In Christ's Name

A while ago, I wrote about what it means to be a Disciple of Christ. Recently, I was compelled once more into action by the Vatican's new list of Seven Deadly Sins - where I found them wanting. In response, a man named Mathew said, "if it is possible for a man to deserve forgiveness (and salvation) on his own merit, where is the need for Jesus Christ?"

Well, upon full consideration, it would seem that there isn't one - at least, not for that. This man, and many like him, might find this offensive, but what good is a God who does not distinguish between Good and Evil acts, but only considers blind obedience as worthy? That does not sound like a "Savior" god to me, or any thinking person, and especially unlike a god who is supposed to enforce morality. That's why it is so important to understand the Sins of Irrationality and willful Ignorance; faith is valuable, but it must be for the right reasons, else it is meaningless.

It seems to me that Jesus serves a number of purposes in the Christian faith, but it is an extension of his role, an overstepping of bounds, to suggest that the singular act of praising his name is the sole gateway into Paradise. Were that the case, then we would see, as many have suggested, that a serial killer who confesses before being put to death would be spared eternal torment, and a person who, for whatever reason, had never heard of Christ's name would be sent into the lake of fire, regardless of the deeds of his life. If this were true, then Christianity would be a faith that holds morality, and even the potential of a human life, as irrelevancies. Why strive to do good, or even to do anything, if Praise for the Savior is all that is required, or even all that matters?

Jesus serves as a teacher, a moral guide, and a teller of stories. He is a bringer of wisdom, in his parables and his acts. And he is granted credibility, not by God, but by his followers, who see his Miracles as proof of Divine approval.

But most of all, Jesus serves as a surrogate forgiver, there to accept a person's earnest apology for a misdeed at those times in life when a person cannot, or will not, forgive him or her self. So, there IS a need for Jesus in Christianity, but it is as a Redeemer, not an amoral Idol.

Yet, as many have noted, the Bible is quite clear in stating that ONLY through worshiping Jesus's name - not following the Way he taught - and through no personal worthiness alone, can a person achieve a state of Grace and be granted an eternal reward. Clearly, this message is in direct conflict with Christ's own philosophy.

Even the story of Jesus itself stands in stark contrast to the rhetoric that has subsumed Christianity for nearly 2,000 years. Had Jesus not died on the cross, then risen again, would anyone hail his name today? It is for his deeds that we honor his name, not the other way around. Jesus shows us that our acts, not the names we praise, are what matter most in the eyes of God.

What moral guide is this faith, after all, if the worth of our actions becomes inconsequential when compared to what amounts to lip service? When reason conflicts with scripture, surely we must side with reason, lest our faith become Irrational and meaningless. Such conundrums illustrate why recognizing Blind Faith as a cardinal sin is necessary.

But there is a deeper flaw in Christianity that needs addressing here. The key phrase, added to the Bible by St. Augustine, is the infamous passage from Romans: "All men have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God."

While it is true that all people have done wrong in their lives, it is also true that all people have done right as well. If God is to condemn us for our errors, and utterly neglect our redeeming qualities, then God Himself apparently does not value the Good in each of us, or in life itself. Clearly, this cannot be true if God is the benevolent entity the Bible claims.

That passage puts the lie to "God's Word", showing us that even while God blames us for the deeds of our ancestors - actions that we ourselves had no part in - He will not credit us for the deeds of our own lives, no matter how richly deserved. This concept of Irredeemable Sin is antithetical to Jesus's message.

What the Bible is asking of us is not to accept God's forgiveness for our sins, but to accept the very sin that it itself claims we are guilty of.

What's more, Christianity tells us that Jesus has already paid a blood price for all the sins of humanity. That is why he is so celebrated, is it not? So isn't the declaration of one's self as an unforgiven sinner a rejection of Christ's sacrifice?

By using the power of Reason that was endowed in each of us by our Creator, we can see that Life should be a celebration of God's gift to us, not a forsaking of that gift to live in perpetual atonement for a sin we never committed, and in spite of a forgiveness that has already been granted.

To throw God's Love back in his teeth, and embrace a life of suffering, is to reject all that Jesus stood for. It is the worst Sin imaginable: to forsake Christ's teachings, to forsake his Way, and to forsake his sacrifice, all in order to praise his name.

Anyone who earnestly believes that that is what Christ really wanted, that life should be shrouded in bleak agony, and gotten over with as quickly as possible so that joy can be found in the next life, is guilty of the Sin of Justification. As Mathew put it, "Because God is perfectly just, He will give every man what he deserves." Truer words were never written, because, surely, every person who holds such beliefs, and looks for salvation in the rejection of Joy, in the rejection of God's Love and wish for peace and happiness in this one life, and the rejection of God's Forgiveness for all our mistakes, will surely find exactly what they seek in that longed-for hereafter: an eternity graced by none of those things.

For the rest of us, who hold that Jesus should be praised not for Who he was, but for What he did: ensuring that each of us is aware of our potential to earn a Way into Paradise by the way we live our lives, life is itself a constant joy. For us, Paradise has, in some way, already been achieved.

When one embraces Jesus's core message, that Love is the key to happiness, both in this life and the next, then one comes to understand the greatest wisdom of all: This is YOUR life; rise up and live it.