1001--being honest

Somewhere in northern West Virginia or western Maryland, I told my cousin, Mejol, something I've known for quite a while but had never said out loud to another human being.

"The longer I live," I told her, going 80 in her wondrous Honda hatchback, "the less I believe."

It is the truth--I'm being honest here. I believe less and less as I age.

Christianity has been horribly complicated by doctrine and dogma. Here is the essence of Christianity, so far as I can tell: love one another as God loves you; welcome the stranger into your midst; do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

That's about it, so far as I can see. Nothing more. Nothing less.

Everything else is window dressing and bull-shit.

Love one another, welcome the stranger, do to others as you would be done to.

'Nough said. No more necessary. Everything else about the church is expendable, clutter, nonsense.

I'm being honest here. There is nothing beyond those three injunctions (love each other, welcome strangers, treat others as you hope to be treated) that matters in the least. Everything Jesus left us is included in those three injunctions. The rest is 'stuff the church made up'.

I truly believe that though I didn't know how profoundly I believed it until I said it out loud to Mejol going about 80 on some interstate highway or another.

It's good to have it out in the open.

Imagine the world we might have if only we loved each other the way God loves us and welcomed strangers as friends and treated everyone the way we want them to treat us.

Imagine and ponder that for a while and tell me I'm wrong about how simple Christianity truly is....