In John 14:6, Jesus says "... no one comes to the Father except through me." The Rev. Dan De Leon (Eagle, June 19) notes that many Christians believe that this dictates the only way to heaven. Rev. De Leon seems to believe otherwise and said that Pope Francis does as well.
Jesus, who was executed about 30 AD, was a Jew, not a Christian. There was no Christianity during His lifetime. Paul, who never met Jesus, started and championed Christianity with his ministry and writings in the 50s AD.
None of the gospel writers ever met Jesus. Mark and Luke wrote in the 60s-70s, Matthew in the 70s-80s. John was written in the late 80s and is a departure from the previous gospels and letters.
Believers in Paul's supernatural Jesus were ostracized severely and persecuted in the 80s. The author of John sought to comfort them and to mollify critics by making Jesus less of a miracle worker and more human. Less of a God but exceptionally godly. John urged everyone to strive to be more like Jesus.
Rev. De Leon said, "for me ... God is defined by Jesus but not confined to Jesus." Coming from a Christian minister, this is very refreshing. Rev. De Leon further suggests that after death we all will meet up with our Creator in glory.
My understanding is that a different fate awaits us. The universe did not have a creator. It came about spontaneously from nothing. We are here today after 13.8 billion years of evolution. We and the rest of the universe will continue to evolve but some day everything again will be nothing. BOBBY PRESLEY College Station
Courtesy of The Eagle Newspaper June 28, 2021
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