’t make my Father’s house a place for buying and selling!”

Who were "others" that Jesus was so pissed at...so much so he made a whip and literally ran them out of the Temple.  Jesus made a passing statement about the "others" by quoting Jeremiah 7:11.  In Jeremiah's passage, he is calling out the religious leaders of that day.  In Hebrew, Jeremiah called the leaders, "perı̂yts", meaning violent unashamed swindlers/murderers.  That's pretty harsh!!  The "others" sitting at the tables, exchanging money for cattle, sheep, and doves, were the priests--the highest position in religion (they were like mini-popes in Catholism).  The priests were like our pastors today in American Christianity.  They were the leaders of that religion, just like pastors are the leaders of most denominations in Christianity...they were the religious celebrities that everybody wanted to get to know, be associated with, and wanted their kids to be like.  

So, what was the big deal about selling animals?  Pay attention very closely...animal sacrifices have been around since the beginning of time in most major religions.  Ancient Judaism wasn't any different.  You can see very early on in Genesis before there was the Mosaic law, which required sacrifices,  Cain and Abel brought sacrifices to God.  The sacrifice that was acceptable was Abel's.  Abel brought a portion of an animal HE RAISED.  That is very important.  As the story continues in the Bible, people were required to raise their own animals to sacrifice, put in the hard work, feed it, care for it, and then bring it to the Temple where they would have to help kill it.  They literally had blood, sweat, and tears in the whole process.  They were directly connected to it!  Some of them lived far away from the Temple and had to make a journey that took several days.  Therefore, they had to carry the sacrifice on their shoulders, hundreds of miles in order to keep it "clean." 

Here the words of a rabbi: "the Hebrew word for "sacrifice" (Korban, le-hakriv) is from the same root as "to come near, to approach. . . . to become closely involved in a relationship with someone." For this is meant to be the essence of the experience which the bearer of the sacrifice undergoes. Indeed, it is unfortunate that no word in the English language can adequately render the idea behind the Hebrew word korban. We allow ourselves to use the word "sacrifice" for lack of a better word, but it is a highly unsuccessful attempt at translation; it could even be called unfortunate. The idea of a sacrifice or offering seems to indicate a gift or present; giving up something of value for another's benefit, or going without something of value yourself, for the benefit of that other.

None of this gift-giving idea is present in the idea of the korban. First of all, it is a word which never carries a connotation of a present or gift, and is used exclusively by the Bible in the context of man's relationship with God. Thus its true meaning can only be grasped through its root...the concept of coming close.

People are under the impression that the whole idea was to bring something precious to God and give it to Him. Their logic goes like this: "In those days, it was an agrarian society, and people raised animals from birth. Naturally they felt very close to these creatures, and were attached to them. So, when they brought them to the Temple altar, they were giving up something for God which meant the most to them."

But if this were the case, and the whole secret of bringing the sacrifice is to give something up to God, then in our own time, when the Holy Temple will be rebuilt, perhaps man has to bring something else altogether to the altar...like your cellular phone, or your microwave, or your VCR machine, or your car?! 

If the definition of the korban is "to come closer," then the goal of the Temple sacrifices is nothing less than the aim of dedicating human life to a higher sphere of awareness...closer to the Creator and the source of all life. The Temple sacrifice is not an idea of giving something up or losing something of value; it strives for nearness to God. For as King David prayed in the book of Psalms (73:28), "But as for me, nearness to God is good"-for the Jew, nearness to God is the truest, the highest, the only conception what goodness really is. Without this aspect to his life, without this Godly relationship which uplifts his physical existence and imbues his life with a sense of connection to the Divine, he feels himself to be like an animal, devoid of that which makes him into a human being: the spark of his Godly soul...without this he feels similar to the animal before him, on the altar. In a sense, what happens to the offering is also taking place within the heart and mind! of he who brings it..."

In essence, the sacrificial system was God's way of creating "self-awareness" with each person.  It also was a way that created "self-reliance, self-esteem, and self confidence" not for the purpose of narcissism, but for the purpose of seeing our true self and what we can do.  The more we see our true selves the more we see the glory of God since we are created in the very image of God.  It was a "drawing near" in many different ways, but especially to the Divine above, and the Divine within.  

