Jesus was not some nice, neatly-shaven white guy who carried a baby lamb in his arms, picking daisies, patting children on the head and spouting off sappy stories about kittens and butterflies. Jesus raised hell against the religious establishment and his life was a revolt against the institutional powers of his day that sought to dominate, control, oppress, exploit, shame and divide people. Whether in the name of God or Caesar, Jesus would have none of it. His love was fierce, tenacious, courageous, unyielding, gutsy, and unflinching.

Jesus stood for the inherent and equal worth of every human being. He denounced the religious lie that humankind was separated from God. Jesus told people to find heaven within themselves. He proclaimed another world was possible. He chastised people for sitting around waiting on “God” to save the world, and told them to wake up and save themselves.

Jesus rebuked people who tried to make a religion out of him, and challenged people to live with the same courage, conviction and resolve that he did. He said the hope of the world was not a deity somewhere up in the sky, but a power and authority contained in the human spirit.