Your contempt for the clear words of Jesus shows that you are not a reasonable man. It is clear from the whole incident in three of the Gospels that Jesus viewed himself and his message as a replacement and fulfillment of the Law (10 Commandments and hundreds of other injunctions). His great generalization of the spirit of Judaism, abandoning the unnecessary cruelties (killing adultresses and sodomites, killing unchaste daughters of priests, blood sacrifice, mistreating gentiles), replacing it with universal love of one's neighbor (e.g. Samaritans).
Strange that any one should think that quoting Jesus to Christians should make them roll over in guilt. I mere want them to read the undisputed words of Jesus and to draw the implications that Jesus intended from them. It is clear I think to any thinking person that Jesus did not worship the ten Commandments. I would have no problem with anyone posting Jesus's second commandment on a court room wall or any school. Some Jews might object, since universal love is found no where in the 10 commandments. I would have no problem posting the Delphic "Know thyself!" or Luthers "Hier stehe ich, ich kann nicht anders." or Buddha's four great truths and eight-fold way. These, I hold are great universal truths which ought not to be interpreted to contradict anyone's decent belief (of course, it violates the beliefs of Nazis, Communists, and other). Jesus's first commandment ("Hear oh Israel our God is One ..") is tendentious and parochial and directly contradicts orthodox Christianity ("Hear everybody, our God is Three ... God in three persons, Holy Trinity (no where mentioned in the Bible, of course ...")
Yes, I believe Christians if they would follow Jesus's clear words must reject the Trinity, capital punishment, homophobia, no fault divorce, and many other pagan and Jewish accretions to his message. I don't expect much success in preaching the message of Jesus the Man. But I feel I must confront Christians with his actual message.
I hope they will not crucify me as the believers in the ten commandments crucified Jesus. |
