The Revival

 

My first cousin, a strong Roman Catholic, sent out—on Facebook--this article called The Revival for an Easter Salutation to the world, and it may be related to the movie The Revival. I will quote it verbatim and then comment on the quotes. The article is a reference to the Crucifixion of Jesus Christ and what he went through.

 

Revival: “He received 39 stripes because 40 was known to kill a man. They wanted him alive. They kicked, punched and spit on Him for hours. Until there wasn’t a single spot on His body not covered in blood. They wanted him alive. They shoved a crown of thorns down on His head so harshly it stuck in His skin. They wanted him alive.

 

After hours of being beaten, mocked, whipped, flogged, and tortured, they made Him walk with a cross. They made Him carry it. A rough piece of wood with splinters digging into fresh wounds. They wanted him alive.

 

They wanted him to feel every ounce of pain they could bring. He had to feel it in order to heal us. Crucifixion was historically one of the cruelest most tortured deaths a human could face. Hours upon hours of torture. Torture most of us cannot mentally think of because the cruelty isn’t normal; it isn’t something our minds can comprehend.”

 

 

My response: As a Mavellonialist, I believe that Fate is the whole universe, the union of Being and Non-Being Being exists more than it does not exist, but it is both. Non-Being does not exist more than it does exist, but it is both.

 

Fate’s world is divided up between two couples. The good and loving couple, the Divine Couple are the Father and Mother.

 

The evil, hateful and hating couple are Satan and Lera, the Dark Couple.

 

The followers of the Divine Couple are the deities, angels, and human beings (mortal, good living angels). Jesus, the son of this couple, is divine and very powerful.

 

The followers of the Dark Couple are fell deities, demons, and wicked human beings (mortal, living demons).

 

I am a Christian in that I do pray to Jesus. Following Jesus is not the only way to get to heaven, but it is one of the best ways, perhaps the best way.

 

Jesus as god is purely good, but to endure such horrifying torture at the hands of Romans and Jews is monstrous and impossible to understand. The closest I can come to explaining this vicious barbarism against a totally innocent man and god is suggest that evildoers hate a heretic even more than a sinner;  Jesus, the noble heretic, required a very slow, very painful death in their eyes. Because the wicked are cruelest to those whose being abused is quite without justification. Basically wicked humans hurt the most, those that least deserve abuse.

 

For Jesus to die on the cross to help humans escape the tyranny of sin and permanent death was the ultimate act of love, altruism at its finest. It is also a special brand of egoistic heroism, whereby the individual sacrifices himself for his own good and for the public’s good. Being as ethically heroic as we can muster is not only serving the common good but is serving our own interests in that the nobler the sacrifice demanded from you, the increased sense of self- realization is called for so that you will rise to the heroic occasion demanded of you.

 

I do disagree with the writer than such horrifying cruelty is not normal and that we cannot comprehend it. Humans are cruel every day in abusing others and being willing to endure abuse. Humans like to tyrannize and exploit others, or to be enslaved oar oppressed by others.

 

We have had our sins forgiven by Christ, and if we are willing to atone and seek divine grace and forgiveness, we can start on our way towards heaven while still here on earth.

 

It shocks me what Christ went through for humans. I am an ethical moderate, and I believe that if we can learn to maverize based on wholesome self-interest, we would live in a much less wicked world, where we could be made available to receive Christ’s grace and choose good over evil, without such suffering such vicious punishment from civil authorities and groups of sinners around us, forcing us to pay dearly should we stand by our deity.

 

If people learn to self-realize, then the tyranny of sinning is largely lifted and removed from their lives, though all can still be tempted to veer off the straight and narrow path. Perhaps in this world arrangement of individuators-anarchist supercitizens running things in their free market economy in their constitutional republic, we would not have Roman soldiers, Pontius Pilate and the Pharisees committing human rights violations and murder upon an innocent man and god, Jesus. Notice that the cowardly masses, then transformed into a howling mob, turned on Jesus the noble individuator and great soul, and made him a martyr.

 

In a Mavellonialist world, where goodness, such as it is, is the political and social reality for a people then the heroics of martyrs, less perfect examples of Jesus, would not be required to be so nobly heroic just to make the world safe for all.

 

Revival Continues: ‘We celebrate Easter with pastel colors, happy children hunting eggs, and chocolate. Truth is there is absolutely nothing happy about the day Jesus died. It was cruel, bloody, and nasty. He could have stopped it all. He could have called every angel in heaven to demolish every person standing and shouting ‘Crucify Him!’ He didn’t.

 

My response: Jesus could have crushed the cruel people crucifying Him, but he did not. Truth about Easter is rough, not Easter-egg hunts and breakfast after service at Perkins.

 

May we build a just world where good heroes, human or divine, are not as often required to the superhuman levels of self-sacrifice to make a difference as Christ suffered through on Good Friday. May we have spiritually and ethically loving individuating supercitizens running our country so that such radical self-sacrifice is not needed to make a stand against the Dark Couple and their children of darkness attacking us int this world. Still, Jesus by his brutal Crucifixion murder and torture is messaging to less able individuators in the future that such self-sacrifice for the sake of all that is good and proper may be the fate of none, some, or many future individuating martyrs and that they need to meet the challenge and see it through for the sake of earning heavenly rewards afterwards.

 

Revival Continues: “He knew in order to have a Sunday you have to have a Friday. He knew in order to have joy you have to carry your cross. He felt everything that day. Hef felt how your heart broke wide open when you had to watch your baby die. He felt how heavy your life was when you were staring down the barrel of a gun wondering if the man you called your husband was going to shoot you. He carried the weight of the burden you have felt since your spouse died and life just doesn’t seem the same since. On that cross He held the rapist and murderers, the sinner and the saint. He leveled every playing field and said ALL of you are worth it.”

 

My response: Jesus the deity was still half human, but by suffering Crucifixion, he subjectively knew all about human suffering.

 

As a normative egoist, I interpret the point above about him leveling the playing field for everyone, he opens the gates of heaven for all. I take that to mean that each person is roughly equally born as a sovereign individual and people should be rewarded if they believe and do well. It is a collective and group invitation, but the leveling sends the clear message that all individuals have worth in the eyes of God, no matter their color or status.

 

Rival: “He knew he had to carry the cross. He never promised that the cross you carry in this life would not be heavy. His wasn’t. His promise is that Sunday is coming.  No matter how heavy Friday is. Financially, emotionally, mentally or physically. Friday is heavy. The cross is weighing you down and you are about to crumble under its weight. His promise is simply this: He won’t make you carry it alone. What kind of King would step down from his throne for this?

 

Jesus of Nazareth, the Son of God, did. For you. He did every bit of it for you and me. Oh yes it is heavy. So heavy sometimes you do not think you can take one more step. But look up, because Sunday is coming.”

 

My response: We must suffer as well as enjoy in life, and that is our burden, our cross to bear. Jesus will not lift you from your burdens, by he will be there with you to help you overcome these burdens. Things will get better (I hope in this world, but for sure in the next if you willingly receive Christ’s grace and love into your heart and mind.). Sunday is coming. Stay the course and fight the good fight.