many people try to walk this path and fail because of the holiness disciplines are not of this world as we have made it.

No she just got tired of being associated with anti-science zealots, bigots and homophobes. I understand where she is coming from. Many times I am embarrassed to be called a “Christian” due to the hateful & stupid statements that come out of the Christian Right. Jesus would be ashamed for a lot of what passes as Christianity these days.

Saying “I give up on Christianity but will continue to follow Christ” is like saying “I give up on potatoes, but will continue to eat potato salad”. It makes no sense whatsoever, or is she reinventing the English language? Wouldn’t be the first time. Yet she kept her name in the papers, so all the more power to her.

She wasn’t comfortable with the RCC, it makes all kinds of sense to me that she leave, yet again the church of her childhood. Why belong to a group that one disagrees with? Makes no sense whatsoever to stay.

I think it’s more like “I’m giving up on the Electric Company but I’ll generate my own.
or
I won’t use the Water Company but I’ve got my own well.
I would, however, suggest the UU’s or perhaps jesterfyl’s church; UCC I believe.

After her much publicised return to the Catholic faith a few years ago, I guess she had a “maybe not” moment.
I wish she had limited her comments to the Roman Catholic Church because not all Christians are anti-gay, anti-feminist and anti-choice.

Richard so many people like you think they can speak for Jesus and have no clue about being holy. So you think Jesus only had harsh things to say about the pharisees? Guess again. He defined marriage and relationship and homosexuality was nowhere in His definition.

Sadly, I am not surprised to hear such a comment from Anne Rice.
Personally and historically one cannot be a Christian if they do not follow Christ. Being a Christian has nothing to do with picking a follower of Christ and walking after their footsteps. It is about following Christ.
I wonder if she will stop reading the Bible as well, as it doesn’t seem to agree with her idea of Christianity either?

ck
Jesus was hard on the Pharisees because he loved them – and may have come from them. He was literate, welcomed to read in synogogues, and worked from their still-developing theology of life afer death. They neve gave up on him either. According to the Gospels, it was Pharisees – Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus (of Gospel acc. John fame) who made sure his body was properly and well cared for after the crucifixion. It was the Saducees that he blasted with unrelenting ferocity. It was those same Saducees who were the brunt of Jesus parable of the Good Samaritan.
It seems that Ms Rice is responding to those Saducean characteristices of the RCC and some of the more outspoken and narrow minded “christians”.
Her midrash on Jesus in the two books she wrote are quite interesting and worth some careful thought.

jest there is no indications at all that Jesus was of any Pharisee sect. Every indication is that He had heavenly knowledge and was “unschooled” the worst thing that you can do to the truth is to stretch it for your own justification. She is an accomplished writer, that is not enough.

cknuck, He had “heavenly knowledge” and was “unschooled.” How does one read the Torah without being “schooled”? You know this how, since you (as far as we know) never went to seminary. Seems to me I’ll go with the person who has been “schooled” in things biblical.

I know you didn’t mean to sound like a pharisee, but you really need to read more. The bible clearly states that Jesus astounded the teachers in the synagogue at the tender age of twelve, it later goes on to say that Jesus taught in the synagogue but nowhere does it say that Jesus was educated in the synagogue. The bible on many occasions unmistakably, and very clearly teaches us Jesus was divinely inspired and many places indicated He even knew the thoughts of the pharisees and lawyers.

cknuck, aren’t Jewish children raised in the faith? At 13 they are “men” or “women” so wouldn’t it be logical to think that JC was raised in the Synagogue with all that implies? Why would it be written that JC was taught in the Synagogue, when it was just what was done.(at least the boys were, don’t know about the girls at that time). People need to use their brains a little when they read that book.
Of course there are some who feel that the whole book was “divinely inspired” ….and of course all those who translated, changed and copied were too. Sure.

I admire your spirit pagan but surely even you must know Jesus could not have been a scholar at the age of 12. Certainly a scholar compared to some of your pastor friends of today but teaching in those days forget about it. Even so thee bible give no hint other than “a carpenter’s son” if you are interested in facts over speculation.

