Being a Christian

I  heard a radio program today with a acclaimed secularist who says he is a 'follower of Jesus' though he doesn't buy any of the 'God-stuff'. I found myself agreeing with him much more than I would with most evangelical or right-wing Christians.

Being a Christian in the Age of Trump is much more difficult for me than it was in the past.

What is being touted and claimed as 'Christian' these days makes me more than a little nervous.

And I'm an Episcopal priest, for goodness sake. Obviously I am--really AM--a Christian.

But when confronted with the limits of the Christian faith that those on the Right have, I find myself thinking I might be a secularist who follows Jesus.

It is, pure and simple, the teachings of Jesus that I believe in. Love, compassion, caring for the least of these in our midst, forgiving the sinners that we all are, proclaiming hope in a hopeless time and Light in the Darkness. That's how I'm a Christian.

Christians who oppose a woman's right to her own body, that believe GLBTQ folks are sinners, that believe those of other faiths are 'wrong', that do not recognize the holy in every person...well, I have no common ground with them.

Do I believe Jesus died for me? Of course I do.

But I also believe he died for all of us human beings whether we believe in him or not.

If I were not an Episcopalian I would be either a Quaker or a Unitarian-Universalist.

That's the kind of Christian I am.

Don't ask me about Armageddon on the Second Coming or Heaven/Hell, I don't have much of an opinion about any of that.

But ask me if I think living as Jesus taught us to live is the answer and I'll tell you a resounding "Yes!"

And, in addition, I'll tell you a lot of people 'live that way' who would never call themselves 'Christian'.

I meet a lot of 'Christians' who aren't. At least as many as I meet 'Christians' who claim they are.