I have assumed today’s religious and political leaders are different than the ones who killed past voices for good…

Now, I cannot unsee how wrong I have been. Religious Nationalism is exposed as the primary identity of the most vocal white American Evangelical churches. Fox News has replaced Jesus’ teaching as the Evangelical Christian’s source for good, right, and truth.

Jesus’ words to religious and political leaders

Matt 23:3

They do not practice what they preach.

Matt 23:4

They crush people with unbearable religious demands and never lift a finger to ease the burden.

Matt 23:5

Everything they do is for show.

Matt 23:6

They love the place of honor at banquets, the front seats in the churches.

Matt 23:13

You devour widows’ houses and make long prayers just for show. This is why you will receive a harsher punishment.

Matt 23:14

They shut the door of the kingdom of heaven in people’s faces because they take up the entrance and don’t allow those entering to go in.

Matt 23:15

You travel over land and sea to make one convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as fit for hell as you are.

Matt 23:25

You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence.

Matt 23:27

You are like whitewashed tombs, which appear beautiful on the outside, but inside are full of the bones of the dead and every kind of impurity.

Matt 23:38

See, your house is left to you desolate.

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History’s voices are consistent and unchanging.

Every life has value. True greatness (lasting beyond this life) grows from selfless service to the poor, oppressed, and powerless who are objectified by religious and political rulers.

Historical statements applicable today

(click the pic to read the quote)

Confucius - 551-579 BC

“Do not do unto others what you would not want others to do unto you.”

Diogenes - 412-323 BC

When asked why he went about with a lamp in broad daylight, Diogenes confessed, "I am looking for an honest man"

Thomas Carlyle - 1795-1881

"History is a mighty drama, enacted upon the theatre of times, with suns for lamps and eternity for a background.”

Abraham Lincoln - 1808-1865

“Fellow citizens, we cannot escape history.”

James Baldwin - 1924-1986

“People are trapped in history, and history is trapped in them.”

Maya Angelou - 1938-2014

“History, despite its wrenching pain, cannot be unlived, but if faced with courage, need not be lived again.”

David McCullough - 1933-2022

“History is a guide to navigation in perilous times. History is who we are and why we are the way we are.”

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This is my search for history’s trends, trajectories, and forces that lead to systematic injustices… across the long story of time.

To navigate truth we must consider all history from science to religion… from evolution, cosmology, and archaeology to religious scriptures and other ancient and modern thought leaders… from lining up political boasting to accounting for mythologies that form the foundation of the worldview these scriptures were written within – just like our mythologies do today. All truth is God’s truth, but there’s a lot to listen to in this information age.

SOMEONE ELSE’S BIG-PICTURE VIEW OF WHERE WE FIND OURSELVES IN TIME:

A couple of thoughts from the author:

Blog perspective:

Since this information age demands we consider the source…

I grew up in (and spent decades as a leader in) a cult whose primary idol looked like money and certain “approved” English translations of the Bible, with plenty of Pastor Worship thrown in. Being a cult, people were silenced, or dismissed, for talking about the wrong parts of that book or questioning the wrong leader(s). Previous to committing my life to this cult and even as I am stumbling out of it, I was and continue to be a follower of Jesus. I now see that his English name is actually “Joshua” and that the leaders I tried to emulate are the same individuals and societal forces who killed Jesus/Joshua. The wolves are wearing the sheep’s names, and that makes some of this confusing for me. I’m hoping to use this journal to line up a few things. I still spend a lot of time with the four stories about Jesus, and I’m an armchair ancient history student.

I am a follower of Jesus.

As I watched the foundation of almost everything I gave my life to crumble over the last few years, I turned to the stories of Jesus and completed “Meet Jesus” which includes the four Gospels arranged chronologically (copy/paste style). Jesus’ recorded public life ended up totaling 99 days and took place in one year (from Passover to Passover), and even that detail of a one-year timespan of Jesus’ public life was something that took me months to accept as possible. It was counter to the cult teaching, so it couldn’t be true. I guess that type of confusion is an asset to those who demand to be considered experts on God.

I know this:

Jesus is obscenely misrepresented by many religious leaders. I also know that is nothing new. I know that Scripture is the greatest idol of my time, and the people in those scriptures were worthy of knowing (and it will likely be somewhat offensive today as much as it was in their day). This is my journal the god named, “I am” through time using my experience.

Visit a post of perspective:

https://navigatetruth.com/0-perspective/

Thoughts on Time and Language

Our mechanism for tracking linear time grew out of this one person's life, teaching, and his followers claim his resurrection from the dead... That's a lot to take in, but whether you track time using BCE/CE or BC/AD, this one person is the fulcrum on which we tell time. So... if you think getting his story without all the other stuff which his story is sandwiched inside of - here's your chance.

I recognize that this still has creative punctuation and questionable meshing of stories, but all the details from each of the four "gospels" (stories about Jesus) are included (or that was at least the effort), there are typos, and an incorrect combo of text on the back cover and a reference to "yellow highlighting" on the inside of a b/w book - but it's the only format where you can get Jesus without all the other shit. It's in desperate need of a 2nd Edition, but this is what we got.

Jesus' life happened to take place during 99 days. I used copy/paste from a copyright-free version of the Bible (WEB). Every detail from Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John is included in this book, and there's only one place where two stories are out of order. Truly incredible for four stories date stamped at 331 AD! Plenty of details are different, but reading this man's story in a modern chronological "day-by-day" style helps me to understand who he was and what he taught.

Check out a working page of translations of some of the most misunderstood religious words used today:

https://navigatetruth.com/9-word-translations/

A project that took over a decade to complete is, “Meet Jesus.” This is a chronological story of Jesus’ life, separated into 99 days. The story is readable on this site, or in book form:

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