State of Dominion
It seems to me that many people believe that since we were given "dominion" over the land and all of creation (by God from the Bible) then we can do as we see fit. I find it odd, since not one of those people would even consider going into someone's house and trashing it, or feel the need to do so with his own home. Can you imagine? You buy a house, and proceed to rip it to shreds, dumping toxic junk all over the place, inside and out, defecating and urinating wherever. It seems to me that when you are given a world like this one - so full of amazing wonders that absolutely affirm that God has an incredible eye for detail and grace - so beautiful and abundant - that you would be so grateful to have received this wonderful gift that you would do everything in you power to not only keep it as magnificent as you recieved it, but you would bend over backwards to prove that you were worthy of the honor of caretaker for the earth and you actually helped to make it better. It seems to me that as a Christian, I was given a gift of redemption, the gift of the Son of God basically paying my way into heaven. And because I was given this gift, almost like receiving your diploma as you enter university, I want to prove myself worthy, I want to do my absolute best by trying to live by the model that was Jesus. Now, don't stop and think "bible basher" because nothing and I do mean nothing could be further from the truth. My amazing brother told me once, "the greatest obstacle to Christianity is Christians" and no truer words have ever been spoken. I am speaking purely from a personal point of view. I think too much emphasis has been placed on the name of religion and not enough on the practice. The reason Jesus appeals to me is simple. He hung out with those on the periphery. Not the powerful. Not the rich. Not the appointed. Not righteous. He called most of them hypocrites (actually coining the phrase from what I gather). He went to the lepers. The homeless. The discarded. The lost. The broken. The forgotten. He went to them, reached out to them and showed them love. Not based on a set of tasks they had to perform to "join", not based on any legal requirements. He unconditionally accepted them. He turned the foundation of that society upside down. Love it. That's my kind of guy. Because you can be pious all day long, but the minute you start killing people, judging others, hurting the dependents, incarcerating the poor, and kicking those who are already down - well, you've lost me.
So, as angry as I get at those who I feel have hi-jacked my religion - all they have done is take the name. I only care because they send a very negative image which does not embody the true essence of Christianity. Which is we are ALL GOD'S CHILDREN, AND WE ARE ALL WELCOME.
It seems to me that many people believe that since we were given "dominion" over the land and all of creation (by God from the Bible) then we can do as we see fit. I find it odd, since not one of those people would even consider going into someone's house and trashing it, or feel the need to do so with his own home. Can you imagine? You buy a house, and proceed to rip it to shreds, dumping toxic junk all over the place, inside and out, defecating and urinating wherever. It seems to me that when you are given a world like this one - so full of amazing wonders that absolutely affirm that God has an incredible eye for detail and grace - so beautiful and abundant - that you would be so grateful to have received this wonderful gift that you would do everything in you power to not only keep it as magnificent as you recieved it, but you would bend over backwards to prove that you were worthy of the honor of caretaker for the earth and you actually helped to make it better. It seems to me that as a Christian, I was given a gift of redemption, the gift of the Son of God basically paying my way into heaven. And because I was given this gift, almost like receiving your diploma as you enter university, I want to prove myself worthy, I want to do my absolute best by trying to live by the model that was Jesus. Now, don't stop and think "bible basher" because nothing and I do mean nothing could be further from the truth. My amazing brother told me once, "the greatest obstacle to Christianity is Christians" and no truer words have ever been spoken. I am speaking purely from a personal point of view. I think too much emphasis has been placed on the name of religion and not enough on the practice. The reason Jesus appeals to me is simple. He hung out with those on the periphery. Not the powerful. Not the rich. Not the appointed. Not righteous. He called most of them hypocrites (actually coining the phrase from what I gather). He went to the lepers. The homeless. The discarded. The lost. The broken. The forgotten. He went to them, reached out to them and showed them love. Not based on a set of tasks they had to perform to "join", not based on any legal requirements. He unconditionally accepted them. He turned the foundation of that society upside down. Love it. That's my kind of guy. Because you can be pious all day long, but the minute you start killing people, judging others, hurting the dependents, incarcerating the poor, and kicking those who are already down - well, you've lost me.
So, as angry as I get at those who I feel have hi-jacked my religion - all they have done is take the name. I only care because they send a very negative image which does not embody the true essence of Christianity. Which is we are ALL GOD'S CHILDREN, AND WE ARE ALL WELCOME.
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