The corruption in Jesus' day was that the leaders took this "drawing near" away from people to their true selves, and to God,  and forced them to "draw near" to the leaders.  In other words, their faith was now codependent.  The common people had to buy something from the professional priests in order to worship.  The common people had to purchase something from somebody else, outwardly,  in order to go inward and upward...doesn't make sense!  Commerce was brought into the equation.  This made the religion sick...very sick...like an alcoholic or drug addict who got their money from a parent, relative, or spouse--even though they knew where the money was going but internally it made them feel good because they were dependent on them.  Alcoholics and drug addicts are sick, but so is the one who makes them dependent on them--that is a sickness that is overlooked.  Addicts identity is from the substance they are addicted to and the one's that supply it.  Many times the ones that supply the substance aren't the dealers, but relatives who are too scared to say something.  The heartbreaking thing about addicts is they have no identity. 

Luke 9:25 ASV

For what is a man profited, if he gain the whole world, and lose or forfeit his own self?

The people were unclean (they were addicted), but the professional religious people were sick codependents forcing them to get "their stuff" only from them.  I really hope you are tracking with this blog so far because not a whole lot has changed.  Many churches today are making their parishioners codependent on them through guilt, fear, and sheer unjust power.  Many Christians fail to grow up and mature because they are told to depend on the church for everything--especially when it comes to the Bible.  Most people don't know it because they are told they need get another sermon, another church service, another small group, another Bible study, another missional community, etc, etc, etc.   People are drunk and intoxicated on church so much so they are pissing their pants and wanting the professionals to change it for them.  They pay their leaders to do what they are supposed to do therefore shucking the responsibility on the professionals--AND THEY DO IT...I DID!!  This system at it's worse strips people of their self-confidence and self-esteem.  It is called "welfare" in our society.  People have become so addicted and dependent on the government for housing, food, and insurance that their drive to do anything for themselves is gone...why bother when somebody else can do it for you.  It is the elimination of "self-awareness" and the mystery of "drawing close."  

Christianity, for the most part, has become a welfare society, built on a governmental system dependent on those in power--stripping away the very image of God in the majority of the people.  Do you know who started the welfare system?  ROME!!  It was an attempt to make Caesar God and everybody in his kingdom dependent on him.  Don't believe me...look it up.  It stripped people of their identity and placed their identity in government.  People identify more with a church or organization than they do God...or their identity to God is through the church.  Sounds like Rome...sounds like "selling sheep, cattle, and doves for sacrifices." 

People become numbers...people are no longer people but "giving units."  People are just more bodies filling seats increasing the overall population making the empire more powerful in the minds of others.  People become nameless, faceless, robots cheering in the crowd creating a buzz like in the ancient Roman Coliseums.  People no longer are humans that rationalize, are logical, can create beautiful poetry, question, debate, think philosophically, create, innovate, and believe in their abilities. This is why Jesus blew up.  The image of God was being stripped away from them and the person that attempted to "draw near" was merely a shadow of "others"...the den of thieves. Here is what "evangelism" was in Jesus' day and I would say it holds true today as well: "Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when you have succeeded, you make them twice as much a child of hell as you are (Matthew 23:15)."  Sons of hell are creating more sons of hell...

People think Jesus came to fight sin because people were so bad, corrupt, and headed to hell.  NO, NO, and NO...he came to fight a system/kingdom that was stripping people of their very identity and a religion where the leaders became gods themselves.  He came against something that appears virtuous, spiritual, and led people to God, but in reality it was creating and rebranding unjust systems that makes a human faceless.  How many churches would you say Jesus would do the same thing in today?  How many people are dependent on their pastors/leaders for "drawing close" to God and becoming aware of who they really are?  Are churches selling something that cheapens the human being and causes a subconscious addiction, fear, and guilt that they can't do it without them?  This passage of scripture has brought up a lot of questions for me, how about you?  I can't idly sit by and continue to let this happen or keep my mouth shut.  If those that follow Christ are now "his body" then maybe its time his body go into some places and "flip some tables".  

