How I came to consider myself Gnostic
I was raised as a Christian, albeit loosely. For most of my adult life I have waged an internal struggle regarding my faith. I have never been able to turn away from Christianity - as I have always had an awe and belief in Jesus. But I have never fully been able to reconcile that with so many of the teachings of the Christian church.
As I have gotten older (and wiser, although some might disagree lol) I have steadily grown both closer and farther from the church. Closer in seeking to reach the Christian ideals of peace, humility, charity and self awareness. Farther from the Church's viewpoints in particular as they relate to modern social and political viewpoints. How can a "Christian" be in favor of war? Doesn't this violate the teachings of the "Prince of Peace"? How can you be a "Christian" and shop at proudly shop at Walmart, knowing that doing so allows you more material possessions while your neighbors are impoverished by the loss of their small businesses and lack of medical care and benefits? Is it not Christian to care for your neighbor and fellow man? "Christians" [defined here as followers of the Christian Church NOT followers of the teachings of Jesus]. In the Bush-era of politics I found myself no longer steadily growing apart from the church, but actually vehemently opposed to it. Although this may anger many, I honestly find President Bush's use of the label "Christian" for himself to be a blasphemy of the teachings of Jesus. With the opposition of gay marriage, the war in Iraq, and the fiscal policies of the Bush Administration, it seems the term "Christian" has come to mean something that even Jesus himself could not possibly recognize.
Although this all comes off sounding like a ferocious attack on Christians, I do not mean it as such - I recognize and applaud the wonderful and amazing things that Christian people do every day. I am often deeply touched by acts of kindness and generosity and moved to tears by the stories of the sacrifices that people make for others every day. And I could and would never want to dismiss the incredible good works done by Churches around the world. It is in these moments that I have been most proud to be a Christian. It's just that it is not enough. As Christians, we don't make enough personal sacrifices. It is my belief that we have fallen away from the teachings of Christ. Many of us are taking the "easy way". Do you believe in Christ as you Lord and Savior? Great! Now we can do what we want here on earch because we're all going to heaven. This is obviously a vast oversimplification, but my point is that we are failing to closely examine the details of the life and teachings of Jesus. We are not living up to His example - more than that, we are not even striving to live up to that example. It is my belief that to ignore this is to ignore the most basic fundamentals of what makes someone a Christian. There is so much more to Jesus than miracles and mystical power. Underneath that lies a humble servant of a man whose kindness, charity, acceptance and love for his fellow man serves as a powerful example of how great we can become even as mere mortals if we wash ourselves free of our prejudices, pursuit of material wealth, anger, intolerance, and selfishness.
After years of feeling this way, I read an article that talked about Thomas Jefferson's "The Life and Morals of Jesus of Nazareth Extracted Textually from the Gospels in Greek, Latin, French and English". I did not feel ready to completely renounce the divinity of Jesus and, which I find Jefferson's writings to be very important for refocusing on the important ideals of what I call True Christianity. But from Jefferson's writings I found the Gospel of Thomas which struck a chord within me. It was as if all the pieces fit into place and I had finally come home. Or at least that I have found the correct path home. From there I read about the very early Christians and the split between the Gnostic and Apostolic schools of Christian faith and how they split. It was an amazing thing to know that I am not the only one who feels the way that I do.
This blog will chronicle various aspects of my faith and path. I will at times cross the line between intellectual viewpoints and emotional ones. I will strive to point these out so that anyone who might be reading this will know that I acknowledge the difference. I will strive to make peace with my own faith and with the faith of other Christians whose viewpoints differ from mine. I will strive to let go of my anger at the social injustice and find peace and love for my fellow man.
I will edit my posts as time permits as I generally write and post with little editorial work.
I welcome thoughtful comments on this topic.
[I will enclose after this post a description from another web site of the early struggles between Gnostic Christians who believed in the teachings of Jesus and the Apostolic Christians who focused on the miracles, the Trinity, and the Resurrection. That is a simplification and by including the text from this web site the explanation will be more complete.]
As I have gotten older (and wiser, although some might disagree lol) I have steadily grown both closer and farther from the church. Closer in seeking to reach the Christian ideals of peace, humility, charity and self awareness. Farther from the Church's viewpoints in particular as they relate to modern social and political viewpoints. How can a "Christian" be in favor of war? Doesn't this violate the teachings of the "Prince of Peace"? How can you be a "Christian" and shop at proudly shop at Walmart, knowing that doing so allows you more material possessions while your neighbors are impoverished by the loss of their small businesses and lack of medical care and benefits? Is it not Christian to care for your neighbor and fellow man? "Christians" [defined here as followers of the Christian Church NOT followers of the teachings of Jesus]. In the Bush-era of politics I found myself no longer steadily growing apart from the church, but actually vehemently opposed to it. Although this may anger many, I honestly find President Bush's use of the label "Christian" for himself to be a blasphemy of the teachings of Jesus. With the opposition of gay marriage, the war in Iraq, and the fiscal policies of the Bush Administration, it seems the term "Christian" has come to mean something that even Jesus himself could not possibly recognize.
Although this all comes off sounding like a ferocious attack on Christians, I do not mean it as such - I recognize and applaud the wonderful and amazing things that Christian people do every day. I am often deeply touched by acts of kindness and generosity and moved to tears by the stories of the sacrifices that people make for others every day. And I could and would never want to dismiss the incredible good works done by Churches around the world. It is in these moments that I have been most proud to be a Christian. It's just that it is not enough. As Christians, we don't make enough personal sacrifices. It is my belief that we have fallen away from the teachings of Christ. Many of us are taking the "easy way". Do you believe in Christ as you Lord and Savior? Great! Now we can do what we want here on earch because we're all going to heaven. This is obviously a vast oversimplification, but my point is that we are failing to closely examine the details of the life and teachings of Jesus. We are not living up to His example - more than that, we are not even striving to live up to that example. It is my belief that to ignore this is to ignore the most basic fundamentals of what makes someone a Christian. There is so much more to Jesus than miracles and mystical power. Underneath that lies a humble servant of a man whose kindness, charity, acceptance and love for his fellow man serves as a powerful example of how great we can become even as mere mortals if we wash ourselves free of our prejudices, pursuit of material wealth, anger, intolerance, and selfishness.
After years of feeling this way, I read an article that talked about Thomas Jefferson's "The Life and Morals of Jesus of Nazareth Extracted Textually from the Gospels in Greek, Latin, French and English". I did not feel ready to completely renounce the divinity of Jesus and, which I find Jefferson's writings to be very important for refocusing on the important ideals of what I call True Christianity. But from Jefferson's writings I found the Gospel of Thomas which struck a chord within me. It was as if all the pieces fit into place and I had finally come home. Or at least that I have found the correct path home. From there I read about the very early Christians and the split between the Gnostic and Apostolic schools of Christian faith and how they split. It was an amazing thing to know that I am not the only one who feels the way that I do.
This blog will chronicle various aspects of my faith and path. I will at times cross the line between intellectual viewpoints and emotional ones. I will strive to point these out so that anyone who might be reading this will know that I acknowledge the difference. I will strive to make peace with my own faith and with the faith of other Christians whose viewpoints differ from mine. I will strive to let go of my anger at the social injustice and find peace and love for my fellow man.
I will edit my posts as time permits as I generally write and post with little editorial work.
I welcome thoughtful comments on this topic.
[I will enclose after this post a description from another web site of the early struggles between Gnostic Christians who believed in the teachings of Jesus and the Apostolic Christians who focused on the miracles, the Trinity, and the Resurrection. That is a simplification and by including the text from this web site the explanation will be more complete.]
posted by Mom | 6:50 AM
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