Jesus Wasn't A White Man

I'm sitting in the middle of my British Literature class and my mind is seriously starting to melt. We just completed reading Reveries of the Solitary Walker by Jean-Jacques Rousseau and were discussing the idea of thinking, over-thinking, the age of reason, etc. Basically in a nutshell all the things associated with the Western way of thought. Everything is rational, must be figured out, and abstract Eastern thought is pretty much thrown out.

The thing with me is this: As I think and think and think and use every bit of the Western lens I automatically see things through it points me more and more toward Eastern thought.

As far as Christianity is concerned we have Westernized things so much! We so often forget that the ideas and thoughts that we follow are Eastern ideas. I guess that's why I follow a lot of the thinking of Rob Bell. It's because he understands that Jesus was teaching Eastern thought and using Eastern ways of teaching. Often, well, all the time using abstract teaching. The students of the day were forced to THINK. As Westerners we are so used to having everything given to us on a silver platter and never once told to question the words of anyone.

Part of what set this off was a remark one of my classmates said about church saying "Once you put the dollar in the pot, you're expected to continue." And I was like YES you are, but not for the reason you're thinking about. Western thought says you give as an obligation with a "chain-like" connotation, when Eastern thought a.k.a. THE BIBLE (Jesus wasn't white, contrary to modern depictions) says give out of JOY. Where has the church (the people, not a building, but that's another post) been for these last 2,000 plus years?! How have we let ourselves get to the point where all people think is that we're out for their money in a negative way?

THINK PEOPLE. Take time to understand why we do the things we do, and then start, for lack of better words (sorry this might be harsh) cleaning up the mess of others. We, despite what America feeds down our throats, are not automatons. We are not religious machines, but followers of Jesus.