I know why it is so hard for you accept Jesus’s divinity, you have planted your flag in paganism and have to fight though your doubts because of you choice it is so important to you that Jesus not be divine. So called pastors like jest want so much to be accepted in the intellectual community that the divinity of Jesus becomes secondary to intellectual fame here on earth. My personal relationship with the LORD leaves me o other conclusion. If Jesus needed an earthly education to marvel the teachers in the synagogue then what on earth was His relationship with the Father all about? What about when He clearly said “I was before Abraham”?

cknuck one of your problems is that you take the Bible way too seriously. It was written by men with their own agendas and edited, intentionally and unintentionally by men and men chose what parts to put in and what parts to leave out for reasons of power and money.
There are obvious errors in it and inconsistencies. It is in no way a book to plan one’s life around. And it’s especially not a book to use to excuse screwing up someone else’s life.
You are arguing from a foundation of sand. Find a firmer foundation, then come back.

Ms. Rice was pretty clear. She believes in God…..follows Our Lord Jesus Christ…..and his teachings. However, she takes exception to the fact that many organized religions and specifically the Catholic Church teaches (as well as some Bnet posters) have teach and support pov that are in direct conflict with the teachings of Christ.
Therefor, she remains a Christian and denounces Christianity.
As quoted above: “In the name of Christ, I refuse to be anti-gay. I refuse to be anti-feminist. I refuse to be anti-artificial birth control. I refuse to be anti-Democrat.” I can see how those who proclaim and support discrimination, bigotry, and prejudice against gays, people who support full equality for females, a woman’s right to choose, and democrats might struggle with this. However, as much as some people would like us to believe otherwise, there are no quotes in the Bible ascribed to Our Lord that condemn gays/same-gender marriage, fully equality for females, a woman’s right to choose, nor Democrats.
Peace!
BTW, her son Christopher is gay.
Peace!

Interestingly enough, Ms. Rice follows millions of gays/lesbians in leaving Christianity while remaining loyal to Christ….and, his teachings.
Peace!

So cknuck, it is impossible that Jesus wasn’t a super bright kid and just happened to be able to do what perhaps many of his generation c of kids couldn’t do at that time…read etc. I have a hard time with a Human Being being “divine”. Just what is the definition of that word? Does it have to include some invisible father figure? IMO all people carry a bit of divinity in them, as also IMO, all people are unique and special. To me Jesus was, as I have probably stated before, a man who had, for that time, different ideas. Many years after he died, some folks decided he was so special that they started to tell stories and write about him. My views anyhow. Even as a Methodist kid I had doubts, and as an adult they just continued until I found no point in worshiping someone or thing I couldn’t see. Admire Jesus, yes, and agree with some of his teachings, but he is just one of many from the past (and present) that I admire. I worship no one or thing.

One need only read over the proceeding story (and comments) on the Catholic Patriarch to see a perfect example of the point Ms. Rice is making on why she left Christianity.
http://blog.beliefnet.com/news/2010/07/catholic-patriarch-blasts-isra.php
And yet, there are posters here who appear not to comprehend.

many people like both you JohnQ, and Rice would love to start a new kind of religion that has nothing to do with the teachings of the bible that they find difficult it is not uncommon nor is it the first time.

Ck you mentioned that Jesus said before Abraham I was. There are many verses in the Bibical stories and Psalms that indicate reincarnation. There are children who play whole concerts at the age of 4 or 5. There are children who are great artists at the same age, etc. Science is studying into paranormal incidents and are finding many interesting results, have been for years, but it seems to be coming together more as time goes on. It’s called far-memory. Now you can have a fundamentalist attack.
A friend who is Professor of Religious studies in a talk once said that being a carpenter at the time of Jesus life was very special and commanded high incomes, so history tells us that Jesus came from a family of money.

H22 you make leaps and bounds to support a Jesus without divinity, go right ahead I support your right to think that man has all of the answers and as pagan says is divine even though there is not a hint of support in the bible of your assumptions. John 17:2 For you granted him authority over all people that he might give eternal life to all those you have given him. To give education the credit for the Jesus’ knowledge is shortsighted

Just happened to think,cknuck, how many people can claim they were “conceived” without their Mother having sex? Guess that could make Jesus a special child. (no more special than any other baby, however). Of course now there can be sperm and egg joining in a petre dish, and returned to the mother to be. Not a possibility in JC’s time. However that still requires a sperm donor, a male that is visible to the naked eye.

I’m just sayin’

You are not making sense now.

You are wrong Ck, Jesus was and is Divine, always was, he’s God’s son. Where it began, and went from there to when Jesus was born is something we really can’t say for sure. No one knows the mind of God, not even you, the scripture tells us that, and that is a definite.

H, you really are not making sense we have relationship with the Father through the Son all we need to know is in relationship with Jesus you would know that if you had one. There is plenty we submit to the Lord know. I don’t know if your statement was a typo or you are just way out of your depth.