According to the story we have about him, Jesus was not a religious person. He was considered a heretic and degenerate by his own religious tradition. The real Jesus of history would be horrified in knowing that a religious system was created around his personality, and the theological teachings attached to him. The true significance and impact of Jesus will not be grasped until one stops thinking of him as the product or proponent of religion, even the Christian one.

Jesus was not a Christian. He is not the founder of Christianity. Jesus never encouraged people to worship him. Christianity is a religion created in the name of Jesus, and is much different from the actual truth that Jesus taught and lived. Christianity does not own or have first rights to Jesus. His truth has universal significance.

It’s a mistake to make Jesus a religious figure or front man for
Christianity. You often have to disentangle Jesus from what you heard at church to find the truth he said would set you free.

I resonate with the story about Jesus as a human being. I see him as one who lived a life of compassion, stood with the victims of this world against their oppressors, and tied his destiny to the marginalized and powerless against the the iron fist of the religious and political establishment. I see Jesus as a man who lived courageously according to his convictions. He is depicted as a deeply spiritual and wise man man who challenged people to find true peace and happiness inside themselves.

I understand Jesus as someone who believed that every human being is worthy, loved and belong, and he tangibly and fearlessly expressed this to others. I take the central teaching of Jesus to be that there is nothing real that separates us from ultimate reality, our highest nature or from one another. I want to be more human in these ways, and inspire that kind of humanity in others.

I don’t think of Jesus as a religion or someone to be worshiped. I do not think that Jesus is the only one who had deep spiritual understanding, or the only one who can inspire a life of goodness, human solidarity and compassion. I believe the significance of Jesus was the courage and convictions of his life, not the theological mythologies of his death.

I don’t have a problem with a Jesus who got angry and sometimes came unhinged. I resonate with the Jesus who was a revolutionary and rebel, or a Jesus who didn’t mince words with people who misused religion, and even someone who could be downright profane and known to get a little crazy when he had too much wine. What made Jesus unique was how he put it all together to be the human being that he was.

Christianity is not the fault of Jesus. One should look upon Christian theology with some skepticism given that you can’t hardly find Jesus anywhere in it. We painted Jesus white and dressed him up in Christian theology, but the brown-skinned, Middle Eastern Jew who turned religion on its head, got lost some 2,000 years ago on the dusty roads of Nazareth.

I do identify myself as a “Christian” and I have often noticed how Christianity has very little to do with the Jesus I know. But I would stand side-by-side with Jesus any day to advance the cause I saw in his heart. If I had to choose a team to start a revolution, Jesus would definitely be one of my top picks. Jesus holds significance for me because my investigation into Jesus was what initially opened my eyes to the truth that set me free. He’s not the only one who attested to this truth, but it’s how I initially got it and for this I am grateful.

In my view, there are ways Jesus is universally relevant, regardless of one’s religious, spiritual or philosophical belief-system. Jesus both affirmed what was good and confronted what was wrong in his own religious tradition. He taught that love is and should be the ultimate fulfillment of all religious teaching.

Jesus pointed out the hypocrisy of claiming a close relationship with God while perpetuating discord and hostility in human relationships. He confronted the mentality of judging others, and instead told people to look in the mirror.

Jesus taught a human solidarity where every person sees themselves as a “neighbor” to those in need. He extended love, compassion and friendship to all people without condition. Jesus affirmed the inherent and equal worth of all human beings, regardless of their status or place in the world. He confronted systemic oppression and took on institutional power structures that perpetuated it.

Jesus did not seek to convert people to any religion or belief-system but challenged his followers to embrace and follow the spirit of love within themselves. He affirmed that every person has the responsibility and authority to build a world of peace and harmony that works for everyone.

Some people who leave religion no longer ascribe any significance to Jesus. Some people believe Jesus was a deranged religious zealot. Some people don’t think Jesus ever even existed. It’s not my job to tell people what they should think about Jesus. People are free to choose their own beliefs.

Even all these years after walking away from the Christian religion, Jesus has endured as a deeply meaningful symbol for my spiritual journey and lived human experience. Jesus claimed to be both divine and human. And even though institutional Christendom missed what this means, for me it is a profound invitation to actualize my highest possibilities and potentialities, for the liberation of myself and our entire human family. A question that I often ask myself along the everyday paths of life is: What does it mean right now for me in this moment to be all that I am, divine and human?

So, if I don’t go to church or celebrate Easter Sunday or do any resurrection posts about Jesus, this doesn’t mean I don’t carry a special place in my heart for who I understand Jesus to have been… and in many ways the person I want to be. It takes guts to be human in the ways Jesus was.

I hope something in all this was useful. It’s okay to believe in God, but it not be the “God” of religion. It’s okay to find significance in Jesus, but not identify as a Christian. Attending an Easter Sunday service may not be meaningful for you, even if you find meaning in Jesus for your spiritual journey.