“Those who make peaceful revolution impossible, make violent revolution inevitable” -JFK

Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable.

John F. Kennedy

Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/j/johnfkenn101159.html#Xzblf127yAKCxwxW.99

Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable.

John F. Kennedy

Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/j/johnfkenn101159.html#Xzblf127yAKCxwxW.99

Sell Me Something Juicy!

sensationalism |senˈsāSHənlˌizəm|

-noun (esp. in journalism) the use of exciting or shocking stories or language at the expense of accuracy, in order to provoke public interest or excitement: media sensationalism.

You are walking through the grocery store line, getting ready to check out--suddenly you look to your left and you see this: "Hillary Clinton Adopts Alien Baby."  I know, that sounds ridiculous, but the fact is they are in every single line at that grocery store and all the other grocery stores across America.  This means that they are selling a boatload of these crazy magazines because it costs a lot of money in order to print and place that many.  People are buying this!!!!  It is shocking, it provokes rational thinking, creates a weird sense of fantasy and excitement--it allows you to escape your present moment to "somewhere else"...that just might be real.  If gives the reader that "what if" feeling.  It may be out there in left field, it is probably not real, but deep down inside your emotions are saying, "but, what if it is..."  At the core of this article is its ability to reach in and grab your emotions/senses.  It is called "sensationalism." 

Check out this jewel:
"Abraham Lincoln was a woman!"  Below that it says, "Shocking pix found in White House basement."  Somebody out there is saying, "Man, I knew it...I just had this weird feeling about him." 

No matter how bad we hate to admit it, good news doesn't sell.  It doesn't put dollars into the pockets of people.  Somebody learned a long time ago in media that if you say something shocking, with partial truth, slightly twisted, and mixed with some fantasy, it will sell like crazy!!  A movie that I thought was just awesome here in the last couple of years was; "Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter."  Wow...did they pull me into a land of illusion with a great story, a little bit of truth, and a whole lot of conspiracy theories.  It hooked me to pay the $5.99  HD VuDu download rental price. People could care less about an elderly couple who just celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary.  People care less about about a small group of people that got together, spent their own money, to help out a local farmer who lost his crops because of a bad year and is now broke.  Not juicy enough...throw in a cheating wife, ufo abduction, attempted murder, and now he is facing 25 to life--you got a story! 

Tabloids pride themselves in sensationalism.  The juicier the article, the more it will sell--but the trick is making it believable.  How can you take an idea as crazy as Abraham Lincoln was a woman and make people believe it enough to want to buy it?  Give some credibility to the article by saying that pictures have been discovered in the White House basement.  How can they get away with that?  Well, it isn't directly connected to the headlines but in another text box below...but close enough to where it looks connected.  On the article above, they add credibility to the ridiculousness by saying there is a nursery in the secret service building located in the White House.  BINGO!!  A little bit of credibility to a whole lot of fantasy. Now you got a story that will $ell.  Our senses have become so dull and complacent to the beauty of the reality that we no longer see the sublime in the ordinary.  Reality has become relevant to our sense of excitement and emotional response. 

Switch gears here for a moment, but stay in the same vein of thought with me.  We know, and have known for a long, long time that sensationalism sells--reality doesn't.  Therefore, why not throw that into the religious mix.  The Bible, in context and the language it was written in (Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek) is one of the most practical books I've ever studied.  It speaks of internal struggles, love, depression, mental illness, joy, family, being surprised, mistakes, death, life, hurt, search for God, mid-life crisis, and everything else that deals with the human experience.  Yet, in order to deal with all of these things, humans tend to reach out to something beyond them in order to explain "why they do the things they do."  For instance, I had a man one time that I knew that really struggled with lust.  Typical man, most men do whether they will admit it or not.  In order to justify his lust, rather than just saying, "Man, I really struggle with this and I just had to get it off my chest because it is causing problems in my marriage," he responded this way to me:

"Nate, the devil is after my family." 

"Why...how is the devil after your family," I responded.

"My work fired me today and I'm in big trouble...possibly," he said.

