If someone with the equivalent of Jesus' social status, from a region of the world equivalent to Galilee, were to begin teaching a social and political message similar to Jesus' in the modern world (stick with Europe, the US or Latin America), how would that person be received by others? What does your response tell you about the influence of Jesus' ideas?
It is hard to say how a message like Jesus’ would be received by the western world today. First, someone preaching a message similar to that of Jesus would have certain advantages—i.e. global communication, laws of religious tolerance. It would be easy to spread his message, and I’m guessing he would not have to worry much about crucifixion.
However, religion is not the major force and focus that it was in Jesus’ time. Serious religious devotion and practice in America is scarce relative to other countries, and it is not focused to one religion. With significantly less religious attentiveness, it would be hard for a religious message to grow the way Jesus’ did. It would also be difficult to pull people from their many different faiths and unite them under a common teaching. Furthermore, religion has an increasingly negative connotation in America, what with political correctness. The youth especially is struggling with and diverging from their inherited beliefs, and religion altogether. Social revolutions generally take root in society’s youth, but I think a rising religious leader would be met with hostility.
America’s secularism could, however, be used as an advantage. Given that Christian morality is an underlying foundation of western culture, a message of charity and forgiveness is easily applicable to western society. With a message as compatible to western culture as that of Jesus, it would be easy to inspire the godless masses of the US. It is human nature to look to a higher authority for guidance, especially when in a lowly state. America has an ever-growing lower class that would easily be predisposed to a utopian message of forgiveness and charity.
Jesus’ message grew so influential partly by chance, making it hard to speculate what would happen today. Though it is certain that Jesus preached to the poor and gained followers in his time, his exact message has been lost to the scripture written after his time. Christianity as a religion was not created by Jesus, but established by his followers from his teachings. It is mostly thanks to Paul and the Jerusalem Church, which interpreted and structured the teachings of Jesus, that Christianity is a functioning religion. Ultimately, its widespread popularity was dependent on political acceptance as well. With such a circumstantial rise to success, who can say what could have been, or what could be now?
1 comment:
Well-said, very comprehensive look at the issue. You are correct to point out that Christianity's rise was dependent to some degree on circumstance, and that the Christian foundation of Western values might pre-dispose Americans towards a similar movement in the modern world. I am not sure I agree with you that America is an especially secular country, though it is certainly more secular than some. When compared with Europe, which we often are, America's overall population is much more active in their faith than European populations.
Post a Comment