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Right, so you want to remember Jesus, you want to show piety, you want to wear your religious commitment for those around you to see, whatever reason you have for wearing a crucifix, stop. Seriously. If you believe in the second coming especially, stop. When Jesus comes back to Earth do you really think he wants to see another cross? It’s like wearing a sniper rifle pendent and going up to JFK’s kids and telling them you’re wearing the pendent because you want to remember John (stolen from Bill Hicks). They almost certainly wouldn’t be pleased!
Maybe I’m mis-reading Christs pain and suffering, maybe I mis-understand when he asks for the cup to pass from his lips, for his father to make it so he doesn’t have to suffer and die. Maybe I don’t get how wearing the object that killed him is respectful. But if I were Jesus (and I accept that I could never be since I am all human and no divinity) and I were coming back to the planet I’d died a horrible death to save, died for sins I had not committed, died for people who didn’t even accept that I had even lived, the last thing I would want to see would be another cross.
I’ll get around to the actual point of this post now: People like Nadia Eweida who believe that it’s either an important part of their faith, or necessary for a Christian to wear one. I can’t think of many things less true, more intended to spark religious based racial feuds. The purpose of the court cases are for people to shout and cry and gnash their teeth about how this is no longer Our country and is now Their country. We are white, We are Christian, We are people born here with parents and grandparents who were born here. They are not-white, They are not-Christian, They may have been born here, but They don’t have parents and/or grandparents who were born here.
Us versus Them. Classic dichotomy.
The plain and simple truth is that we have no culture of wearing religious icons because of two things: 1) Christianity doesn’t demand we do; and 2) Christianity demands no false icons. If you’re wearing a cross then there is the risk that you are creating a false icon. The cross isn’t what is being worshipped, the Lord is. Wearing the cross takes focus from the Lord, it creates competition and God hates that.
This has only become an issue in recent years due to the way Christians are feeling threatened by Muslims. Muslims have a lot of religious based cultural dress and behavioural requirements. You can more often than not tell a strict Muslim just by looking at them. The same is not true for a Christian. Christians are required by their faith to not draw attention to themselves like hypocrites do. They are commanded to not deny their faith, especially when asked, but they are also commanded to not pray loudly, to not even let the left hand know that the right hand is giving charity. Christianity teaches that being brash and loud about good deeds and about your faith without invitation have their rewards here on Earth, not in Heaven. If you let a lot of people know you’re generous to charities then you have your reward – the admiration of your fellow man. If you let a lot of people know you’re pious and go to church every Sunday then you have your reward – the admiration of your fellow man (taken from the book of Matthew, 6:1 onwards). Christianity doesn’t want its followers to proclaim their faith loudly as the Muslims do.
What am I getting at? Christians should stop court cases such as these. You lose your rewards in Heaven. You lose the credit with God that you’ve built up. You should also stop wearing the cross. Jesus wouldn’t be impressed.