"Huh, how did the devil get you fired from work," I questioned.

"Well, it's not that simple.  I was over at a family's house giving them a bid on some construction work we could do for them.  His wife was very attractive, the husband wasn't home, and the devil caused me to touch her inappropriately," he hesitantly whispered.

"Really...the devil took your hand, and placed it on her breast.  You're telling me that some unseen entity with power entered your body, took control, and he forced your hand on her," I said in very frustrated tone.  That wasn't the answer or response he was looking for.  What he wanted was for me to say some magical prayer, cast out some "devil", to make him feel better for what he had done--and so his family could see that he was going to a "pastor" for some spiritual guidance.  It looked good. Bottom line is that he sensationalized his actions and used a scapegoat--the devil.  Later on, I found out he not only touched the lady inappropriately, but she found him in their pool swimming naked--seriously!!  As a matter of fact, this guy had been fired from multiple jobs because of similar issues.  It was all based upon an issue not of unbridled lust, but of "demon possession." 

When it comes to much of Christianity today, hell, heaven, demons,  the devil, salvation, possession, end of the world conspiricies, angels, spiritual warfare, and countless other staples have become foundational in this religion.  Not only Christianity, but others as well--I don't want to sound like I'm just picking on Christianity, I just know the most about it.  What if these were all ways an ancient people tried to explain; sadness, joy, idols, internal struggles, faith, mental illness, war, messengers of hope, and internal conflict.  An issue I always had when I pastored was trying to explain to people that God has always been the same.  They would respond and say, "then why does God not talk to us like he talked to them back in the Bible days...what changed?" 

I would answer this by saying, "nothing changed, but the way we communicate is always changing."  I communicate differently today in 2013 than when I did in 1984.  I don't call things the same thing, but it is still the same thing.  Nothing changed about the thing itself, but the way I talk about "the thing" changed probably three or four times.  Ancient Hebrew people called any foreign god or idol made by hands a "demon."  We call a demon today a spirit or devil that is thought to possess a person's being or act as a tormentor in hell.  Hell in Jesus' day was an actual place (The Valley of Hinnom) with a lot of history behind it.  It was the city dump.  Hell today is a place regarded in various religions as a spiritual realm of evil and suffering, often traditionally depicted as a place of perpetual fire beneath the earth where the wicked are punished after death.  Something simple and ordinary has been sensationalized to make it "more marketable."  Possession in the world of the Bible is the way they attempted to explain epilepsy or mental illness.  Possession today is the state of being controlled by a demon or spirit.  This is just a few of many in the Bible.  Do you see how far we are getting from the reality of what life was really like?  The burning bush story is a perfect example.  Do you know how many times Moses saw bushes on fire living out in the desert?  Probably everyday for 40 years!  The beauty of the story is not in the bush not burning, but Moses stopping and paying attention to the ordinary.  He never lost sight of the miracle in everyday.  God spoke to him out of the ordinary. 

The problem with this is that it doesn't put butts in the pews and doesn't put money in the plates.  God speaks to people in the ordinary...c'mon man...I need some lights, spirits, a big devil with a pitch fork trying to get me, and angel dust falling from the rafters.  I'll go if I can see some of that!  It has become a false sense of reality--sensationalism.  What if all this "spiritual language" (that is what we call it, but it was ordinary language to them) in the Bible that is used was a way they communicated back then about the ordinary issues of life...would you still buy into that?  What if their isn't some horned, red, guy yielding a pitch fork and split hoofs for feet after you...because he doesn't exist?  Would that destroy your faith?  If God is the same yesterday, today, and forever then explain all this stuff written to us thousands of years ago.  I would argue that media has influenced Christianity's interpretation on the Bible more than the language it was written in.  MEDIA SELLS--it sells books, it sells church services, it helps buy big buildings, and pays salaries.  Why is gossip so bad in church?  People are bored and want to add some sensationalism to the mix the arouse the emotions, to engage their audience, and to get a crowd to listen.  Their senses are dull and they need some Hollywood drama because their reality is not as it is, but as they are and what they've become. 

