Atonement

Note: This is part of an ongoing inner conversation I have dealing with questions about my faith. You might want to read my post A Questionable Faith if you have not.

Why would someone, especially Jesus, have to die for something I did? How does that make things better? How does that satisfy justice?

I was raised on what most people call the substitutionary theory of atonement. That is a fancy way of saying “You did something wrong, it has to be paid for, and someone else paid it.” And it didn’t matter what was done, the penalty was death. Kill another person? Someone has to die. Cheat on your spouse? Someone has to die. Steal a 25-cent plastic toy? Someone has to die. Tell your mother you had brushed your teeth when you hadn’t? Someone has to die.

It was based primarily on the Christian Scriptures “All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23) and “the wages of sin is death.” (Romans 6:23) Sin was considered doing something wrong, which separated us from God, therefore ensuring we would not go to heaven (where God is) but instead go to Hell (where God is not), unless somebody who was innocent paid the penalty for me (Jesus). 

The Hebrew Scriptures tell us that each person is responsible. “Fathers shall not be put to death for their sons, nor shall sons be put to death for their fathers; everyone shall be put to death for his own sin.: (Deuteronomy 24:15)  The prophet Ezekiel says “The person who sins will die. The son will not bear the punishment for the father’s iniquity, nor will the father bear the punishment for the son’s iniquity; the righteousness of the righteous will be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked will be upon himself.” (18:20) And Jeremiah echoed Ezekiel- ““In those days they will not say again, ‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes, And the children’s teeth are set on edge. ‘ But everyone will die only for his own wickedness; every man who eats sour grapes—his own teeth shall be set on edge.” (31:29-33)

But Christian theology, at least this version of it, says that Jesus took the punishment so we do not have to.

There are several other ideas behind this. The first is that God, being holy and pure, cannot be in the presence of anything that is not holy and pure. It would “contaminate” God, as it were. And since we are unholy and impure, God cannot have us in God’s presence. The Hebrew Scriptures are filled with warnings about approaching God and not being holy and pure. Christian Scriptures often echo this theme.

But I question this. If we are creations of God, even if we go our own way, why would God not want us to be in God’s presence? Jesus told a parable about a father who had a son who took his inheritance early (treated his father like he was dead), left home, and squandered his inheritance. When the son came to his senses, he decided to go back to his dad. He was sorry for what he had done, and was willing to take whatever the father meted out to him, he just wanted to be back. In the story, which Jesus tells as a way of talking about God’s relationship with us, the father sees the son coming while the son is a long way off, and runs to meet him. The only way you see someone a long way off is if you are looking for them. The father had been looking for the son, wanting him to come back. And when the son starts into his apology, the father basically ignores it. The son is still pretty much “unholy and impure,” yet the father welcomes him in. Seems like Jesus was trying to tell us that maybe our understanding of God is majorly wrong. Maybe God wants us back no matter what.

The other idea is atonement means to bring back together something that has been broken, especially a relationship. What if Atonement is not about paying a penalty for something we have done that is wrong, but is more about being together through all that we go through?

The one thing all humanity has in common is death. Everyone will die. It is the “great equalizer.” In some churches a pall, a large white cloth, is placed over a coffin, hiding the intricacy or the simpleness of the coffin. Everyone is the same. Plain pine box or titanium sarcophagus, we all are the same.

And while death is the common denominator of humanity, it is the defining difference between humanity and divinity. God, by very definition, cannot die.

Part of Christian theology, a part that is not emphasized enough, is that since humanity cannot lift itself to divinity, the Divine becomes human to the point of giving up everything that it means to be divine and taking on death. Paul, an early follower of Jesus, put it this way- Let the same mind be in you that was^[a] in Christ Jesus,

 who, though he existed in the form of God,
    did not regard equality with God
    as something to be grasped,
but emptied himself,
    taking the form of a slave,
    assuming human likeness.
And being found in appearance as a human,
    he humbled himself
    and became obedient to the point of death—
    even death on a cross. (Philippians 2:5-8)

So, perhaps Jesus’ death was not a price God paid to cover up our wrongdoings. Instead, it was God saying that God has experienced everything God’s creation has and will experience. It’s our way of knowing we are not alone in anything.

Atonement becomes less of a way of paying for our sins, and more of a way of experiencing life together. We are “at-one” with God because God has become one of us.

I used to sing an old song that went 

“I had a debt I could not pay,
He paid the debt He did not owe,
I needed someone,
To wash my sins away.
And now I sing a brand new song,
“Amazing grace” all day long,
Christ Jesus paid the debt,
That I could never pay.” 

But perhaps a better song would be:

“Oh, I’ve heard a thousand stories of what they think You’re like
But I’ve heard the tender whisper of love in the dead of night
And You tell me that You’re pleased and that I’m never alone.” (Good Good Father, Chris Tomlinson)

And if this is true, then what am I afraid of?