THE EDITOR, Sir:
Having read Rev. Mr. Dick's piece published in your edition of April 7 and that of Mr. Peter Espeut the following day, I wonder if it isn't high time for Christians to take a fresh look at their beliefs concerning Jesus of Nazareth. By this I mean a perspective in which medieval superstition such as was evident in the articles mentioned above, is cast aside.
The idea of a gruesome crucifixion being God's requirement of atonement for the sins of the world, inclusive of the sins of all our ancestors, contemporaries and successors, is an incredulous theological twist unworthy of intelligent consideration. It is nothing more than an interpretation of bewildered minds, contrived decades after the event in strict conformity to Hellenistic Jewish mythological thought patterns of their day. This was useful perhaps, for personal consolation at the time, but totally lacking in historicity.
Christianity and the world at large could be better served if we would seek to emulate the historical Jesus by leading principled lives even to the point of death, instead of genuflecting to mythical representations that have no validity.
P.S.: If Jesus had been of the view that tradition was the point on which true religion turned, as Mr. Espeut seemed to be intimating, I doubt there would be any Christianity - traditional or otherwise.
I am, etc.,
NIGEL WALKER
GPO Box 159
Kingston
