Counterfeit

The other day I was reading something and it mentioned that the person had realized that the things they had learned in "Christianity" were not what was actually part of the early gatherings of believers. That got my head spinning with different thoughts again. I realize that this post may be offensive to some. I am not trying to stir the pot; I am simply bringing up the idea that maybe what we have been taught was a counterfeit, and because we have heard and seen it for so long we don't even recognize the original anymore.

Let's think of things that we know are counterfeit, and yet because they look so real most of us cannot tell the difference. A high end purse. There are so many knock offs today that unless you get up close, it is hard to tell the difference. Same with sunglasses. As a bank teller or retail person who handles money, you a trained to know what a fake $100 bill feels like and looks like. However, again, not an easy task anymore due to more high end printers and ink available.

I received an email this week that I thought was real. It concerned this blog. Supposedly there were issues with it that I needed to correct immediately. I asked some questions. It sounded legit. And yet, something felt off. I sent them to my son, and he said, it seems like a scam. Did some more research and found out that yes, it was a scam. Someone trying to get me to pay them to do work on my site. Phishing. Totally not real and easy to fall for.

With AI becoming more and more prevalent in society, even the writing of papers and documents is not a given that it was actually written by a person. Same with many photos. I don't know how many times I send something to my children and they say, "Mom that is AI. Don't believe it." So, is the information we read and see actual truth? Or, did someone ask AI to write a paper about a certain subject and AI just wrote it... Did they ask AI to create a photo and it looks real? If so, can we trust what is actually on the internet anymore?

I realized this morning that it has become the same with Christianity. There is so much within that is not real. It is not authentic. My biggest one is Easter. It has become so engrained in Christian culture that it looks real and feels right. And yet... there is nothing in the Bible that gives us the idea that God wanted a holiday like Easter. Jesus died during Passover and that connect was taken away when Constantine made changes so that the Jewish holidays began to get lost. Over time, those became thought of as "bad" and that they should not be celebrated at all.

And yet - Jesus was Jewish. He grew up fully in that culture and with those teachings. So, if we want to be like Jesus, why do we ban so many of the Jewish understandings and teachings? If we say, "What Would Jesus Do," and yet have no idea how He would have celebrated and the idioms of His culture, aren't we actually part of a counterfeit culture?

Life changes and worlds evolve. Obviously some things will not be the same and changes happen over time. Even the Jews celebrate Passover differently now than they would have years ago. I'm not saying everything in Christianity is "bad." I simply like to raise the idea that maybe we have made too many changes and that what is happening within the church today is not really the heart of God anymore.

All of that being said, the heart of God is, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul and mind. And, love your neighbor as yourself."

Those words are the easiest place to start. Try not to get caught up in the political realm that surrounds so many churches today. Love HIM and then spread that LOVE to those around you. Seek HIM, and let what HE shows you be what you share with others. There is more I could say, but that is my main message - LOVE HIM, and seek HIM first.

Love and blessings,

Rose