'Tis the Season

Well it's the holiday season, and this December 25th over 250 million Americans will celebrate Christmas. But does anybody research why so many celebrate Christmas? Well duh, it's to celebrate the birth of Jesus of course. Yeah I get that part, and for the moment I'll suspend discussion about whether Jesus was really born on December 25th (the evidence in the Bible points otherwise). But back to the previous question, why do so many celebrate the birth of Jesus? Let's look at some popular responses more critically.

1) Jesus was the son of God. Really? Where's the proof of that? Of course where's the proof that any God exists? There have been many impostors over the centuries claiming to be the son/daughter of God. Remember David Koresh of Waco, TX? He claimed to be the son of God and had 100+ followers, but of course nobody really believed he was the son of God (except those in the Waco compound). Joseph Smith (founder of the Mormon religion) was thought to be a prophet of God and to have been directed by an angel of God to a buried book of sacred golden plates in the 1800s; however today it's obvious he was a fraud yet there are still millions who practice Mormonism. So how do we really know the Biblical Jesus wasn't a similar crackpot who started with his own small legion of followers in Galilee, similar to what Koresh had in Waco or Smith had in Utah? The answer is we really don't know. The only "evidence" is from the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. However the Gospels weren't written by eyewitnesses or by followers of Jesus. They weren't even written by Matthew, Mark, Luke and John (the true authors were anonymous). They were written 30-60 years after Jesus' death and are based upon hearsay and rumors, which allows for embellishment and fabrication of history, and was followed by centuries of likely manipulation by the Church before we get to the copies we read today. Bottom line is the Gospels are not a reliable source of historical information and there is zero credible evidence that Jesus was the son of God. See my November post on the resurrection of Jesus for more insight.

2) The teachings of Jesus are brilliant. Really? I'm aware of all the passages which say that Jesus loves us and wants peace on earth which is all well and good, but are you aware of all the teachings of Jesus that priests don't reveal at Sunday mass? Well, here's a short list in blue font directly from Jesus's Sermon on the Mount [Matthew 5-7]:

• You shall not get angry with someone or call them an idiot or you will be judged. You shall not curse at anyone or you are in danger of going to hell. Really? So if some drunk driver kills the members of my family and I curse at the drunk I'm the one that goes to hell?
• If a man looks at a woman with lust he shall gouge out his eyeball and throw it away, otherwise he will be thrown in hell. Really? In that case you would think most of the male population would be walking around blind!
• A man is guilty of adultery if he marries a divorced woman. A woman is guilty of adultery if a man divorces his wife. The punishment? According to the Bible the punishment is death [Leviticus 20:10]. Gee, 50% of marriages end in divorce, and 80% of those divorced remarry. Wow, according to Jesus we should kill off a good chunk of our population.
• Do not resist an evil person. Really? If someone breaks into my house with the intention of doing harm I'm supposed to just let them? If a woman is about to be raped she should let them? If an evil dictator wants to start a war and invade the USA, we should just let them? Sorry but Jesus is an idiot, most rational people would fight back.
• If you are sued in court and lose, give them more than the judgment. Really? Bet the ambulance chasers are Christians, LOL.
• If someone asks for something then give it to them without question. Cool. Mr. Buffett, kindly send me a check for 10 million dollars!
• Love your enemies. Really? Never felt much love for Osama Bin Laden. 
• Keep your gifts to charity private. Hmm, the IRS requests otherwise on Schedule A. Guess that also means goodbye to the Bill Gates Foundation, the Tiger Woods Foundation, and the Michael J. Fox Foundation.
• Do not pray where others can see you. Really? Then exactly why were churches built?
• Do not accumulate wealth on earth. Really? So what shall millions of Americans do with their IRAs?
• Do not worry about every day life - whether you have enough food and drink or enough clothes to wear. God will take care of that. Really? And how many millions of children starve to death each year on the planet?
• Do not plan for the future. Really? Sorry, but Jesus you're really an idiot.
• Do not judge others. Really? If a gang of obvious thugs is heading your way exactly how am I supposed to survive without judging others?
• Pray for something and you will receive what you ask for. This is very dangerous. Just ask the parents of sick children who ended up dead because their parents thought that praying was better than taking them to a hospital.

We're just getting started. Let's see what else Jesus said in the Gospels.

• If a town doesn't accept the words of Jesus, the town shall be destroyed in a manner worse than Sodom and Gomorrah [Matthew 10]. Oooh, now we're rolling. Guess we should kill off over half the world's population that doesn't follow Christianity.
• Children who speak disrespectfully of their parents must be put to death [Mark 7:10]. Wow, who would think Jesus would condone killing children.
•  To get into heaven you  must sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor [Mark 10:21]. Really? Maybe the Vatican can set an example and give all its net worth to the poor.
• Jesus says that slaves must obey orders from the master or face severe punishment [Luke 12:47]. Another example of outdated morality in the Bible.
• You can not be a disciple of Jesus unless you hate your father, mother, wife and children [Luke 14:26]. Wow, what a monster.
• People who don't believe in Jesus shall be thrown away like useless branches to be gathered into a pile and burned [John 15:6]. This passage served as impetus for the killings during the Inquisition.

OK, guess my point has been made here. Jesus was a freak. Nobody in their right minds would follow the teachings and words of Jesus. Maybe this is why the Romans crucified Jesus, LOL.

3) Jesus died for our sins.
This one is the most sickening of all. Why should one person die to forgive another of their sins? I can not imagine a more stupid base for a religion than that. Does that mean I now have a free pass to commit as many sins as I want? Crazy. Why not just forgive someone's sins if they confess and the are sincere? Why does there have to be a killing too? What would you think of two parents if they killed their only son just to forgive their daughter of her sins? You would think the parents were nuts and a jury would probably sentence them to life in prison. See the contradiction? So you see this whole notion of blood sacrifice for atonement of sin is a pretty ridiculous concept. Moreover, I would rather spend my time worshiping our fallen military, who really made the ultimate sacrifice by giving up their lives so that we can enjoy the freedoms we have today.

Therefore upon deeper analysis I fail to see any compelling reason to worship the birth of Jesus.