The Following Article was featured on "The Witches Voice" (Witchvox) website on: February 25th, 2007.
You know, I am tired of seeing so-called followers of Christ, "Christians", get the teachings of Jesus --my spiritual teacher all wrong.
I am not trying to Christian bash, so please do not think that.
I am a non-Christian, however I used to be one...but I found the religion too hypocritical for my personal taste so I have moved on to searching out what truly calls to me. I feel that I have found that in Paganism. But I have never forsaken the teachings of the Christ.
I see Jesus as my Spiritual Mentor and I still believe in him. I try to follow the Christ-essence and emulate Christ.... and at the same time worship god and goddess. It is a personal spiritual path that has called to me and has helped me felt more spiritually fulfilled.
But I honestly feel that if Yeshua (Jesus) Christ would come back, he would be disgusted with the hypocritical, bigoted and judgmental, hateful things that spring forth from the church pulpits today.
I do not believe Christ' teachings were meant to be used as people of the more fundamentalist persuasion make them out to be. I do not believe they were meant to be interpreted so that people could be racist, bigots, homophobic, or just hateful and hostile towards anybodies life-style choice/philosophy that they personally disagree with.
Again, please do not think I am trying to Christian bash here because I am not. I have the utmost respect for the Christian religion and I am very sure that not all Christians act this way, I am sure some are very spiritual, devout and great people. These are just the impressions I’ve gotten from Christians I personally have come in contact with in my every day dealings. I am writing this to voice my opinions not to disrespect or offend anyone.
I believe that Jesus' teachings were simple:
Love thy neighbor as thy self.
Love thy enemy.
Do not pass judgment on another.
Give when anyone asks of you.
And just be an all-around helpful, loving, peaceful person.
Many people actually try their best to do these things, but just because they are not a self-proclaimed Christian but rather a Pagan, a Wiccan, a homosexual, a person of race, a Muslim, Jew, Mormon, catholic, disabled or what-have-you, they are put down. And it really upsets me when I see Christians -- or anyone who claims to follow the teachings of Jesus -- put down other people.
It honestly doesn't matter if you are a Christian or not because we are all Children of God...There may be 1, 000, 000, 000, 000 interpretations of God.... some may see not one God but many gods and goddesses.... some may not have had any experiences yet to justify the existence of any god.
But that does not mean that it isn’t there; maybe you are not ready to experience yet. Perhaps you are not meant to be a Theist because, if you were, it might somehow mess up the space-time continuum.
Or you might become a fundamentalist, chalk science up to the work of the “Devil” and then never get around to inventing the cure for cancer.
No matter what it is to you -- or if you are able to perceive it or not -- it is still all the same essence. And if you are not a Christian, you will not go to the fiery pits of hell
Here are some great quotes that I feel help me make my point:
“A religious man is a person who holds God and man in one thought at one time, at all times, who suffers harm done to others, whose greatest passion is compassion, whose greatest strength is love and defiance of despair.” -- Abraham Joshua Heschel
“The problem to be faced is: how to combine loyalty to one's own tradition with reverence for different traditions.” -- Abraham Joshua Heschel
"Having the fewest wants, I am nearest to the gods.” -- Socrates
“Before God we are all equally wise - and equally foolish.” -- Albert Einstein
“My religion consists of a humble admiration of the illimitable superior spirit who reveals himself in the slight details we are able to perceive with our frail and feeble mind.” -- Albert Einstein
“Religion is what an individual does with his solitariness.” -- Alfred North Whitehead
“Why not let people differ about their answers to the great mysteries of the Universe? Let each seek one's own way to the highest, to one's own sense of supreme loyalty in life, one's ideal of life. Let each philosophy, each world-view bring forth its truth and beauty to a larger perspective, that people may grow in vision, stature and dedication.” -- Algernon Black
“The best remedy for those who are afraid, lonely or unhappy is to go outside, somewhere where they can be quiet, alone with the heavens, nature and God. Because only then does one feel that all is as it should be and that God wishes to see people happy, amidst the simple beauty of nature.” -- Anne Frank
“Ethical religion can be real only to those who are engaged in ceaseless efforts at moral improvement. By moving upward we acquire faith in an upward movement, without limit.” -- Felix Adler
“The unique personality, which is the real life in me, I cannot gain unless I search for the real life, the spiritual quality, in others. I am myself spiritually dead unless I reach out to the fine quality dormant in others. For it is only with the god enthroned in the innermost shrine of the other, that the god hidden in me will consent to appear”. -- Felix Adler
“Everybody prays whether [you think] of it as praying or not. The odd silence you fall into when something very beautiful is happening or something very good or very bad. The ah-h-h-h! That sometimes floats up out of you as out of a Fourth of July crowd when the sky-rocket bursts over the water. The stammer of pain at somebody else s pain. The stammer of joy at somebody else's joy. Whatever words or sounds you use for sighing with over your own life. These are all prayers in their way. These are all spoken not just to yourself but to something even more familiar than yourself and even more strange than the world.” -- Frederick Buechner
Finally a bumper sticker I bought the other day said:
"Real Christians Emulate Jesus, Not Idolatrize the Bible."
In conclusion, I believe Pagans can strive to emulate Christ and be Christ-like too! No one religious group can monopolize such spirit.
Be Blessed!
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