The church has preached so much on “original sin” that few people have taken notice of the “original lie”. While I don’t believe in the original sin concept (first sin yes) wherein we’re all screwed because of something done thousands of years ago. Forget that the story is an allegory loaded with symbols and metaphors and let’s deal with a much bigger issue.
For way too long in my Christian life I was taught and I believed the LIE- unknowingly!
The original lie is right there in the second chapter of Genesis, in the first act of the Bible called, Creation Act 1. What is the lie? It’s that God is not ALL LOVING! Need I bring up any other topic than the church “ace of spades” called an eternal hell to admit into evidence? What God would send someone to an eternal hell for a temporal sin? But there it is, right there in the Bible.
The metaphorical serpent gets Eve to believe LIES about God!
The questions are asked. Did God say? Why did God say? Does God want to keep all this truth about good and evil to himself? Is God a manipulator, not wanting some good old competition in the garden? How loving can that be? And surely Eve won’t die for eating of the tree: that was just another con by God to keep them away from its benefits.
The original lies embedded within the church psyche and it’s members.
But the original lie is just the earnest deposit on a really miserable game plan for we humanoids because I would submit to you that it is impossible to have a wrong view of God and a right view of anything else (yourself, your neighbor, the world, etc.). Thus, with a wrong view of God (The Old Testament picture was really scary), we draw wrong conclusions about life.
Let me illustrate a biggie.
Charles Freeman wrote in his book, The Closing Of The Western Mind, “Constantine’s victory at Milvian Bridge and his lack of knowledge of Christianity was apparent as he created a FALSE LINK between Christianity and success in war. The importance of this can hardly be exaggerated.” Hello America! And hello, to every other nation that goes to war (in the name of God). Didn’t Jesus preach PEACE? Then what the hell (proverbially speaking of course) are we doing with troops all around the world and killing tens of thousands of Iraqis?
When you buy into the original lie, and the church has BIG TIME, nothing else is going to work very well. NOTHING- NO-THING! NADA! Just look around you and see. But the GOOD NEWS is that it could all be changed in a nano-second. Accept the reality that GOD IS LOVE and start BEING who we ARE! How ’bout it? 
Pretty simple, huh. Amazing that we still don’t get it.
This is why it is so important that we have a good self image. We are mirroring our own insecurity all around the world. At least that is as it has been in the past. I see that image changing but it will take time. We have a president who is not self centered or self serving and the evidence of this is all of the relationships he has fixed in such a short time. It is amazing how people will respond if you do not come at them in a condescending way.
Richard Rohr’s commentary for today says it well.
“When we find the divine image planted so firmly inside ourselves, and when we find that ability to honor the divine image within, we learn reverence, adoration and praise—as a way of life.
The love of self and the love of the other are always moving forward together. As one advances, the other has to advance. As one regresses the other will normally regress too.
But it is always a matter of seeing more deeply. Seeing the divine image in all things including myself.”
Ernie love is sure found in your articles keep preaching.
Love Dan
There is so much that I still do not understand, so much that if I try makes me sink as if in quicksand; however, one thing that is becoming clearer to me, is how love is setting me free.
I am seriously grateful for the ways God is continuing to show me his grace, love, and mercy. I am so relieved not to be carrying as many judgements of myself and others. This type of love is contagious and outragious!
I love being loved and loving others. May we continue to grow and sow as we watch this world change even if people call us strange!
I don’t know who Charles Freeman is, niether do I know much of anyone really. I am greatly unread on purpose. But although I would not link Christianity to being the ticket to war. A personal relationship with God seemed to condone benefits in all we do. And is taught through out Abraham, Moses, Joshuas, Davids history as well the prophets that God does in fact uphold those that love Him through whatever they face, even war. Should we fight wars? From our point what reason is there to say to another this is my ten foot plot of land and you can’t stand there when we didn’t create that ten foot plot of land. ‘hey there’s many ten foot plots of land don’t let me stop you bye’. Or these are my ink blots of words that you can’t have or won’t live by so we shall ‘have at you.’ ‘Hey the library of congress is filled with books which all have the same words in them just in different order, have fun with that pal bye.’ God can fend for Himself he doesn’t need us to fight His battles. I remember reading an article about some Protestants and some Catholics boarding some fully armed and equipped galleons set to meet some place out in the ocean to blast massive cannon balls at each other? The Catholics even took communion before boarding their Spanish galleons. So here are these massive modern marvel constructions that took countless man hours to build, floating off to the recesses of the English or Spanish channel, I can’t remember which. The occupants thereof going out to prove how right they are by being the one still floating after all those fireworks? All those miraculously and wonderfully made persons dead because of a few people that didn’t even know they had cavities, but knew that blasting 8 pound led wieghts at someone was God’s will for them? But on the other hand there were those such as Joan of Arc whom was present for some miraculous victories, and the Maccabees whom overcame overwhelming odds time and time again until they where thwarted, George Washhington ascribed his victories to divine providence. Does God want war, well His will is ,if you follow Jesus, that none should perish. But as well he told His disciples to take two swords with them after He was ascended. Not to attack but to defend. But really we as humans fight all these wars not to kill all the physical people, but the way in which they live. And that was probably the biggest set back of Christian prosolytation and we may be reaping that at this time, that we changed the cultures to that of our own instead of just introducing God and letting them develope from there. I don’t know. In all things be blessed.
War is a primitive mans answer to questions that are not answered favorably. We have evolved and should likewise find others modes of solving our differences.