Christian Teachings Richer without Jesus, Author Says
SOURCE: Canadian Press, Kitchener Waterloo Record (17 April 2004)
(Copyright © 2004 Kitchener Waterloo Record.)
Theologian and best-selling author Tom Harpur begins his latest book, The Pagan Christ: Recovering the Lost Light (Thomas Allen & Son) by stating that he is not trying to be controversial. He then goes on to assert that there was no historical Jesus Christ. At a cafe in a downtown Toronto hotel, Harpur speaks of the central idea in his book with an engaging combination of authority and warmth.
"Christianity, very early on in the third and fourth centuries, took what proved to be a somewhat disastrous turn,'' he says. "It turned away from the more spiritual, allegorical, mythological approach to its story and instead literalized it and historicized it. That, I think, has distorted the meaning of the faith.''
He admits that this sounds like an "audacious and outlandish thing to say.''
But his education - he has an MA from Oxford University and a master of divinity degree from the University of Toronto - and years of research in comparative religion and as a columnist for the Toronto Star have led him to this "inescapable conclusion.''
Harpur, a former Anglican parish priest, does most of his "deep thinking'' on morning walks through the orchards and woods near his home on Georgian Bay.
EGYPTIAN SOURCES
Over the last several years studying Egyptian religion, he says, "I found in my sources 180-plus direct parallels between Jesus, his words, his miracles, and previous saviour figures...from the raising of Lazarus...to sayings like, 'I am the way."' "So it began to dawn on me that...religion is about symbol, metaphor and allegory. If the Bible has history in it, it does so by accident, because that was not what its authors were interested in. They were interested in the meaning behind history and in the evolution of the human soul.''
The Pagan Christ is full of convincing research on the parallels between Christianity and ancient religions and philosophies. It also describes the way in which the early church "tried to cover up its pagan origins.'' But Harpur does not believe he has written a "debunking book.'' He is more interested in talking about what it means for Christians to take a more universal approach and look for the divine spirit within themselves. "For 2,000 years we have taught people to just be good and docile members and let us worry about your souls....I think it will help the evolutionary thrust forward of the race if each of us takes responsibility instead of fobbing it off on gentle Jesus, meek and mild.''
In a review of the book published in the Toronto Star, Wayne Holst, a United Church parish educator in Calgary, says there is "good help here if you wish to approach the Bible mythologically.'' But he questions the approach of downplaying the classic theological balance between the Jesus of history and the Christ of faith. "It is one thing to say that the Gospels do not intend to portray history but to buttress belief. And that myth can use historical details at times, but ultimately, it has to do with eternal truths,'' Holst wrote. "It is quite another to imply that the Jesus of history is of little consequence.''
Harpur, meanwhile, is critical of the portrayal of Jesus in Mel Gibson's film The Passion of the Christ. "It's a moving film,'' he says, "unless you happen to be a specialist in religion as I am, and you see the flaws and the lies.'' He questions how Pontius Pilate could be shown as a good man, "when you know historically that he was recalled twice to Rome because he exceeded the bounds of cruelty, even for then.''
GIBSON MOVIE FLAWED
He also points to the movie's sexism, showing the devil as a woman, and anti-Semitism, as the high priest Caiaphas is the "epitome of evil. You despise this guy. He is like the villain in the old movie that everybody hisses.'' In fact, says Harpur, "the Gospels are anti-Semitic, if you take them literally.''
Harpur is also critical of "any group in any religion that thinks they have the lock on the truth. "We've seen this trend in the ascendancy of the fundamentalist conservative mentality in the United States at the present moment because they have the White House. So they are able to inflict their will...not only on Americans but on anyone else that they want to bomb to smithereens.'' Instead, if you accept that the Christian story is almost identical to many other religions and philosophies, it opens up the possibility of harmony between religions.
"I am not proposing a harmony where we say 'Let's all get together and pretend we don't differ,"' says Harpur. "I am proposing a harmony that goes subversively underneath that because we are all the children of God...Essentially God is in each one of us. If I harm my brother, I am harming myself.''
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