Dear Readers,
I am a devoted Catholic person, with a strong faith to God. I grew up in a very religious family. I spend the holy day, Sunday in the Church with my family and attend some seminars about my religion and active in Church activity. I was also studying in a catholic school run by the religious orders in our town. I just want to impart my views about this issue today about the discovering of Jesus tomb by an archaeologists and had been documented and put to film by James Cameron and Simcha Jacobovici and entitled "The Lost Tomb of Jesus!
I read and watch some of the interviews made about the issue. Actually, at first, I am a bit upset about the issue because it is an insult to my faith as Catholic, as Christian. But, I try to analyze the situation, I try to analyze what is really the impact of it to myself. It is a big challenge for me as a Christian, as a Catholic believer. I remember one priest then, interviewed in the Filipino channel, and being asked about the issue of hidden books being deleted in the Bible, and he accept the truth that the Bible we had now is not the real Bible, it is just a summary of the whole Bible, edited by some persons and made a new version of the Bible. According to what I learned from my religion class too that a Bible is not a book, it is like a mini-library that consist of many books. And it is being said by that priest there were some books that is not included in the new Bible version. I come to question myself, why those other books were being removed? What is the reason behind why it is being removed? And I answer my questions with possibilities;
1. Maybe because those books are not needed. Maybe those books are not considered part or not essential to the faith of Christian follower;
2. Maybe those books contained some sentence that will ruin the image of Christian faith;
Those are the possibilities that comes up to my mind. But this is the question now, if the reason is the first possible the answer to my question, then, why the writer of that book still wrote that book and published and being put to the original Bible? It is beings said that the writers of the Bible were guided by the Holy Spirit…And so, I think, all of the books that was being attached to the original Bible are all essential. It was like a journal or a history book of what was really happening during those times of Jesus. And so, maybe, the second one is the right answer to my question above.
Actually, I read Bible oftentimes. Specially the Book of Proverbs. It serves as my guide to my daily life and serve as my guiding star in the darkness. And I could say, it helped me a lot, not just spiritually, but in emotional and all other aspects in life.
This new discovery now will challenge all of the Catholic-Christians in the world. If it is true that Jesus Christ was married to Mary Magdalene and had a son named Juda, then, it is a big slapped to our faith as Catholic. Because we believe that Jesus was ascended to heaven in flesh, that Jesus Christ had not married to Mary Magdalene, and so, it is impossible to Jesus Christ to have a child named Juda.
But for me, it doesnt affect me anyway. Why? It is because of some reasons. First is that, I dont know the truth about the real life of Jesus, what I knew is those written in the Bible, the Bible is the basis of my knowledge about Jesus. So, for me, it is a new knowledge knowing more about the real life of Jesus and I will not get hurt about it or upset about it because I am innocent and no one can blame me for believing about what is written in the Bible coz nobody knows in this world anyways about the real story of Jesus, of what was really happening during those times. Second, for me, the real God is within our heart. It is being written in the Bible too that our body is the temple of God, and so, God is within us. I will live the life in accordance to God’s will, because I know, it is us who made our life. I believe God as spirit who dwells in me, that lead and guide me all the way. It is in us if we want God to dwells us and live in our life and let HIM guide us and lead us to the right way of life. God wanted all of us to live the life with great comfort and happiness. Just like our own father, our parents, they are always there to guide us, give us pieces of advice and give us all that we need. God is like that. The only difference is that we cannot see God and we cannot see Him in person, because He is a spirit that dwells on us. God give us pieces of advice through the Bible, and I could say that the Book of Proverbs is the compilation of God’s advices for all of us. It is us who will decide if we will follow it or not. It is not God who will suffer the consequences if we disobeyed it, it is us who will suffer in the end. So, for me, I will not blame God for my misfortunes, for my sufferings coz I know God guide me and lead me all the way. I can feel how He worked in me.
For me, the issues about the Lost Tomb is just a new knowledge about Jesus and it does not really affect my faith coz it is just an additional knowledge in history and it doesnt talk about the spiritual aspect of our life. Jesus had his own life, and we will not judge Him as liar. Personally, it is not Jesus who wrote the Bible, isnt it. The writers of the Bible are humans like us, and they are not perfect. I dont blame the writers too. You wanna know who I blame with all this mess up? "I BLAME THOSE PERSON WHO DOES EDIT THE BIBLE". I just wish that they are now forgiven by God with what they did with the Bible. Jesus Christ actually dont have knowledge that his life is being put to words, because, as we all know, Bible was made after the death of Jesus. And so, it is impossible that Jesus Christ dictates the writer on what to write about his life.
Whom to Blame? Those are the editors of the Bible…The person who made the new version of the Bible. May those person may "REST IN PEACE!".
And try to think of this: "GOD WILL NOT JUDGE THE MANKIND BY ITS RELIGION, BUT WITH WHAT IS IN OUR HEARTS, IN OUR MINDS, AND OUR ACTIONS, WHAT WE DO TO OUR FELLOWMEN, TO OUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS!".
God Bless and May you will be guided by your own faith!