Is Jesus a figurehead?

For the past few weeks I have been locked in mortal combat with some evangelical Christians abut the Gospel of Jesus. The word gospel means “good news”, yet some Christians get quite irate and nasty when anyone challenges the word of Paul. For example, a pretentious Bible studies doctoral student, Gary Davis, took such offense with my article “Paul: Apostle or Apostate”, that he ranted about how my reasoning wasn’t sound and that my years of religious studies and Bible reading were invalid. Yet, his understanding of the Bible somehow supersedes mine. Arrogance at its best! Why is it that some Christians take offense to any challenge about Paul? Is it because what he says justifies their sense of power over others? That their way is the only way?

One reader, Daniel, argues that my choice of Apostate was wrong about Paul. He suggests that I perhaps should have used heretic. Then, he proceeds to insult one of the most God respecting men I know. He doesn’t even know this man, yet he has a strong opinion of him. This is where judgment rears its ugly head. Paul taught a gospel based on his own bias. As Saul his behaviors could have been likened to the Nazi Gestapo. Yet, after his conversion and blinding he miraculously began preaching more of his own gospel with Jesus as a figurehead. The Roman Catholics just loved his books because it gave them control over the masses. Why do you think they were canonized? I suggested to Daniel that he study history and logic before he so obviously sticks his foot in his mouth. As for the homophobic Gary Davis, his impressive list of articles primarily focusing on human maladies reveals his own particular skew on life. He continues to quote the same old gay bashing Leviticus 18:22, without the proper Aramaic translations cited. His readership seems to be what I call Conscious Christians; those who only use Literary Authoritarianism as there source of knowledge about life. Did Jesus just use the Torah? Not by a long shot. He also used common sense. Something some of my commenters seem totally devoid of, even though they proclaim some superior knowledge.

This is what happens when someone takes the written word literally. Christ said to the Pharisees that the spirit of the law is what is important. Paul’s teachings seem to point to the letter of the law more than the spirit. For example, when referring to Jesus’ brother James and his teaching about Christ, Paul says the following: “But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtlety, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ”. “For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him” (2 Corinthians 11:3-4). How arrogant Paul is! He is basically saying that if his version of the gospel of Jesus is not believed, then we are not receiving the true gospel. This arrogance is very similar to the commenters' arrogance regarding Paul’s apostatic revelations. And what about James who directly contradicts Paul’s assertions about faith and works? (Jam 2:17: “Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.”; Paul in Galatians 2:16: “Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified”).

Through a study of history, one can see an interesting parallel between Pauline Christianity and the story of the Sumerian god Tammuz. Paul struggled tirelessly to promote his version of the gospel to the Hellenists and gentiles. Jesus made it clear that the HIS gospel was for all men. Why can’t some people see this? They would much rather propagate division and acrimony than to love their brother. Visit this site for more information on how Paul made Jesus a figurehead. I don’t necessarily agree with everything that the author claims, but he does raise some interesting points about Paul. More to come...

For more info: Download my free Wilmington Spirituality Examiner toolbar. “Life is a gift. Be thankful for it and it will be replete with abundance. Encourage others to express creativity, release negativity and embrace pro-activity." Dean A. Banks, MCIWD, DD can be reached at webproducer@hotmail.com or banksnet.com. Download my free eBook on Articles 1-10 here.

The Path to the Golden Rule

In the previous article I talked about how daily practice of prayer, meditation and service can help you finely tune your perception of reality to experience what exists beyond our sensory world. What parallels exist to help support this assertion? Jesus said in Luke 11:19, “And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.” Prayer, in essence, is asking God to give you something you perceive you do not have. Since God has created this abundant universe, then asking Him for something shouldn’t be a problem, right? But there’s more.

The second part of Jesus’ statement is “seek, and ye shall find.” How do we seek what we want and find it? Through meditation. The outer world is rampant with distractions and misguided focus. Only in the peace and stillness of God are we removed from the distractions and chaos of the outer world and we can listen to the still small voice of God giving us instruction as to where to find what we seek. Again, there is more.

The final part of Jesus’ statement is “knock, and it shall be opened unto you.” Taking action and moving your feet are performing service. When you are blessed with the awareness to ask God for what you want, and you make the time daily to practice listening to God, you must get up and do something about it. Do you remember the joke about the man in the flood who drowned while waiting for God to save him? When he got to Heaven he told God he trusted in Him and God let him drown. God responded, “I sent you a rescue truck, a boat and a helicopter and you refused their help.” God’s response to our prayers often comes in natural means through other people and not supernatural means as some expect.

Prayer can come in many forms. It can be a simple request of God, a visualization, an affirmation or an undoubting focus on an expected outcome. Meditation can be a simple undisturbed quiet time, a relaxation response to a repeated mantra, or even peaceful observation in nature. Service can be following through on your goals, spending your time helping others or contributing to life in subtle ways without expecting recognition.

In many instances Jesus told us exactly what to do, yet our spiritual leaders often focus on what his disciples’ interpretations tell us to do. For example, Paul is revered as one of Jesus’ most intense proponents; and he was. Yet, many of his own personal feelings are injected into his writings which were interpretations of what Jesus had said and done. Paul’s wisdom came from, as James puts it, asking. James 1:5 states, “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all [men] liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.” Paul was familiar with what the Prophet Isaiah said in Isaiah 26:3, “Thou wilt keep [him] in perfect peace, [whose] mind [is] stayed [on thee]: because he trusteth in thee.” Trust is key here. Some of Paul’s writings were done in a cell exposed to raw sewage. In this environment Paul accepted his current situation, prayed for something better, accepted God’s word in peace, and continued to serve his fellow man. He was a big proponent of the laws of God summing them up into what Jesus said, “Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself” (Romans 13:9).

If you truly love yourself, then you respect yourself by thinking, listening and giving your best. Performing good service is treating your neighbor as you would treat yourself. This is known as the Golden Rule; “Do to others as you would have them do to you” (Luke 6:31). Simple enough to say, but it requires daily practice to implement.

For more info: Download my free Wilmington Spirituality Examiner toolbar. “Life is a gift. Be thankful for it and it will be replete with abundance. Encourage others to express creativity, release negativity and embrace pro-activity." Dean A. Banks, MCIWD, DD can be reached at webproducer@hotmail.com or banksnet.com.