Ed Dobson got the idea to live like Jesus from A.J.Jacobs, who wrote The Year of Living Biblically. Jacobs is a nonreglious Jew. Dobson is a Reverend. He figured since he preached the teachings of Jesus, it should be easy enough to follow the way he lived. Not necessarily so.
Excerpted from the book:I don't like the word Christian. I know it's a biblical term, but in other parts of the world people assume that if you're from America, you must be a Christian. So I don't like the word because many associate it with America, capitalism, and democracy.
I don't like the word evangelical. In the United States, it has come to mean anti-gay, anti-abortion, and believing that you're right all the time. It's associated with a political movement known mostly for what it's against, not what it's for. So I don't like the word evangelical.
And I don't like the word Baptist. Even though I was ordained by the Baptist church and worked at a Baptist college for fourteen years, I'm not fond of the word because there are so many varieties of "Baptist" - and they often don't get along with each other.
When people press me to identify myself, I simply say, "I'm a follower of Jesus."
So what if we were to push past all the labels and get back to that idea - just be a follower of Jesus? What would that look like? Is it even possible? What if we were to get beyond Catholic and Protestant, evangelical and liberal, Baptist and Presbyterian, Christian and non-Christian, and just get back to being a follower of Jesus?"
This article gives a little more information about Ed Dobson's journey. I plan on reading the book and seeing exactly how he did during his year of living like Jesus. I'd imagine it was fairly difficult, which should probably be a lesson to everyone who claims to be a follower of the word but doesn't really follow it; well, unless it works in their favor. I'm sure I'll have more to say after I read the book.
What I liked best from the USA Today article? That Dobson said Jesus' teachings influenced him to vote for Barack Obama. He said it was the first time he'd ever voted for a Democrat, stating, "I felt, as an individual, he (Obama) was closer to the spirit of Jesus' teachings than anyone else. He was a community organizer, so he was into the poor, the marginalized, the oppressed, which Jesus is very much into."
The USA Today article also asked a great question at its conclusion: What do you think would be hardest about trying to live like Jesus?
Wanna take a stab at that one?
* For those not aware, WWJD is an acronym for What Would Jesus Do.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
1 YEAR AGO: Where The Angels Arrive And Depart
2 YEARS AGO: Diamonds In The Deep Blue
3 YEARS AGO: Everyone Is Doing It
4 YEARS AGO: En-Gulfed Coast
2 comments:
Interesting post.
Hey, question: do you still have the email you sent to my aol account recently? I had over 10,000messages in that inbox (mostly junk mail) and I accidentally deleted all the items - including your email. I was hoping it was in your "sent" items folder and that you could resend it! :)
Hmmm. Interesting, very interesting! I don't like to identify my religious status sort of for some of the same reasons as he outlines here. I also don't like to encounter people who do espouse some of the beliefs of certain groups too that advocate the "I am Saved" thing based solely on the church they attend. Kind of gives me the feeling that they think they are a tad above me in the cut, ya know and until I say that too, I know right where I'm gonna go, ya know! But trying to follow the WWJD theory -I do believe in that and I do try to do that -most of the time -but then too, ya know, I'm still human and often fail in that department. What's a person to do? Keep on trying I guess, huh?
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