"We do not see things as they are.
We see them as we are."
~~The Talmud

Languages change, communication styles change, idiomatic phrases change, slang changes, even Biblical interpretations change--God doesn't.  What are you looking for in God?  What are you looking for in religion?  What are you looking for in church?  What are you looking for in life?  Don't look far--it is all found in the ordinary events of life. 

Part 3-ish..."Making Friends with Failure"

A great thought from business owner Yosef Martin:
"Entrepreneurs are not very different from elite athletes. Can a gymnast avoid risks and still excel? Not a chance. The same is true in business: no guts, no glory. I never anticipate failure, but I don't fear it either. It only makes us smarter. Just like you have to accept that you're not always right, you have to make friends with failure.

The great thing is that you can fail multiple times, but you only have to "make it" once. I once walked into my warehouse and found it completely flooded, but I had no insurance and no profits to cover the losses. Half the merchandise was lost. But half was not. I then experienced a surge of adrenaline and motivation, and the incident inspired me to restructure the business and sell the remaining goods in more creative ways. The mistake made my business stronger.

I still employ these tactics today, which really were born out of failure. I believe in making lemonade, in never ending on a negative note. Failure is not an ending, but a beginning."

I thought this was an appropriate quote to begin this blog, after the last two.  In the last two blogs I opened myself up for criticism, and at the same time freed myself from a life of a hyprocritical belief system that was suffocating me.  One thing I'm very thankful for in my time is ministry was that it forced two things, (1) taking risks, (2) make friends with failure.  Today, "church" is a big risk.  You risk relationships, trust, and a huge financial obligation.  One of the biggest risks is the risk of losing one of the greatest abilities God gave you--the ability to think.  Some organizations want to think for you and to journey outside the realm of their thinking capacity risks their reputation, and your security.

So, what happens when you begin to think outside the realm of whatever group you are a part of?  Family explains this perfectly!  Everybody gets to a certain age where they are ready to go out and "make it on their own."  They want to create a name for themselves, create a career, their own family, a home, etc.  It's called, "leaving the nest" and growing up. You go out, make mistakes, learn from them, get back up, and keep plugging along.  That's life.  I don't think the Garden of Eden was God's plan for Adam and Eve.  God's first commandment to human beings was;
“Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”

If they just hung out in the Garden they would have never "filled the earth," nor "subdued it."  You see, this is the problem with Christianity in my opinion--everybody is told to stay in the Garden.  We got a world out there that needs "good news" and staying in the "Garden" isn't helping anybody.  I also would argue that God divinely set up Adam and Eve by placing the tree of knowledge of good and evil in the center of the Garden where it was in plain view.  HE KNEW THEY WOULD EAT FROM IT...because if they didn't they would never have gained "the knowledge of good and evil" that would ultimately allow them to fulfill the commandment to "be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it."  Subduing takes knowledge.  Like a good Father, God, kicked them out and forced the issue.   He forced them to explore, work, fail, have kids, etc...not like forcing them like robots, but he was the perfect parent that had to kick the kids out.  They had to learn to live on their own and clean up their own crap.  

A good friend told me one time that the church/religion was the only organization on the planet that allows their members to never grow up or mature.  They can stay kids their entire life if they choose.  He went as far as saying, "they even hire people to change their diapers."  Oooooh, that's harsh isn't it?!  

What happens if people begin to really study, challenge, are allowed to doubt, and question.  What would happen if their are margins for failure, risks, and the acceptance of "you know what, I could be wrong."  What if a pastor stood up and said, "You know, I could be totally wrong here, and I would encourage you to check this out on your own, but I believe..."  What would happen if a person just "outgrew" Christianity?  Shouldn't we celebrate that because it is the natural order of maturity.  

Writing has stirred a fire within me to "raise my voice,"again.  These series of blogs, talking to people through email and in person, and seeing the injustice out there in the "name of God" has caused an upheaval in my being.  I will not be starting another church and I don't see myself going back into ministry but I would like to be a voice of change.  I would like to be a voice that stands up against the Goliath's, and "yes" I am referring to the organized religious systems that has caused fear--fear of not being good enough, fear of not being "save enough," and the feeling of fear that this is the end of the world.  Feeling guilty for being human, feeling guilty for believing different, and the general feeling of guilt because you are not living up to their standards.  I will be the voice that stands up and says, "who is this uncircumcised Philistine? "Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when you have succeeded, you make them twice as much a child of hell as you are."  

