Quote:
Originally posted by harry
Q: What did Jesus die for?
In school I was taught that Jesus died on the cross in order to take away the sins of the world. I didnt really understand it back then, and I wasnt especially interested either.
Well, Im interested now, but I still dont understand it. In what way would the death of God's son have anything to do with each person's share of guilt? Did God need a scapegout, so that the rest of us could be dispensed? Do WE need a scapegoat? Are we to blame for the death of Jesus and if so is that particular sin also taken away by his death? Well, as you can see i am quite confused. Whats your take on these questions?
(Of course it all makes perfect sense if viewed from the philosophical angel, i.e. that Jesus just wanted to give an exampel of how to lead an impeccable life. He stayed true to his principels of non-violence etc. no matter what the cost. But right now I am interested in the theological problem).
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Dear Harry,
I would actually like to address your last paragraph first and work my way up.
To me, there is no separation of the philisophical from the religious, all being part of the great description of how I see the universe, so I think what you've said about Jesus and an "impeccable life" is very relavent. (I'm not saying this is impossible, of course. My college roommate, an avowed atheist, and I had a rather enjoyable series of talks about how moral systems were built, but this is how I happen to do things.)
That being said, I too have a problem with the whole notion of "scapegoating" on to Jesus. This lead me to consider just what this "original sin" thing really is.
I certainly do not believe there is some mystical "stain" on the soul of a newborn and that if said newborn dies without a baptism they go straight to Hell.
Instead, I started thinking of the nature of free will (yet again) and how it allowed us choices, both good and bad, and that frequently, human beings DO make bad choices, whether out of greed, lust, anger, etc. So in my thoughts, original sin is simply our tendancy as human beings to do bad things to ourselves and to each other.
NOW, if we begin to think about who Christianity tells us this "Jesus" person was/is, then it can make a little more sense. Christian theology tells us that Jesus was fully God, yet fully Man. It is a simple statement that contains huge ramifications which I don't think we as mortals can fully understand or appreciate. For one thing, it means that Jesus had the capability of sinning (temptation), even though Christians believe he didn't. Therefore he understood just how hard it is to be a human being.
So then this is my own take on this. Jesus was here as an example on several levels, including the 'impeccable life' you mentioned. He was also here to let us know that God is more than a distant creator, but is rather like a loving parent.
In doing this, God knew that our tendency to do bad we lead us to kill Him. The example of His death and resurrection (another huge topic) is that even if you lead the impecable life (or try) and people do their worst to you for it, you will still be ok.
(An interesting side question always is, "How much did Jesus know when He was here on earth?" I've not come to any personal consensus, but I highly recommend reading "The Last Temptation of Christ" or renting the movie with William Defoe as Jesus to ponder this question.)
I hope this gave you things to think about and good luck on your search
