- Image via Wikipedia
Ah, Good Friday. I wondered yesterday why Christians call it good. I guess it depends on which Christian you talk to. Doesn’t it always? I mean, there are the not very nice ones who want to kill gays and bomb abortion clinics (or more likely encourage others to do it for them by quoting passages from the Book of Hate and Rules aka Leviticus), and then there are the more comfortable sane ones who belong to the human race, hold to their beliefs sincerely and don’t lecture others or throw rocks at them (and are therefore invisible to the media because they don’t provide juicy headlines).
I feel for the nice ones, really I do. I’ve experienced the horrors of the Nazi Jesus Crew first-hand, of course. If I ever want to depress myself, which is thankfully not very often, I meditate upon how evil can masquerade as good and force young gay men and women into enduring the horrors of evangelical Protestant exorcism against their will (a form of exorcism which isn’t dissimilar to the Roman Catholic variety, only the men don’t wear frocks and there’s no incense involved). Anyone who’s read Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit by Jeanette Winterson will know something about this particularly twisted form of abuse, this spiritual gang-rape that goes completely unreported upon despite taking place everywhere from darkest Texas in the US of A (where guns don’t kill people, hate kills people) to the county here in the UK known as Surrey aka Tory Heaven (where you need three off-shore tax haven accounts just to be able to afford to spend money in the corner shop).
I once wrote on my blog back in 2005 about my experience of evangelical exorcism in 1987 but I deleted the entry some years back in what these days I refer to as the Great Lamentable Purge, a content massacre brought on by a temporary desire to bring some of my personal thoughts and feelings entered into the public domain over the past five years back into the realm of the undisclosed. There were reasons at the time, I thought them good reasons but I was wrong. So, if you want to find out what right-wing Christians do to people with same-sex attraction behind the soft-focus counselling-speak, behind closed doors, go and read Winterson’s incredibly moving and, at times, surprisingly funny novel. It’s supposed to be fiction but most of us are of the belief that it’s thinly-disguised autobiography, and it’s very real.
Despite the best efforts of evangelicals, Christianity remains a powerful loving force for social progress and enlightenment for many. It provides purpose, hope and community. Who but the most impoverished of spirit could ever seek to deny these good and noble things to anyone? Good Friday probably means a number of things depending on which Christians you speak to. A mean spirit provides for mean perspectives, a generous spirit quite the opposite. As an ex-evangelical Christian turned Goddess-worshipping Pagan, I have my own perspective which is probably not as unique as I think it is. You tell me. I learn lessons for life from the character of Jesus Christ, irrespective of whether he’s misreported, and irrespective of whether he existed or never did.
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Christianity has long been a force for rigid conservative orthodoxy and repression, going back over a millennia. But it wasn’t always so. In its very early days, for the shortest of times, Christianity was diverse, colourful, exciting, revolutionary. Dangerous. On Good Friday I meditate upon the fact that Jesus never compromised throughout his ministry on who he was. He went out of his way to get noticed by the authorities of his day, knowing most likely what would happen but willing to go the distance, to die for his beliefs because the world he lived in could be so much better. He was a prophet, shaman, visionary. He was a carer, a man of heart and conviction. He was no friend to capitalism, to privilege, to the pursuit of profit. He was a good and non-judgmental friend to the outsiders, the lepers and the prostitutes. He was a radical, a social and political whirlwind, and he was utterly despised for it by the religious leaders, the political authorities, the bankers of his day.
What a fantastic role model. So how did this man, Son of God or just one of us, become the figurehead of a global movement entirely reliant upon the oppression and control of the people to maintain political and social power? If he were alive today, if he came back, he would probably adopt a slogan used by social, political and environmental protest groups across the world right now: NOT. IN. MY. NAME.
Good Friday commemorates the day when Christ’s crucifixion is said to have opened a doorway of hope through which the whole world could enter, a way out of lives mired in selfishness and poverty and hopelessness. His was a world in which taxes were punitive and the gap between rich and poor grew ever bigger, day after day. It was a world where minorities were persecuted, cruelty was rewarded, women were denigrated, the disabled found themselves shunned.
Christ’s death and subsequent resurrection, real or imagined, gave us all a lasting martyr to the causes of justice and social equality, wealth redistribution and community care. Not that everyone sees Christ’s life and death in that way. I wish they did, for we would have one less dominating, patriarchal, mono-cultural religious machine to fight against.
So, to all and sundry, whatever your beliefs, whether you have some or none at all where the spiritual is concerned, have yourselves a wonderful and happy holiday weekend. To the Christians who are kind and socially responsible, non-judgmental and tolerant, I wish you a very happy Easter. And to my fellow Pagans and Witches, I wish you all a happy and uplifting Ostara. Blessed be.
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Nice observations.
I live next to a church and watch the 'faithful' arrive in shiny Mercs/ tailored suits/ expensive heels/ and wonder whether they really absorb any lessons from the life of Jesus Christ.
I know what you mean. And all despite the remonstrations against the pursuit of wealth in the Bible. Those bits get ignored. It's pick-and-mix on the supposedly fixed and unchangeable Word of God… It always has been…
Calling the Holy Bible hate has put you into a terrible position with the LORD God whose Word, the Holy Bible He takes very seriously.
Your support of sex perverted sodomites and babykilling abortionists doesn't bode well for you either.
SAY THIS PRAYER: Dear Jesus, I am a sinner and am headed to eternal hell because of my sins. I believe you died on the cross to take away my sins and to take me to heaven. Jesus, I ask you now to come into my heart and take away my sins and give me eternal life.
