First Drafted 03-Nov-2016
Yes, yes he is.
Then this from John Maisel:
I want to start with Hebrews 11: “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for, being convinced of what we do not see.” There are plenty that try to apply modern philosophy and reason to a mish-mash canon of books that survived through 5,000 years of history. We want this library of mythology, poetry, song, wisdom, prophesy and history to fit our neat, angular, bauhaus, mid-century and first world utopian ideals. We want that desperately. The Bible fails us and so we spit it out as absurd. It’s central character at the end is an insane Nazarene carpenter born in a stable named Jesus. This Jesus says he is God.
It’s almost axiomatic. A man, mortal in every respect, rises to the throne of the Roman Empire. Very soon he declares he is not mortal but a god. He demands tribute and worship. Those who don’t comply are killed. A bastard son, born in Bethlehem to Nazarene parents who claim an absurdity–a virgin birth, a poor carpenter in trouble with his own church for speaking blasphemy, this is who fulfills the prophesies of Isaiah, who claims to be kin of King David? Nuts.
This space is where the odd ones are. Jesus is one of us. If you don’t want to read all 1500 words of this I’ll spoil the ending: Jesus was either a crackpot or he was telling the truth. You can go back to YouTube now. Which is crazier: a despotic emperor claiming to be a god or a no-account pauper saying he is the King who will restore Solomon’s Temple and once again free the Jews from their oppressors? I’m going with the no-account pauper.
My life is nuts. Less so lately but still nuts. It’s only been three days since I went hunting for a particular kitten and though I found her, I didn’t get to bring her home. She sat in the shadows and waited for my car to leave. I was there a whole half-hour, an eternity in this 247365 intertube world we’ve made. So, a God that resembles Caesar, that went to all the right schools, is of the right bloodline, has been checking off the boxes on the orthodox bucket list his or her whole life, can recite the entire bible in latin, greek, aramaic, spanish and english and has a trophy case from all the apologetics debates he or she won, is married to a beautiful spouse, has property in the Hamptons, Santa Monica, Houston, Connecticut and Arlington, VA, that one? That one can kiss my fat, pimply white ass.
I’ll never worship him or her. A god who was born in a feed-trough for donkeys, to a mother who claimed a virgin birth, was raised up a carpenter, alleged to be a troublemaker his whole life, and at around age 30 or so started teaching blasphemy, that one? Yeah, him I like. He’s nuts. He’s an absurdity. It cannot be that a low-down carpenter could be the God of creation, the King of Israel and the fulfillment of the prophesies. Or could it?
We have a prince and a princess stomping about the country impugning the other as proof that we should not coronate that one and instead coronate him or her. One is accused of being a rich pig, two unpardonable, deplorable sins. The usual tropes about his kind are flung at him like angry birds. He’s racist, he’s misogynist, he’s anti-gay, he’s rich, he’s rich, he’s rich, his hair is fake and worst of all, he’s an old white guy. The other has so much alleged corruption and fraud it’s a bit stunning she hasn’t already been arrested. One of them will be our next king. One of them will evoke the memory of Gaius Julius Caesar Germanicus (Caligula) with fondness.
I chose to make my own way. I chose to deal with my shit and the ways it has fucked up my life. I come from people like the demi-god I speak of. My cousin is a prominent attorney in Philadelphia, the city of my birth. Webb’s have been at tipping points in history for many centuries. Then comes me, who accuses his father of high crimes and misdeameanor’s gets on a bus across the country and says he’s going to be a Broadway star. That went well.
I can’t be a disciple of Caesar. The prince and princess we are asked to vote on next week are both so incredibly wrong for the post of the Presidency it is stunning. Were I able, I’d get myself arrested for trying to punch Caesar in the face. I need a pugnacious God, one who says outrageous, blasphemous things and heals the sick on the Sabbath. Is Jesus God? Yes, yes he is.