Leaving the Garden may seem like complete utter failure and absolute nonsense, but risk and failure is the way of Jesus.  Matthew 10:30 NLT,
"If you cling to your life, you will lose it; but if you give up your life for me, you will find it."  Failure and sin is a part of the process.  If God didn't know that from the beginning, then He is not God, but just a figment of your imagination.  God created a world outside the Garden and he wants you and I to explore it, work it, cultivate it, restore it, and make something beautiful.  If you are uncomfortable in church, like I was, maybe it is because you've outgrown it.  Don't feel guilty and fear, God's got a "world" for you to explore out there!!  The Bible is full of stories of people leaving where they are and journey to a place God will show them.  Even in the New Testament, the disicples left what they knew, to follow some guy who claimed to be God.  Paul left the religion he knew his whole life to follow a call to "grace"--to the whole world.  After he established a church, he left and went and started another.  There was one group that tried to stay in one place their whole lives...it didn't turn out to well (See Genesis 11). Leave what you know to follow something bigger--there has got to be more than what we are expereincing!!  Just a few thoughts...Lech lecha!!

 

Part 2 Why...The Explanation

Ok...that was really unexpected.  I use this space to vent, rant, and keep myself real.  I am overwhelmed at the response and the amount of readers from my last post.  There were a lot of great responses and a lot of passion that came through in your posts.  I've realized that religion and or belief systems are incredibly strong.  Most wars and conflicts find their roots in some type of religious disagreement. 

So, I feel like I need to explain myself a little more in depth and why I don't go to church anymore.  Just promise me one thing...read the whole thing before you pass any judgement.  At the same time, if you choose to respond (which I hope you do), do so respectfully with others in mind, who may not be entrenched in the same belief system you are.  If you are going to bring out a bunch of scriptures to prove your point, do so in a way where people that aren't scripture-savy can understand.  Avoid "christian-eze" and elizabethean English.  Thanks!!

FIRST, I never "lost" my faith and I do have a strong belief system.  The problem I struggled with for many years is that I didn't believe the status quo/politically correct version of Christianity.  I respected it, and the huge following it has.  Therefore, I decided to keep my mouth shut and brush my convictions and beliefs under the rug.  But, there comes a point where you just can't continue to lie to yourself any longer and you feel like you are doing a disservice to God.  For me, it was SIN. 

 I need to stop here and ask everybody that has ever been under my teaching or I was friends with to forgive me.  I held back and for that, I apologize.  

To help you understand what I'm talking about, I want to ask you a question..."Have you ever heard something over and over and over and there was just something deep down inside you gut that said, 'this is just wrong.'"  But, out of the fear of rejection and people just thinking you are crazy, you just went along with it, because everybody else did.  I know, I know...it sounds really childish and embarrassing, but this was the fire that was burning within me.  When you are married, have three kids, and bills to pay, you don't want to rock the boat to much because it is your job!  Without "this" I would not have been able to provide for my family--I was living in straight fear!

THERE HAD TO BE SOMETHING MORE!!

What I was seeing very clearly is that many (not all, so please don't think I am pigeon-holing all churches) in my tradition were teaching/preaching not what people needed, but what people wanted (traditions that brought comfort.  Not traditional churches, but traditional orthodox Christianity).  Basically, the teaching was for a response, and that response was then translated to "it must be God."  If there was no "response" or psychological stimuli then it must be wrong and not from God.  Sometimes it was from God, but sometimes it was just traditions and mannerisms people are used to.  Sometimes is was manipulative music.  Hey, everybody knows that God needs some really good slow music to talk to people (wink, wink). 

