In What Sense Did Jesus Christ Die for Our Sins? 


Jim doesn't buy the doctrine that Adam's sin doomed us and that is why Jesus had to save us. 

This essay is divided into two voices. The first voice says what I CAN make of the doctrine of redemption. The second says what I CANNOT accept as a meaning of the doctrine of redemption.

WHAT I CAN SAY

This is a topic for another discussion, but briefly, I can believe that Jesus Christ was an incarnation of God in the sense that he evoked God experiences in many of the people he touched. I would not quibble about whether these were "real" God experiences or not. I am always ready to listen to people's stories of their encounters with God, and am inclined to take them as just that.

I can believe that the Passion Story describes an actual event. Whether it gets every detail, I don't know. But what I get out of the Passion Narrative and the Life that led up to it is that Jesus, in the well-known style of the prophets of his time, spoke the truth about our human failings and hypocrisy and gave many examples of how to live a more perfect and authentic life in God's name. Because of this, and because he refused to bow to religious and state authority, he was killed as being too dangerous to remain alive. And Jesus showed us how to die perfectly and authentically: do not fear to drink the cup you see that God has poured for you and remain true unto your principles until death.

I can see a redemption in this. Nearly all of us, and maybe all of us except this Jesus Christ, cannot do what he did. Peter could not. We lack the courage and the clear vision of God. Jesus staged an essentially non-protested, non-violent (on his part) response to threatened and sure death. He showed the way to peace by these acts, and I believe that it is surely true that Christ's Kingdom of Peace can NEVER come on this Earth until all are willing to follow this example.

Of course, there's a lot more to Jesus Christ's life than his death, and we need to be willing to follow these examples too of loving our neighbor as our selves.

So, briefly, by boldly understanding that the key to peace is given in this attitude and these actions, Jesus Christ offers us a way to bring peace into the world, perhaps the only way to do it. I get it. I get this part of redemption. We have to follow this example or we remain a part of the fear-driven world. Jesus took the space out of "a part" and made it "apart."

WHAT I CAN'T SAY

There was no Adam and no Eve. This story is a metaphor. It is Jewish midrash. There was no first man and woman. There was no Garden of Eden, not literally. So I can't literally believe that Adam and Eve's sin put the Universe in imbalance that only God's birth in human form can counteract.

And don't tell me that's just the way it was. How do you, or how does anyone know that? You don't. You may take it on faith. But taking a 3000+ year old midrash literally will not get you very deeply into understanding the mysteries of God, in my opinion.

In fact, what kind of ancient, primitive theory of balance and justice is this anyway, that a sin by the first man would have to be followed by the non-protested death of God incarnate? God can set up the Universe any way God wants to. And to say that well, this is just the way he did it is begging the question.

WHAT I CAN SAY

Isn't it more productive to approach this topic of sin not only from the Biblical perspective, but from a perspective informed by the 2000+ years of thinking between then and now? For example, I have no trouble admitting these things. I know they are true of me. I am imperfect. I am willful. Not only do I behave less than optimally because of my ignorance, my human frailty and my bad habits, but I also willfully do sometimes harmful and hurtful things even though I know I am doing them. And let's be honest, there's a normal curve of these things. Some people are out to willfully hurt other people for most of their lives. Some people bring much help to the world. But my point is, I think I am humbled by my own inadequacy and the inadequacy of others.

If what I am talking about above is what you mean by sin, then by all means go ahead and call it sin. We'll still communicate if you say you know everyone sins and some people are very sinful.

WHAT I CANNOT SAY

I cannot say that we have original sin if you mean that because ADAM sinned, now I sin. ADAM, who never existed, did not cause my sin. (I have to throw this joke in here, but almost no one has ever laughed at it: most of my sin is very un-original, that is, it's all been done before.) But seriously, I don't see what is gained by reifying my inborn inadequacy, caused as I said by my finititude, stray paths, bad habits, and even nasty disposition.

WHAT I CAN SAY

Yes, Virginia, there is EVIL in the world. There are negative energies, negative thought patterns, negative forces. You can't always blame a bad kid on a bad environment, a bad parent, a bad experience. People do choose to go down bad paths for sometimes inexplicable reasons. I think it is always very important what choices you make. Sometimes it may seem so easy to just tell a little lie to someone. And sometimes that is the kindest thing to do. But NEVER use lying because you just lack the courage to say the truth when it is called for, because you may be paving your way into a habit of cowardice. I don't know if there are evil forces that just lurk around waiting to sway such tiny decision one way or the other. A lot of people believe that they do. I just try to avoid thinking about them, and try my best to stay on a good path. Which I seldom entirely do.

WHAT I CANNOT SAY

No dammit, God is not an old man with a white beard. Satan is not a red creature with horns and cloven hooves. Now I wouldn't argue that in some altered states of consciousness you might not encounter creatures that had similar appearances.

SO WHERE ARE WE?

I'm saying that I consider myself a Christian. It does seem to me that in some sense the Word of God has come down through the ages. This Word, for Christians, shows us how Jesus Christ perfectly lived a peaceful, compassionate and God-obedient life, and redeems our otherwise petty and frivolous life. His life gives us a way to be Nearer to God. I could even believe (although I'm not sure about this) that Jesus Christ knew that he was showing us how to choose redemption

I just can't buy the other part of this doctrine, the original sin part, that requires me to believe, against all scientific knowledge, in a first man and woman, and in a mysterious evil curse on the whole human race. I can't believe that all powerful, all loving God had to cancel this evil curse out by being born into human form.

But I MIGHT believe that Holy Forces set this Life in motion to bring a more perfect example upon the earth.

I want no part of this IMHO metaphysically and theologically unnecessary pagent in my own belief structure, although I would certainly discuss it if someone wanted to.

And that's how I avoid thinking that the Buddhists and the Traditional Navahos are going to hell. What's your way?
 

Posted: Thu - December 15, 2005 at 09:04 PM          

©