Oh get a grip. There's enough hatred in your words, heart and deeds to make a serial killer look tame in comparison, you intolerant monstrosity. Now crawl back under your rock and stop making Jesus cry and the rest of us recoil at just how lacking in love, tolerance and compassion his most extreme followers are. You, Sir, are not a Christian. Jesus bore no resemblance to you at all.
Well said SC – This sort of vitriol is exactly why millions in the Western world are walking away from an outdated non-progressive Church – I wonder if the other person lives on Locusts because they are one of the few foods allowed by Leviticus – If he's ever eaten shellfish, worn a shell-suit or shaved off his side-burns – he's damned forever with the rest of us!
Back to the blog post – So very interesting observations there – Jesus as a man is an extremely interesting character – Although some modern scholars now believe that he was an amalgam of a number of radical characters in the ancient world mixed with a healthy helping of much older stories – regardless of whether that is true – the personality described in the Bible without the 2000 years of Dogma is exactly the type of Religious leader we need today
I doubt he's ever worn a shellsuit if it really is Spitz. Read his Wikipedia entry, AD. The man advocates murder and supports the murderers. In the words of Ralph from 'The Simpsons', Spitz really does make Jesus cry…
I studied religion as part of my degree course (not as a religious person, I sort of lean towards the goddess/pagan view, but don't think she's particularly caring or interventionist) and found some interesting facts.
For a start, about 60% of any religion is not based on the beliefs of its founder, but on the cultural perceptions of the first few generations of followers – for example, all religion founder claim women as equal to men, but faced with men who demanded women be trodden down, new rules of the religion complied and trod down women.
I also had to read the Bible – and this is what I found. The Old Testament, once you get past all the 'begat' stuff, has some fantastic stories, beautifully written (in the King James version.) they are brilliant stories (with some wonderful gay, female and minority heroes) BUT THEY AE JUST STORIES! The Old Testament are myths, based on reality in some cases, but just myths. They should no more be used to guide one's life thn Shakespeare should be.
Then come the Gospels. They were written 100 years after the death of Jesus, by four men who never met him, yet they are full of love, and calm, and peace and amazingly, good humour. Jesus says some very sensible things, and not one word of them is hate. The woman are front and centre, more important then the disciples if you follow the subtext, and he claims everyone as equal – full of sayings like 'Judge not lest you be judged' and 'Let he who is without sin cast the first stone'. Pretty much the kind of thing that would get him labelled as a hippy communist today. He doesn't condemn anyone (except bankers – very far-sighted of him) – he accepts and loves gays and women and minorities – loves them more than he loves his doubting, prejudiced apostles.
Then you get to St Paul and this is where the damage is done. He was a fanatic before the conversion, and he's a fanatic for a different cause afterwards. He is a humourless, hectoring bore, like all fanatics – yet he shouts so loud, all other voices that could have perpetuated Jesus' teaching, such as Mary Magadalene, are drowned out. This is where we get the strictures against gays and women and anyone else not exactly like Paul himself.
This is where the prejudices are born – and Paul never met Jesus. He is not a disciple. Not one word he says comes from the mouth of Jesus.
And it's these dull, condemning, endless letters of Paul that form the basis of the modern Christian Church.
Sorry, such a long lecture! But I wanted to show I knew what I was talking about. The modern church, with leaders who call condoms 'evil' and who condemns, either with screaming outrage or gentle disapproval gay and lesbian, and who constantly pushes women down to silence, is not based on the teachings of Jesus. It's based on the teachings of a prejudiced, cruel fanatic who never met Jesus – Paul.
So I suggest Sptiz takes a deep breath, goes back to his Bible, and reads just the Gospels. He'll not find one single word to back his disgusting intolerances and foul prejudices. If anyone needs to ask forgiveness, it's him, for so perverting the beliefs of his supposed God.
Intelligent and thought-provoking stuff. The Spitz has been proved a reactionary numpty. God(dess) is LOVE x
Rev. (sic) Spitz’s opinions on the beliefs or actions of others should carry no weight whatsoever. He uses his own website to try to make heroes out of murdering terrorists like Paul Hill, Eric Rudolph, John Salvi, and James Kopp. He is so delusional that he thinks that he was ordained by the International Gospel Crusade, a denomination that only exists in his imagination.
BTW, the Virginia State Police recently listed Mr. Spitz's organization as a domestic terrorist threat. The list was produced a the Virginia Fusion Center, a division of the state police.
Yeah, I did some background reading and thought to myself, okay… This one's a live one, that's for sure!
This was a fantastic response, truly inspiring. Thanks for sharing it!
Hate is the fuel that drives Texas, not oil. Everyone hates someone here, it's the Texas way of of life.
Their motto is “if you don't like it, get out!”
I've lived here 10 horrid years and have yet to meet anyone who REALLY believes that we should live and let live.
Such hypocrits – Most Texans are a sick group of haters because they hate themselves.
Wow. I hear there's nice scenery in Texas… Some wonderful wildlife… Um, I have to say, it sounds like you really, really need to move if you don't like it as much as you indicate. It's not good to stay somewhere you hate. Believe me, I've been there (not Texas – the situation!) and it does your soul harm. Find a place that fits. Really.
Wow. I hear there's nice scenery in Texas… Some wonderful wildlife… Um, I have to say, it sounds like you really, really need to move if you don't like it as much as you indicate. It's not good to stay somewhere you hate. Believe me, I've been there (not Texas – the situation!) and it does your soul harm. Find a place that fits. Really.
Wow. I hear there's nice scenery in Texas… Some wonderful wildlife… Um, I have to say, it sounds like you really, really need to move if you don't like it as much as you indicate. It's not good to stay somewhere you hate. Believe me, I've been there (not Texas – the situation!) and it does your soul harm. Find a place that fits. Really.