The Faith Once Delivered

By anyone’s opinion, our world is religiously confused. There are eleven major world religions divided into some

4,200 denominations, among which exist more than 54 thousand Christian sects representing about 2.3 billion human beings.

But the confusion is much worse than this. What even passes for a religion is ambiguous. Most think of a religion

as requiring a god or gods, while a philosophy requires nothing more than human reasoning for a better way of life

and more meaningful existence. Yet there are some religions that don’t require gods but allow them—like Buddhism.

Their adherents venerate these optional gods, being careful not to claim they actually worship them. Buddhists have

statues of the Buddha they kneel before and pray to but claim not to worship. And so is this the case with Catholicism: “Notre Dame” Mary, the mother of Jesus, is venerated along with a host of dead “saints” but avowedly not worshiped—even though all of them are prayerfully invoked for special occasions, emergencies, and requests. The curious can only question and challenge the established conventions: What is the real truth, after all? Where do mainstream Christian traditions come from? Why is there so much disagreement and inconsistency in those religions claiming descent from Jesus Christ? And do their traditions trace back to Jesus, let alone have his approval?

Jesus Christ is worshiped as the Son of God and, therefore, God himself. What evidence is there of this? And, in a previous existence, did he bring into being our universe and our earth—and life, for that matter? Is there a natural scientific explanation for our physical universe? Are there any sacred writings that are divinely inspired and elucidate these answers? Why were humans created and, more importantly, what is the purpose of human suffering? Is this life all there is or is there an afterlife? And then there are the common-sense questions that crop up: If people go to heaven when they die, what is the point in believing in a resurrection? And how can flesh-and-blood wicked humans burn forever in a hellfire when cremation plainly shows this isn’t how it works?

Few of us get satisfactory answers to these questions and there is a good reason for this: We are enslaved to our former thoughts, habits, and customs. The mere questioning of our traditions is a taboo many cannot face and sometimes even get riled up about. Nor should we be tempted to think that an open-minded atheist is more open to answers than a narrow-minded believer. Usually, this turns out to be a false hope. Bound up in our human nature is self-esteem and self-preservation; a tendency to think our view of life is the only right one. A truly open-minded person is rare indeed. Whether a cool rationalist or a narrow-minded ideologue, both seem to justify their own position and dismiss other’s…..

The ultimate purpose of life was the domain of original Christianity. The first Christians recognized the word of God as the Old Testament until the New Testament was collected. They knew that this l life was only a rehearsal for the next life upon their resurrection. They knew that their relatively short time on earth was the only opportunity to build righteous character, the type God wanted in the kingdom of God come to earth. They also knew there were no last-minute reprieves at the time of the resurrection; that their character was only set by force of choice and habit. Why? They knew that the kingdom of God would only be filled with those who would not hurt, destroy, or defile that perfect golden age to come.