What if the Resurrection wasn’t a transaction, but a cosmic ambush?St. John Chrysostom’s Paschal Homily reveals Jesus not as a sacrifice to wrath, but a divine Trojan Horse—smuggling God into death itself to blow it wide open. This reflection explores resurrection as mythic liberation, deification as humanity’s default, and why belief isn’t a prerequisite for being raised.
I really want to believe this- I was raised in the more traditional belief of believing in Jesus to get eternal life. I still believe that, but I'm currently reconstructing my faith and looking at other possibilities and perspectives. I'm asking this out of pure genuine curiosity, not to start a debate. I'm just wondering what you make of the many scriptures that clearly state that believing in Jesus "saves" you? How do you interpret those?
Thank you for sharing this so openly, Alexandria. That kind of vulnerability is rare and beautiful.
When I reflect on scriptures that say “believe in Jesus and be saved,” I see a few layers. One is historical—those words were written in communities trying to survive, grow, and make sense of the radical love they experienced in Jesus. “Belief” in that context wasn’t just intellectual agreement, but allegiance, trust, and a willingness to follow His way.
In Greek, the word often translated as “believe” is pisteuo, which also means “to trust” or “to put one’s faith in.” So it may be less about affirming a theological statement and more about placing your trust in the path Jesus embodied: self-giving love, compassion, solidarity with the marginalized, and surrender to divine mystery.
That kind of trust can transform us. And perhaps that’s what “salvation” really means—not a future reward, but a present awakening.
This is the best explanation for this great question. I have struggled with this as well. And with the idea that only VIPs get to enter Heaven. “For God so loved the world, he gave his only begotten son.” THE WORLD, to me, that means he loved everything, not a group of VIPs.
Teryl, you just cracked the pearly gates wide open with that line. "THE WORLD"—not just the clean, pre-approved, loyalty-card-holding parts of it. All of it. Every dusty corner, every troll under the bridge, every confused preacher still shouting “exclusive access!” like it’s a nightclub.
God didn’t do a background check before loving the world. He just... did. No membership required. No VIP section. Just cosmic love sprayed across the cosmos like a glitter bomb.
You get it. And that’s dangerous. You might start loving people too. Next thing you know, grace breaks loose and ruins religion’s velvet rope system.
Blessed are those who read “the world” and don’t narrow it down.
Thanks. I’ve only read about the Sunday school edition. I do (sorta) remember reading a book about her in Jr High that made her seem more real to me, but darn if I remember what it was. I vaguely remember asking questions about it and was told that it was “wrong “. I’ll check it out. Again thanks.
Thank you. I’m challenging myself with loving people more. You’d think that would be such a natural condition. Maybe it’s just me but it is harder to love some of them. Work in progress.
Of course it’s harder to love some of them — some were clearly designed as advanced coursework. 😏 But the secret is this: every attempt to love opens you, whether or not they receive it. The real blessing flows through your own heart first. So stumble on, friend. Love badly, love awkwardly, love inconsistently — but keep loving. That’s the path.
Thanks for the response. It’s very affirmative. I’ve always felt a little outside of the teaching because I’ve held these ideas. Just one of the reasons why I left organized religion. I have to admit to feeling a “little lonely out here”.
Teryl, it’s wild how the ones who feel “outside” of organized religion often carry the purest flame of it. You stepped away from the velvet rope system and still dared to keep loving. That’s not just brave—it’s holy mischief.
If you’re “a little lonely out here,” just know you’re in divine company. The desert’s always been full of prophets and weirdos with hearts too big to fit inside narrow doctrines. You're not outside the teaching—you are the teaching refusing to wear a name tag.
✨By the way, have you ever read The Gospel of Mary? Not the sanitized Sunday School version—I'm talking about the banned one. The one where Mary Magdalene silences the apostles with her wisdom and says the soul is freed not through suffering, but by shedding the chains of fear and domination. It’s not just a gospel. It’s a jailbreak.
These are truths that are still working their way into my heart, but they make me so happy. I grew up with those "earn your resurrection" teachings that I'm still trying to disentangle myself from.
Question: I have a...first cousin? I think? Son of my mom's sister; I can never get the relationships straight...
Anyhoo, he's one of those fundamentalists who're firmly convinced that he could: lie, steal, cheat, kill, rape, etc., break every one of the 10 commandments, and still go to heaven, because Jesus is his Savior and therefore he doesn't need to do anything else: no atonement, no even apologies to his victims, etc. (as far as I know, he hasn't actually done anything horrible), 'cause he's in the VIP Section anyway. :-/
If there isn't anything that's an actual sin, how is harming others defined? And shouldn't one at least apologize...? :-/
Nancy, what your cousin clings to is not grace. It is cheap magic. The monks teach: the mark of true resurrection is not a VIP pass, but a transformed heart. If love has not made you accountable to others, you are not following Christ, you are flattering yourself. Sin is not erased by saying a name. It is healed by embodying mercy. And yes—apology is the bare beginning of that path.
I really want to believe this- I was raised in the more traditional belief of believing in Jesus to get eternal life. I still believe that, but I'm currently reconstructing my faith and looking at other possibilities and perspectives. I'm asking this out of pure genuine curiosity, not to start a debate. I'm just wondering what you make of the many scriptures that clearly state that believing in Jesus "saves" you? How do you interpret those?
