Jesusism

Jesusism is the personal philosophy encompassing the teachings of Jesus of Nazareth and commitment or adherence to those teachings. As a philosophy, Jesusism is distinct from and sometimes opposed to Christianity, the organized religion. In particular, Jesusism is distinguished from the teachings attributed to Paul of Tarsus and modern Church doctrine.

Etymology

The term "Jesusism" was coined in the late 1800s or earlier, from "Jesus" (Jesus of Nazareth) + "-ism" (English suffix, a characteristic or system of beliefs, from French -isme, Latin -ismus, Greek -ismos).

History of Usage

As a concept distinct from Christianity, Jesusism has been referenced by theologians, philosophers, and religious writers for over a century. American pathologist and author Frank Seaver Billings, in 1894, defined "Jesusism" as the "rational philosophy" which "can be attributed directly to the teachings of Jesus the Nazarene." In 1909, the Seventh-Day Adventist newspaper Signs of the Times, in an issue titled "Modern Christianity Not Jesusism", the question is posed: "Christianity of today is not the old original Christianity. It is not Jesusism, for it is not the religion which Jesus preached. Is it not time to make Christianity the religion which He personally preached and which He personally practiced?" Harvard theologian Bouck White, in 1911, also defined "Jesusism" as "the religion which Jesus preached." Notably, the philosophy of Jesusism was described in the book The Naked Truth of Jesusism from Oriental Manuscripts, penned by theologian Lyman Fairbanks George in 1914, as follows:

It is to restore Jesus's sayings to their original purity.

It is to eradicate from the Gospels the interpolations of the Middle Ages.
It is to relate the misconceptions revealed by recent archaeological research.
It is to present Jesus from an economic viewpoint.
It is to break through the spell spectral of Cosmic Credulity.
It is to toll the knell of schism through Jesusism.

The Orthodox theologian Sergius Bulgakov further noted in 1935 that "the concentration of piety on the Christ alone has become a deviation already known by a special term as Jesusism." Influential Catholic theologian Karl Rahner referred to "Jesusism" as a focus on the life Jesus and attempts to imitate his life, as opposed a focus on God or the Christian Church. University of Melbourne professor John Lindsay Falvey noted in 2009 that "the gospel story so differs from Church doctrine that it could be well be of a different religion - Jesusism." Jesusism became the subject of increased academic discussion following its reference by Duke University neurobiologist and philosopher Owen Flanagan in his 2007 book The Really Hard Problem: Meaning in a Material World. Flanagan defines Jesusism as the "message" of Jesus and notes that he "call[s] it ‘Jesusism’ because most Christian Churches do not endorse Jesus’ message truthfully. Jesusism is also used popularly on religious blogs and internet groups.

From the perspective of Jesusism, institutional Christianity is an artifice designed to exploit the masses through indoctrination into a framework of logical fallacies. Example given, the argument for Scriptural authority: the Scriptures are the word of God because the Scripture itself says so ("All Scripture is God breathed" 2Tim.3:16), yet this was allegedly said by Paul even before Paul's own epistle was considered Scripture. An important etymological distinction between Jesusism and Christianity is that Christianity derives its name from Jesus Christ (the annointed), whereas Jesusism acknowledges the profound contributions of Jesus (the man and/or myth) to pursuits such peace and voluntary altruism, but does not demand his elevation to "supernatural" status for his teachings to have meaning.

Jesusism is iconoclastic in nature, but does not necessarily encourage atheism. Instead, it values rational thinking as a source of truth, while allowing for faith-based conclusions as long as they are not prioritized. For example, the Biblical canon-based theory of creationism intended to disregard the scientific hypothesis of evolution is rationally untenable as it is premised on conflating two mutually exclusive epistemic categories: scientific hypothesis and personal faith. Jesusism acknowledges that Darwinian evolution explains the origin of species and that chemical evolution likely explains abiogenesis. Furthermore, some Jesusists posit on faith that an intelligence or personality on a greater level of complexity (e.g. "God") may have played an indirect causal role in abiogenesis or other phenomena. On this point, Jesusism may be similar to Deism, however a belief in God is not a requisite for Jesusism.

Extending pursuit of rational thought to the political arena, followers of the philosophy seek to recognize demagogues who spread fear of hell and other "supernatural" constructs to advance their ambitions. In formation of a Jesusist political philosophy, Franklin Seaver Billings argues that "taking the gospels as our only possible authority, it cannot be denied that Jesusism and anarchism are almost identical." Spanish economist James Redford further argues that Jesusism politically implies libertarian anarchism, or anarcho-capitalism.

Further Reading

Jesusism (facebook group)
The Jesusist Way of Life (weblog)
Jesusism@Everything2 (weblog)
Paul vs. Jesus: A List of Contradictory and Incompatible Statements