What if God and Jesus Never Existed

Written by John (the other John).

As we approach 2,019 years since the birth of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, amongst the many happy memories that I am reminded of during these holidays from my childhood, I also ponder the modern day political zeitgeist of the anti-Christs who either deny his very existence or dispute him being the Son of God. So I often wonder, what if the stories of God and Jesus are fake; what if they never existed; what benefit did these stories of fiction provide to humans?

Let us begin with the Ten Commandments, what if they are fake, does having a set of laws created by a fictitious God give us any benefit? Do we really need a list of laws stating morality such as: Thou Shall Not Kill; Thou Shall Not Steal; Thou Shall Not Lie; Thou Shall Not Be Envious; Thou Shall Not Commit Adultery, Honour Thy Parents, etc… Life was quite barbaric in the ancient days, so perhaps rules such as the above Commandments were important.

But we then later have this Jesus guy who alleged he was the Son of God, who some say he was either a liar or a lunatic. What good has he ever done? Miracles; do you believe that? Where is the proof? So let us instead look at the words/acts he allegedly taught us. Love, charity, humility, humbleness, forgiveness, equality despite social status, etc…. So I am thinking, is this bad that he allegedly taught these lessons to us. Isn’t our society to this very day lacking these acts of kindness?

Let us also look at the legacy of this fictional person. Human rights, freedom of religion, equality, etc... Is this the legacy of an awful person? His enemies may point out that Jesus had nothing to do with these qualities, that they instead were created by enlightened mankind 1,600 years after his alleged existence. But is this true? I remember an African Christian named Tertullian who in the 2nd century (155 AD to 240 AD) preached religious freedom in the Roman Province of Africa (under threat of execution by laws of the Emperors). This concept of religious freedom later influenced Constantine the Great, and then 1,500 years later the likes of Western philosophers such as John Locke and Thomas Jefferson. What other major religion paved the road to such human rights?

So I keep thinking, what if God and Jesus are fake, is there fake existence a bad thing? If anything, considering how society has plummeted to the current depths of criminality and immorality, I can state that whether real or fake, we need more God and more Jesus in our lives.

Merry Christmas to all. (Especially to those whom this offends)!

Photo: Wikimedia Commons/edit: PostDiscus.