Legislated Morality Killed Jesus

How's that for a headline? It combines two major thoughts occupying Christians this week. The first is the death and resurrection of Jesus, this being the week between Palm Sunday and Easter, when we Christians contemplate Christ's arrival in Jerusalem, His betrayal, arrest, and execution. On Sunday we celebrate Easter, the third day when Christ rose from the grave. That's one thing Christians are thinking about. The other thing is gay marriage.

On Tuesday and Wednesday, the Supreme Court heard two different challenges to laws that deny gay couples the right to marry: Prop 8 and DOMA. As is often the case with big Supreme Court challenges, the masses descended on Washington, some in favor of gay marriage, others who want marriage to stay a strictly man-woman arrangement. It's made for quite the scene.

Both sides have been making their case for years, but that's not what I plan to talk about. Not directly, anyway. No, I want to get down to one of the more basic principles behind the desire to uphold laws against same-sex marriage, that the United States needs to legislate morality and use the force of law to enforce God's laws. That rather than base laws solely on the Constitution, we should base laws on the Bible. We can find many examples of Christians stating that they want the United States governed by Biblical values.

The Gospel According to Harry Potter

I began reading the Harry Potter books because Christians told me not to. It's a fantastic marketing gimmick, one I fall for time and time again. It's also why I play Dungeons and Dragons, listen to Rock and Roll, and watch Disney movies. However, what started out simply as a "let's see what's got my brothers and sisters in Christ so hot and bothered" turned into a genuine love for the series.

One of the first things I noticed, after the utter charm of the inhabitants of Hogwarts, was the fact that reading it was in no way going to turn me into a wizard. I bought a wand just in case, but I still have to locate my car keys manually rather that flick my wand and shout "accio keys!"

The third thing I noticed was a very strong Christian ethic in this series running right to the core of the story. Like the Lord of the Rings trilogy and the Chronicles of Narnia, this series of books by a British author is bursting with Christian allegory, and that's what I want to talk about.

There's going to be spoilers galore, here, so stop reading if you haven't read any of the books or seen the movies. Otherwise you might find out that Dumbledore was played by two different actors in the movies, and I'd hate to ruin that for you.

Just in time for Easter

 So I decided to start making t-shirts. Now you can wear my wit and whimsy on your chest.

Judas was a teamkiller, but on the third day Jesus respawned

(also available in white)

This shirt is why they don't let me teach Sunday School anymore, because in my efforts to relate to the kids, I might go a little overboard in bringing it to their level. Still, it's basically what happened, more or less.

You can find the rest of my slogan t-shirts here.

The Seven Steps of the Savior

The Seven Steps of the Savior

Charles B. French

I wrote this reading for a Good Friday service. It follows the life of Jesus and ends with His arrest, crucifixion, and death.