If I was a Christian, for Easter

[sophiaserpentia]

I am a spiritual refugee, exiled from my home forever. I could be a Christian if not for scripture, if not for doctrine.

If I was a Christian, this is what I would believe.

That Jesus believed in us.

That Jesus wanted us to see that no matter what we had experienced or done before, that we could rise above it by living in accord with the spirit of compassion and love for the divine.

That Jesus wanted us to understand that we are all in this together, and that together we could make anything happen. There is no "us versus them," there are no enemies; those who limit or oppress us are lost in their own nightmare and suffer their own limitations, and there is always hope of helping them to wake up.

That Jesus wanted us to stand together in solidarity and love in the face of brutality.

That Jesus refused to cower in the face of persecution, and was killed for challenging injustice.

That Easter is a clear sign from God that resistance against wrong and limitation is not futile -- that living in perfect love and perfect trust is the key to victory over death and fate.

That Paul wanted us to understand that the Resurrection is a promise that God is on our side when we work to transcend the limitations of fate.

That Paul wanted us to play our part in the reconciliation whereby God will become all in all.

crossposted to my journal and crossposted to convert_me

Comments

[sophiaserpentia.livejournal.com]

Thank you! Yes, you may link to this or cross-post it. :)

These statements reflect an emphasis not demonstrated in the creeds. The creeds focus on the birth of Jesus, his death, his resurrection, and the Trinity. Doctrinal debates within the church have focused on those issues and largely ignored the issues I've listed here -- which most mainstream Christians would find agreeable (except perhaps my hinting at universalism in the last point).

I am a strong believer that any truly catholic (universal) Christian church would emphasize fraternity and agape over doctrinal or creedal agreement. There will always be doctrinal and factual disagreements between people -- but we can still hold strong the fraternal bonds of compassion, and take sacrament, even with people with whom we disagree. This I strongly believe was Jesus' vision of the church.

[yud.livejournal.com]

I am a strong believer that any truly catholic (universal) Christian church would emphasize fraternity and agape over doctrinal or creedal agreement...

That's exactly what I believe as well. To me it seems like too many churches/people focus on the minute details of Jesus's message and they lose the big picture. People love to get caught up on defining which acts are sinful and which specific beliefs are valid and all that.

and take sacrament, even with people with whom we disagree.

This really resonates with me as well. I was raised in the Methodist church, and one of the things that I really liked is that when it came time for communion, everyone was invited to partake. When I learned that other churches prohibited non-members from joining in communion, I was shocked. Excluding people based on their beliefs is the exact opposite of what I understood of Jesus's teachings.