Punctum Saliens

While doing a little research for another post I’m writing I came across Antisemitism and the Crucifixion of Christ: Who Murdered Jesus? and I just have to write this quicky. (Stay tuned … this site is going to be fodder for a lot of my posts.) Now I’ll admit that I haven’t read the entire page (because it’s rather long and it’s 1:43 in the morning and I just want to get something written so I can get some sleep) but here goes anyway …

I have one good thing to say about my Fundamentalist Christian upbringing: I never thought twice about who killed Jesus. I didn’t got even the slightest hint of antisemitism from my family, church, pastor, or teachers. We thought the Jews were going to Hell because they didn’t believe that Jesus was the Son of God but we didn’t hate them.

I honestly think that the first I heard of antisemitism because the Jews “murdered” Jesus was all the hoopla from Gibson’s film (which I saw and which brought tears to me eyes; but tears of laughter because of the far-too-many so-over-the-top dramatic falls of the Jesus character while lugging his cross through the streets).

Call me sheltered or stupid but I just don’t get it. I mean, isn’t His death the whole freakin’ point of Jesus coming to earth? If He (He being Jesus) didn’t die then good ol’ Gibson (and perhaps you, dear reader) wouldn’t be a “Christian” and would be stuck trying to find two young turtle doves as atonement for this coming Saturday at the temple instead of just being able to kneel at your bedside and say a few “Hail Mary’s” or “Our Father’s” or whatever. Jesus even said that He came to die. He had to die. That was the whole plan from the get go!

So, who cares who did what to whom? The only thing of any consequence is that Jesus did die which made possible the redemption of the entire human race.

I just don’t get it.

And I sincerely apologize for the gratuitous use of the bold tag.