Soooo, for the first time, I am going to list just a few of my convictions/beliefs and why that doesn't fit within the context of many churches.  Churches are about finding common ground in beliefs.  If people don't find a church that believes what they believe then most likely they will find another place...I would probably do the same, so I'm not knockin' on anybody.  There is one slight problem though, there is a set of orthodox beliefs that were set roughly 300 years after Jesus that have become the "standard."  To stray from these would be heresy.  Here is where it gets sticky...who got define what a heretic is?  A heretic is merely somebody who doesn't believe the same way you do or the way your tribe believes.  Does it make them wrong?  Only to the one who labels them as wrong.  To label somebody as wrong, lost, or needing to be saved, is a religous way of "playing God" and maybe a cute form of idolatry.  

Can you still be in fellowship with me if I believe different?  Is unity, really just a religious word for "uniformity."  Because I believe different than you, does that make me "lost?"  If you are a church-going person, I think these are things you need to think about because if you are not careful you make it about "us vs. them", "in vs out", and exclusiveness.  

The "majors" I differ with:

1.) God is one (De. 6:4).  I can't believe God is 3 (trinity).  When I ask people to explain it they say it is a "faith thing."  If we are made in the image of God, then why aren't we three persons...it just doesn't make sense to me.  To separate our breath (ruach--spirit), our flesh, and our mind into three departments or people just doesn't float.  It is all another element of our total person.  I'm not a trinitarian.

2.) Salvation: I just can't buy into the doctrine that the Creator of the universe is only privy to people who say a sinner's prayer or to a group of people called "Christians."  That is not good news, and the Gospel has to be better than that!  1 Corinthians 10:1-4 is really good news!  The Jewish people that were wandering in the desert were not happy with their wanderings.  The complained, they bickered, and even cursed Moses.  Yet, when they were dying they drank from that which was provided, and didn't even know what it was.  They had no clue that this water was Christ, but it was the very thing that saved them.  I believe that is happening today.  People are "drinking" from the rock and don't realize it is Christ.  It may have a different name than what you or I think is right, but God is saving everybody.  You can call me a universalist, a heretic, or whatever, but I really think the good news is good news--not about who is in and out, right or wrong, or heaven or hell--it is about the finished work of Christ redeeming all men--no matter what.  God is love!

3.) I believe the Bible was written in Hebrew, Greek, and Aramaic--NOT ENGLISH.  Some words just didn't translate over well.  For instance and this is a big hang up for a lot of people (me being one of them)--The word "hell."  I don't buy into some literal hell where unbelievers will go and burn for ever and ever.  That is our human way of getting justice into religion.  There are 4 different words for hell in the Bible and one was borrowed from Greek mythology to prove a point metaphorically.  Depending on the context of where "hell" was written, it can mean a multiplicity of different things.  It can be as simple as "the grave", a trash heap just outside of Jerusalem, or deep abyss that is used as a dungeon of torment and suffering for the wicked and as the prison for the Titans (see 2 Peter 2:4).  It's really tough to pull out Dante's inferno version of hell out of these words--you really gotta stretch it.  Maybe there is something deeper that the writer is trying to show us than what we have on hell and heaven.  So, saying all of that, I don't buy into the p/c version of hell--just can't believe it.  I believe this world is important and that the end goal is not just to be beamed up out of this world like a Star Trek movie (Beam me up Jesus).  This world has purpose, meaning, life, good, and God is restoring all things through us.  The same is true with demons and angels--just not superstitious.  Demons were another word for worthless idols and angels were just messengers of God.  That could have been anybody, not just exclusively some white, winged, creature with a large harp.  Most westernern interpretations of death, heaven, and hell are formed out of their cosmological view.  Let me remind you that the Bible was written on the other side of the planet with a completely different cosmological perspective on death.  I don't want to ruin it for you, but study it some time--western cosmology and eastern cosmology.  Israel is strategically located in the middle of these two worlds :)

4.) The 2nd Coming: Nope...this one just doens't fly either with me.  Most end-times stuff is based on fear and really poor interpretations.  Every generation for the last 1000 years thought it was them and had an anti-Christ picked out, along with all the "signs and wonders."  Historical records and the language of the Bible point to the fall of the Temple as the "end of the age (aion)."  The time of Temple sacrifices ceased after the Romans brutally came into Jerusalem and slaughtered thousands of innocent Jews.  The woes were for those people who had to go through that hellish experience.  Basically, Revelation is the story of the continual struggle humans have with doing good in the face of injustice.  The example it gives is the Jewish Christians and Jews that struggled against Rome.  I'm not saying I'm right and everybody else is wrong, just trying to explain how I came to believe this way.  What I can't believe is the whole rapture thing/left behind that is a fairly new (150 years old).  Makes for great Hollywood movies, but not real good in real life. 

