Christianity isn’t Jesus’ fault
© 2011 notjesusfault.com |
Jesus didn’t found Christianity — he wasn’t even a “Christian”!
Our Mission
Notjesusfault.com exists to promote a crucial discussion about Christianity’s faithfulness to Jesus’ message and mission.
We maintain that Jesus never intended to found a religion or be the object of its devotion. Moreover, in deviating from Jesus’ original message, Christianity has inauthentically represented the remarkable man it claims to follow.
Simply put,
Christianity isn’t Jesus’ fault.
Christianity as an institution developed long after Jesus walked the earth. And by definition, a follower of a religion (a “Christian”) can’t be the foundation on which the religion is based.
An exceptional, extraordinary human being, Jesus was revolutionary in his thinking and boldly challenged the social conventions of his time. He was inspirational to his followers, who saw him as the leader of an important and radical social movement. By promoting unity, acceptance and inclusion, Jesus sought to break down barriers that divide. Feeling an innate connection with a particular power within, Jesus’ mission was to make what he called “the kingdom [or ‘reign’] of God” more present in the world. He saw liberation and happiness as potentialities that all people can achieve.
But Jesus never intended to found a religion, much less be the object of its devotion.
The followers of Jesus — the disciples and the early Christian Church — made him into something else. The hierarchies of institutional religion made him God; doctrine and dogma distorted Jesus’ identity by making him uniquely divine. Church leaders enshrined Jesus as “the only Son of God.”
But he wasn’t. And it’s not his fault that Christianity has made him out that way. Jesus had nothing to do with the development of Christianity — nor has he had anything to do with the many stances and moral positions the Church has taken over the ages. In general, what has been done in Jesus’ name has been done completely without his knowledge or consent... and long after his death.
The gospels do not record any words of Jesus concerning some of the most divisive and controversial issues in Christianity today — issues like birth control, abortion, homosexuality and gender equality. And yet the Christian Church maintains that it faithfully represents the will of Christ in upholding dogmatic principles concerning these issues. Sadly, these doctrines have been used to alienate and exclude individuals from the “Christian community.”
Moreover, mainstream Christianity has become increasingly intolerant of other faith traditions. Although the majority of human beings who believe in God express their belief through other religious traditions, fundamentalist Christians assert that their perspective is the only valid one. This exclusionary and inflexible stance has resulted in alienation and heightened tension between Christians and people of different faiths.
But this is clearly not consistent with Jesus’ message. Jesus reached out across different religious traditions to recognize and value each human being. His focus was not on promoting one religious perspective; rather, he emphasized our shared humanity and the interrelatedness of all people.
Jesus sought to unify rather than divide, and his intention was to promote freedom over unquestioning conformity to institutional authority. Jesus never intended to be the “founder” of a religion that would be oppressive and exclusionary.
In other words, Christianity isn’t Jesus’ fault. It’s ours. And we’re the only ones who can fix it.
The purpose of notjesusfault.com
In a very real way, institutional religion has become the greatest threat to the modern world. Unfortunately, Christianity — like other faith traditions — has been the cause of much division, exclusion and alienation... which are completely contrary to Jesus’ message of inclusive love.
Notjesusfault.com exists to promote a discussion between believers and non-
The “Jesus” of contemporary Christianity is very different from the charismatic leader who gave hope to the downtrodden two millennia ago. In its divergence from Jesus’ original message, the institutional Church has done a great disservice both to the man and his mission.
Christianity has given Jesus a bad name. And now more than ever, it’s crucial for
Christians, non-
Ironically, one thing that atheists and true “fans” of Jesus can agree on is that, in his extraordinary compassion and acceptance of others, Jesus is indeed worthy of imitation. He frequently reached out to help those in need — those who were physically impaired, outcast or otherwise marginalized.
Notjesusfault.com sees “helping others” as a critical underpinning of Jesus’ ministry. This service to others, which is not motivated by religious compulsion or obligation, is based on a more fundamental ethical principle: doing good is simply the right thing to do.
Therefore, “helping others” — in the context of this website — involves both engaging the crucial conversation about what Jesus really would do... and encouraging everyone to concretely show compassion for those in need.
In a word, this site is about
Freedom from conformity to oppressive institutional structures
and ways of thinking...
Freedom to be
one’s authentic self...
Freedom to be the
best person you can be...
Freedom to experience
the kind of liberation
Jesus experienced.
The Your Voice area of this website invites you to promote the discussion and make a real difference in the lives of others and in the world today.
