An Easter Message

Yesterday was Good Friday, a very special day for Christianity, a prelude before Easter Day that commemorates the victory of Jesus Christ against death. It is a tradition for Christians to attend mass and churches to remember what the founder of Christianity represents and the covenant with God.

Adore God. Reverence and cherish your parents. Love your neighbor as yourself, and your country more than yourself. Be just. Be true. Murmur not at the ways of Providence.
Thomas Jefferson

Those who are not Christians use the day to gather with family for a traditional feast enjoying the unity of the family nucleus, an entity that has slowly disintegrated in the society of the United States.
In a speech given by Ronald Reagan, he stated:

I have said that we must be cautious claiming that God is on our side. I think the real question we must answer is: Are we on His side?

On the day of resurrection [John 20:1-9] …

Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, 'They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.' So Peter went out with the other disciple, and they were going toward the tomb. Both of them were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. And stooping to look in, he saw the linen cloths lying there, but he did not go in. Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen cloths lying there, and the face cloth, which had been on Jesus' head, not lying with the linen cloths but folded up in a place by itself. Then the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; for as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that he must rise from the dead.

A Treatise Concerning Christians and the 21st Century

I, like Thomas Jefferson, values logical philosophy; especially when discussing theology and politics. Those are two subjects where people turn off the logical portion of their brain and let emotion cloud their judgment and belief. Tradition can be a good thing, but only if it is supported by logic and facts, not superstition and blind faith. Thomas Jefferson created his own reference Bible, concerning the New Testament where he gleaned the myth from Jesus of Nazareth's parables and wise statements. He was more concerned with the spiritual world rather than the physical one. The Jefferson Bible has been reprinted several times and still available today. Indeed, the subtitle of the book is: “The Life and Morals of Jesus of Nazareth”. Using his original name description instead of “Christ”.

What prompted me to write about this is people sharing the myriad commentary and memes on my FaceBook board. They seem to ignore the fact that religion is the product of humans, not the Creator/God of the Old/New Testaments. Christianity was not founded by Jesus of Nazareth (aka Jesus of Galilee), but by his disciples who became apostles after his death.

Theology of our world's religions has fascinated me, especially the religions whose foundation and doctrine are based on an element of philosophy. It is those religions that have lasted through the centuries with 'cult' or denomination offshoots sprouting along the way.

Of course, I have paid for my use of logic instead of blind faith concerning religious clergy whose purpose of existence is to keep their flock, either by fear or indoctrination or both.

Morality is Consciousness

Suppressio Veri : Tolerance or Submission?

Christianity has evolved in terms of its church doctrine and Christian theocracy is extinct. Witches no longer are burned at the stake nor does the Inquisition no longer exist. The general concept is to follow the teachings of Jesus of Nazareth, who even stopped a stoning session against a woman accused of adultery. He did this not just on a humanitarian level, but to emphasize that it is better to change a person other ways than punishment by being stoned to death. He was more concerned about spirtuality than materialism. 

Treatise: Personal Thoughts on Religion, Tolerance, and the Soul

After writing chapters, essays and a treatise about the world's religions, from the point of views of people of a particular religion I discussed, I would like to set aside some time to write about my conclusions concerning the spiritual aspect of life that many have turned into a religion.

First, I would like to say that it has confounded me that during a long period of history, that Christians and Muslims cannot seem to get along for any period of time – and too often demonstrated during that history that some Christians (groups) and Muslims look upon Hebrews (Jews) as a scapegoat and inferior “race”. With that concept in mind, it already begins with misinformation in that being Jewish is not a race, but a Hebrew religion that is much older than both Christianity and Islam. In regards to history, Islam is the newcomer on the scene. Literally, a "Jew" can be of any race believing in Judaism.

History and Evolution of Early Christian Hymnals

When one examines the rise of Christianity and literary development from scattered early text, from the period of its inception through the disciples-turned-apostle after the crucifixion of Jesus of Nazareth one can see a growth form the original followers to a number in the millions as Gentiles became the prime converts over the Jewish population.

In that respect examining what is available in Greek and Latin text, one wonders about the origin of hymns that developed along with Christianity, especially as organized Christianity became more complex after the Edict of Milan in 313 and First Council of Nicaea in 325; where doctrine was prescribed and text was filtered for its authenticity and incorporation into Canon that became the Holy Bible divided between Old and New Testaments.

On Freedom of Religion and First Amendment, an Essay of Common Sense

A Madison County school board voted unanimously to alter a monument at the entrance of a Georgia high school football stadium in order to remove biblical scripture. The monument was erected in August and two different groups sent letters to the school stating that the monument violates the separation of church and state, demanding it be removed. There were two references to scriptures:

Romans 8:31: If God be for us, who can be against us?

Philippians 4:13: I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me.