5.) The church is not an exclusive building, institution, or particular group that I have to meet with weekly.  If so, then Jesus would have said so if it was that important.  Guilt is the new "spirit".  I heard somebody said that if they didn't go three times a week (to a church service) they would feel guilty.  Therefore, it must be God.  I had a secretary one time that came into my office and told me that I wasn't preaching in the "spirit", but was teaching.  I ask her "why" and she just couldn't figure it out.  I then prodded a little more and asked her was it because she didn't feel guilty about what she did and it didn't move her to come forward and pray at an altar.  BOOM!!  "That is it," she said.  

I then replied, "so, guilt is your "holy spirit."  Then she just got angry and chose not to speak to me.  This was my secretary, who was supposed to be a seasoned Christian!  Didn't Jesus say, "if two or more are gathered...I'm in the midst."  I know, I know, I've heard it quoted a million times and many quoted it on Facebook to me about "forsaking not the assembly..."  I'll ask, "who was that written to and what where were they assemblying?"  It was written to Jewish folks who were used to going to synagogue.  Just because Jesus came didn't mean that they were to quit meeting.  To put that in a church context and place the burden on somebody who has never been a church-goer is a burden to heavy to carry. 

I'm not for sure what that looks like today, but I do know we need to rethink how we are gathering today.  I think the whole system needs revamped!  

6.) Here is a real biggie for me: Jesus was a Jew--not a Christian!  To be more like Christ is to understand his Jewish context.  Paul said we have been given the "ministry of reconciliation."  Jesus talks about restoration.  The Bible is constantly describing things that once were, being destroyed--but rebuilt (read Nehemiah).  I don't' think Jesus came to start a new religion, just to fix something that once worked, became corrupted, destroyed, and now through him we can bring restoration to it.  THIS IS NOT A LAW AND GRACE THING!!  I'm just saying there was something that used to work and we need to get back to that. 

7.) Human beings are created in the image of God.  Saying this, I differ from Christianity in the fact I don't believe Genesis 3 is a fall of man, but an elevation to a more "god-like" status.  Fall insinuates guilt, self-image problems, and dependency on a system...just like our version of welfare.  In order to fulfill God's commandment they needed a deeper knowledge or God wouldn't have put that tree in the middle of the garden where he knew they were going to eat it.  I have yet come to any final conclusions on this, but I think there is something much deeper here than what has been presented.  I'm wading through all my baggage to be able to really see this.  

This is just a few I have listed, but you can probably tell that I differ quite a bit from the norm.  Therefore, the fear of going somewhere to be told over and over I am wrong is not something I'm interested in.  I feel as though we all have something unique, a story to tell, and an insight we can bring to the table.  Is there a place where people listen, are heard, can be open-minded, and conversational rather than unidirectional?  I'm sure the word new age, relativist, and heretic will be thrown around.  I would just suggest that if you say these things, be careful because the person you are saying this too has feelings and beliefs they feel strongly about.  They probably didn't just come up with these beliefs on a whim, but researched it, are convinced, and it could be all they know. For those Christians who are into labeling others as "wrong", "lost," or "heretical", are doing nothing more than driving them further away and establishing their own kingdom. 

Ultimately, God defines himself.  He said his name was, "I am that I am."  Good enough for me.  I feel as though I'm on some really shaky ground when I start making absolutes about who God is and what he is going to do with the human race.  That is not my place!  If so, then I'm my own god, made in my own image, according to my likings.  God made you to be you and me to be me...not you to be me and me to be you.  Lech lecha!!