Reply #14: I absolutely agree. [View All]

[I Have A Dream]

I do not believe that Jesus is divine. That's one of the basic tenets of today's Christianity.

I remember my high school World Cultures teacher rationally discussing this with my class. It was the first time that I'd ever encountered someone who encouraged me to think about this for myself and who made it clear that I had the right to make my own decision about this. This was a paradigm shift for me. Today, a teacher would be hung out to dry if he/she were to broach that subject. How sad for our society that this is the case.

Even before I made the decision that I did not believe in Jesus' divinity (or ever even thought about it), I didn't feel comfortable praying to him or asking for him to intercede on my behalf. It made me feel very uncomfortable inside when I thought about it -- almost as though my teeth itched. I always felt as though I should be speaking directly to "God", although I was always uncomfortable with the concept of the "God" that Christianity describes.

That being said, I greatly respect the being who is Jesus, who I believe is an ascended being who came here to help humanity. His appearance on Earth changed the God of vengeance to a God of love. I always laugh when I think that these two Gods are supposed to be the same God. I don't think that either of these "Gods" are how the Universe actually works, but this metamorphosis in "God" was a shift in consciousness for humanity.

Someone else mentioned the issue of Paul versus Jesus. I greatly respect the being who is Jesus. His words encourage us to have love rule our lives. Paul's teachings (at least as they are currently presented) encourage separation and having fear rule our lives. Most of today's Christianity is based upon Paul's teachings. Jesus is nothing more than a figurehead; his position in Christianity has been usurped by Paul.

If it were not for the divinity and salvation issues, I'd consider myself to be a Christian.