I’m A Christian!

One of the scribes came near and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, he asked him, "Which commandment is the first of all?" Jesus answered, "The first is, 'Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one;  you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.' The second is this, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no other commandment greater than these."  - Mark 12:28-31 (NRSV)

Christianity is about love, service, justice – it is about transforming the world and lives – it is about partnering with each other and God to make our lives better and the world a better place.  This simple truth is why I’m a Christian. 

There are other reasons for my loyalty to the Christian faith:

W  It is the faith of my family and ancestors – my life has evolved around the holy days and sacred celebrations that are a part of the Christian faith.  It is the faith that has baptized, confirmed, married and buried the generations of my mentors, family members and friends.

W  Argue as you will, Christianity is the faith of my society, culture and nation.  The values and beliefs of Christianity have informed and formed this nation and our society and the roots of the nations and societies that have had the profoundest impact on us.  This may be in flux and what will be in the near future may be a nation and society influenced and informed by other faiths and values but for right now, like it or not, we are at least a pseudo Christian society if not a hard and fast one.

W  At its heart and core Christianity is about peace and justice; peace without violence and justice for all people.  I think it reflects the core values and passions of God for a world where all people have enough, have their basic needs met, and where we live and work together to make sure all people are cared for and have enough.

W  Christianity is a religion that is malleable and can absorb practices, understandings and discernments from other faiths, science, abstract thinkers and other forms of insight and inspiration.  For me, when I read the Bible, study the history of the Church and delve into the lives of Christians, famous and otherwise, I find the essence of Hinduism, the heart of Buddhism, the respect of indigenous faiths, the total commitment and submission of Islam, the connection to justice and being the people of God in Judaism.  I find in Christianity the spirituality of all the faiths and practices and disciplines that mirror or are the same as those of other faiths.

W  And finally, I am a Christian because I believe that in Jesus we have a definitive revelation of God.  The life, teachings and community of believers that saved and shared the message of Jesus all show God to me in a way that reveals God’s heart and soul.  And Jesus is a person, a human being and to see him as a decisive revelation of God makes Christianity different from every other faith.  Jesus’ life and ministry show us God’s passions:

o   God has compassion for the least of these, the marginalized and wills the well-being of all creation.

o   God has a passion for a transformed world – a world of justice and nonviolence where no one needs to be afraid.

o   God confronts the injustice and violence in our world and indicts that which gets in the way of the well-being of all that is.

And therefore through Jesus we get a glimpse, a sense of God’s character and passions, we come to know God through him.

I reject Christianity as the superior faith.  I reject an understanding of faith in Jesus and God as necessary for eternal life and salvation.  I reject the notion that Jesus had to die to make humankind acceptable to God.  I reject the idea that we live this life to gain entrance into eternal life.  God isn’t concerned with some here after, God is concerned with here and now and the transformation of our world and lives.  And most of all, I wholeheartedly and completely give my loyalty and allegiance to Jesus because he has shown that there is no other way but love.  God is love and that is what I strive to be.  This is why I am a Christian.