(Foreword: Some may find this post not to be of their liking. Be advised that I respect all beliefs, although I find some of those beliefs more interesting than others.)

On July 15^th, 1838, Ralph Waldo Emerson delivered an address to the Harvard School of Divinity, discounting Biblical miracles and declaring that while Jesus was a great man, but he wasn’t God.

                I’m inclined to believe the same thing.

                I’m also sure that, like Emerson, I might ruffle a few feathers.

I belong to a group which has been on three-year (so far) journey into the “Christian Religion,” I have had my eyes opened to a number of truths which have radically changed my view of the “Christian Religion.”

                Let me state from the outset that I believe in God. The presence of something greater than we are is evident in the observable universe and in the universe we cannot see with our human eyes. I see God not as a person, but as more of a spirit which lives in each of us, envelopes each of us, and envelops all that we can observe.

                God is universal. There is but one God. Although different cultures appear to have different Gods, those Gods are the same God (the one God) seen through different lenses or different filters.

It was in the third year of this journey that a few things began to click in my mind, dealing mostly with the pre-history of Christianity – that is, the build up of the religion prior to the birth of “Jesus (Joshua) of Nazareth.” The pieces, including the ethos of Christianity were all present prior to Jesus’ birth, but the pieces were not all tied together (so to speak) until roughly 50 years after his death. Some pieces were added in later to “Seal the deal.”

                What I have extrapolated from my readings is that Jesus/Joshua was likely a charismatic preacher familiar with the teachings of Hillel the Elder (110 BCE – 10 CE). Jesus/Joshua was likely a thorn in the side of the establishment and was handed over to death in the hands of the Romans.

                Tales of miracles done in Jesus/Joshua’s name were lifted from previous sources in other traditions – including stories of resurrection and ascension. While I doubt the veracity of the miracle/ascension stories (no matter which group tells it), I do see them as important to spreading the basic message of Christianity: “Love God, Love your neighbor.”

                Somewhere along the line, though, things got messed up. Looking through some of last year’s notes, I came across some of the musings from our reading of The Dream of God. It was noted that the big problem has been with the institutional church as opposed to the teachings of Jesus or Hillel (take yer pick). The institutional church loves to moralize – a direct contradiction to the teachings of both rabbis. Doesn’t matter the church… the hand-wringing over the new figurehead of the Anglican communion, Charles the Third is an excellent, and recent example.

                But the basic message is the same. “Love God, Love your neighbor.” This year’s group theme, Living in a Multicultural World, will hopefully pull the “Love your neighbor” part into sharp focus… giving us direction as to how we are to live from this point forward.

                I started this essay as part of a class exercise. I may have strayed from the intent of the exercise. From my point of view, though, what I see as important going forward is not who we believe, but what we believe. How do we lead our lives to have a positive impact on the people around us. Jesus may not be God… but he sure did give us a lot to live up to.

Be Seeing You!