New York Times Op-Ed: Christianity Is a Dangerous Faith, by David French:
Religion is one of the most dangerous forces on earth. … [L]et’s talk about the Christmas story. Every year, like clockwork, a series of debates breaks out in Christian America. When Jesus was born in a manger, did that mean he was homeless? When Jesus fled with his family to Egypt to escape King Herod’s order to kill all baby boys in the region of Bethlehem, did that mean he was a refugee? And when his family entered and lived in Egypt until Herod died, did that mean he was an immigrant?
You can see why the debate matters, whether or not you are a believer. If the man Christians believe is the Messiah, part of the Trinity, the maker of heaven and earth wasn’t just human, but also a human of low social status in the ancient world — and never elevated himself to any position of power on the earth — then that has immense implications for believers who want to imitate Christ. …
The core truth of Christ’s birth is that when God became man, he entered the world in a posture of extreme humility and extreme vulnerability, and that posture never changed. …
My former pastor often used a phrase that has always stuck in my mind — “the upside-down kingdom of God.” I use it all the time as well. Yes, Christ is King, but of a very different kind of kingdom, where the first are last, where you love your enemies, where you bless those who persecute you, and where you sacrifice to serve your neighbor. …
When I think of the contrast between Jesus’ life and ministry and the will to power that has consumed so many Christians, I’m reminded of the words usually attributed to Mahatma Gandhi: “I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.”
That’s a fair critique. And by that metric, every single one of us will fail. Who among us is truly like Christ? But Gandhi’s critique contains a potential fallacy. There is an unspoken implication that people would actually like Christians if we behaved more like Christ.
But no. That’s demonstrably wrong. … Many people do not … appreciate it when a Christian loves and serves their enemies. They absolutely do not like it when a Christian refuses to join their political crusade.
That’s what happened to Jesus. He healed the sick. He caused the lame to walk and the blind to see. But that wasn’t enough — a true Messiah was supposed to lead the people to political triumph.
When he did not, the religious people cast him aside. When the fateful choice was put before them, the religious people chose Barabbas, an insurrectionist, over Jesus. …
In the upside-down kingdom of God, religion is still dangerous, but the danger has flipped. Fundamentalist faiths make religion dangerous to others, the nonbelievers and heretics who must be made to yield.
But Christianity properly lived is dangerous to Christians. It’s dangerous to people who refuse to hate those they are told to hate, to people who refuse to oppress, to conquer, to exploit — even when they’re told to conquer in the name of God.
It was Christ’s humble birth that set the stage. It was the first lesson in a series: to oppress others is to oppress Christ, to hate others is to hate Christ, and to love your enemies can be the most dangerous and revolutionary act of them all.
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