Thank you for sharing this so openly, Alexandria. That kind of vulnerability is rare and beautiful.
When I reflect on scriptures that say “believe in Jesus and be saved,” I see a few layers. One is historical—those words were written in communities trying to survive, grow, and make sense of the radical love they experienced in Jesus. “Belief” in that context wasn’t just intellectual agreement, but allegiance, trust, and a willingness to follow His way.
In Greek, the word often translated as “believe” is pisteuo, which also means “to trust” or “to put one’s faith in.” So it may be less about affirming a theological statement and more about placing your trust in the path Jesus embodied: self-giving love, compassion, solidarity with the marginalized, and surrender to divine mystery.
That kind of trust can transform us. And perhaps that’s what “salvation” really means—not a future reward, but a present awakening.
This is the best explanation for this great question. I have struggled with this as well. And with the idea that only VIPs get to enter Heaven. “For God so loved the world, he gave his only begotten son.” THE WORLD, to me, that means he loved everything, not a group of VIPs.
Teryl, you just cracked the pearly gates wide open with that line. "THE WORLD"—not just the clean, pre-approved, loyalty-card-holding parts of it. All of it. Every dusty corner, every troll under the bridge, every confused preacher still shouting “exclusive access!” like it’s a nightclub.
God didn’t do a background check before loving the world. He just... did. No membership required. No VIP section. Just cosmic love sprayed across the cosmos like a glitter bomb.
You get it. And that’s dangerous. You might start loving people too. Next thing you know, grace breaks loose and ruins religion’s velvet rope system.
Blessed are those who read “the world” and don’t narrow it down.
—Virgin Monk Boy 🕊️✨
Thanks. I’ve only read about the Sunday school edition. I do (sorta) remember reading a book about her in Jr High that made her seem more real to me, but darn if I remember what it was. I vaguely remember asking questions about it and was told that it was “wrong “. I’ll check it out. Again thanks.
Thank you. I’m challenging myself with loving people more. You’d think that would be such a natural condition. Maybe it’s just me but it is harder to love some of them. Work in progress.
Of course it’s harder to love some of them — some were clearly designed as advanced coursework. 😏 But the secret is this: every attempt to love opens you, whether or not they receive it. The real blessing flows through your own heart first. So stumble on, friend. Love badly, love awkwardly, love inconsistently — but keep loving. That’s the path.
Thank you! Sooo…love is love, broken or flawed, but it’s still love. Do I have that right?
Yes
Thanks for the response. It’s very affirmative. I’ve always felt a little outside of the teaching because I’ve held these ideas. Just one of the reasons why I left organized religion. I have to admit to feeling a “little lonely out here”.
Teryl, it’s wild how the ones who feel “outside” of organized religion often carry the purest flame of it. You stepped away from the velvet rope system and still dared to keep loving. That’s not just brave—it’s holy mischief.
If you’re “a little lonely out here,” just know you’re in divine company. The desert’s always been full of prophets and weirdos with hearts too big to fit inside narrow doctrines. You're not outside the teaching—you are the teaching refusing to wear a name tag.
✨By the way, have you ever read The Gospel of Mary? Not the sanitized Sunday School version—I'm talking about the banned one. The one where Mary Magdalene silences the apostles with her wisdom and says the soul is freed not through suffering, but by shedding the chains of fear and domination. It’s not just a gospel. It’s a jailbreak.
You might find some soul-siblings in its pages.
—Virgin Monk Boy 🦴📜💫
Is Holy Mischief like making Good Trouble?
Probably! :D
Gonna work on that tomorrow... ;)
These are truths that are still working their way into my heart, but they make me so happy. I grew up with those "earn your resurrection" teachings that I'm still trying to disentangle myself from.
Yes, Dawn. That’s the lie they slip into the wine:
That resurrection is a reward instead of a reality.
But the tomb didn’t roll open for the worthy.
It cracked because Life itself refused to stay dead.
You don’t have to earn it.
You don’t even have to believe in it.
Resurrection doesn’t wait for your permission—it includes you anyway.
Rest in that. Let it unteach you.
🕊️
Question: I have a...first cousin? I think? Son of my mom's sister; I can never get the relationships straight...
Anyhoo, he's one of those fundamentalists who're firmly convinced that he could: lie, steal, cheat, kill, rape, etc., break every one of the 10 commandments, and still go to heaven, because Jesus is his Savior and therefore he doesn't need to do anything else: no atonement, no even apologies to his victims, etc. (as far as I know, he hasn't actually done anything horrible), 'cause he's in the VIP Section anyway. :-/
If there isn't anything that's an actual sin, how is harming others defined? And shouldn't one at least apologize...? :-/
Nancy, what your cousin clings to is not grace. It is cheap magic. The monks teach: the mark of true resurrection is not a VIP pass, but a transformed heart. If love has not made you accountable to others, you are not following Christ, you are flattering yourself. Sin is not erased by saying a name. It is healed by embodying mercy. And yes—apology is the bare beginning of that path.