Sometimes you have to leave everything you know in order to find everything you need. Join me in a discovery of the authentic faith of Jesus, without the dogma of Christianity. This book is grouped into themes, but you don't have to start at the beginning and read all the way to the end. Everything was written from late 2012 to early 2014, and in no particular order. Some posts were written while I was in the beginning of the deacon discernment program, while some were written as much as a year after I left church. It is as if I was assembling a jigsaw puzzle without knowing I was doing so. I have done my best to make these pieces fit together as well as possible, even though they were not written with a specific theme in mind at the time. So what is the theme? In part, this book is about what it is like to follow Jesus without following Christianity. I seek to separate the man from the machine. His simple message that we are all loved and forgiven and should do likewise to everyone else should have been enough, but history has proven otherwise. The traditions and rules of the institution that the church has become often take precedent over how we show the love of Jesus to a world that desperately needs it. I propose, like Jesus, that we examine everything we do as members of the Body of Christ and see if we are following the letter of the law or the Spirit of it. I propose that we look closely at how Jesus wanted his Church to be in this world. What should it look like? What should it do? Are there buildings? Or are we to spend our time and money serving together more than worshipping together? Are there ordained ministers? Or are we all ministers by virtue of our baptism? Has the church held people hostage or freed them? Are we to focus on our sin or the fact that Jesus has paid for it? Are we to expect others to live up to our standards, or to love them and serve them as they are? And what if Jesus already has come again, in the hearts of every person who says "Here I am" when he calls? What if Jesus is just like the bread that he gave thanks for, blessed, and broke to distribute to feed the hungry? I believe that Jesus wants all of us to be ministers, regardless of education or gender or anything else. Look at who he chose to be his disciples - the uneducated, the overlooked, the least. I believe that Jesus is sad about anything that divides us, especially us. I propose a new way of looking at, but more importantly, of being, the Church. One without divisions or denominations.
About the Author: Betsy Nelson is constantly seeking ways to learn how to build bridges between people. She is a facilitator in the Circle process of nonviolent conflict resolution, as well as a trained Remo HealthRhythms facilitator. She has also successfully completed a clinical experiential course in the art and practice of pastoral care. While in the discernment process to see if she was being called to the permanent diaconate, she attended a Cursillo retreat. Her experiences there led her to leave the church. She is grateful for the awakening she received at that event. It continues to deepen her relationship with Jesus. She has volunteered in the Metro Nashville public schools since 2011, primarily tutoring kindergartners from other countries or who have learning disabilities. This builds upon her tutoring experience in college helping older students with learning disabilities. She has taught numerous prayer bracelet workshops, the most unusual one being at a silent retreat. She is a regular contributor to an online inspirational magazine called My Spiritual Breakfast, as well as an online faith community called Daily Inspiration. Her next project is a blending of the Gospels so that they are one coherent story. She obtained her Bachelor's degree in English, with a concentration in writing, from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. She is married and lives in Nashville, TN. She has worked for the public library system since 2000, where she is fortunate to get to serve and learn from people from all walks of life. https: //emptycrosscommunity.wordpress.com/