My pastor didn’t time the crucifixion right.
By Palm Sunday, when Jesus was supposed to be walking into Jerusalem, he had already risen from the dead and appeared before the disciples.
Oh well, maybe next year.
But what is a good theme for Palm Sunday? Zombies.
Zombies are a bit of a cultural obsession right now (and one I’m afraid I don’t quite understand). A number of my friends are preparing for the coming Zombie Apocalypse and there are more than enough films to reinforce the idea coming this summer to a theater near you. I kinda understood vampires (Spike is cool) but even they are undead creatures without a soul, and an inclination to violence, destruction and spreading like a disease.
Kinda the opposite of the resurrection right?
Christ is not undead, death has no hold over him. He’s not a mindless killer, but instead opens hearts and minds to faith and to his fulfillment of prophecy. Zombies and vampires can only create more death or more of themselves, spiraling down to ultimate destruction. If the whole world were zombies, then the zombies could not survive. What if the whole world believed in Christ?
This idea of contagious faith intrigues me.
As a Christian I find myself apologizing at the start of conversations, or clarifying that “I’m not with those guys”. The behavior of other people who happen to claim the same beliefs as me can be a little embarrassing You wanna see real zombies, just take a look at the members of the Westboro Church.
I want to find ways not to just grow my relationship with Christ in a bubble but to genuinely share it. To be bubbling over with faith so that anyone I interact with will be affected. I’m not saying I want it to be part of every conversation, or to suddenly change all of my writing, or anything like that. I just want someone to meet me and go, “there’s a guy who believes in God” as opposed to “there’s a guy who likes Star Trek and Fractals.” though that’s fine too.
I have something like 13 Bibles sitting on my shelf (maybe closer to 20). I don’t read any of them, since I have several good ones on my Kindle. And while I was weeding my books I was thinking of selling them. But I don’t want to sell them, I want to share my faith with others and give them to people. I’d kind of like to make it a life goal to talk to enough people to give away all the Bible’s I’ve acquired. I just don’t know exactly how to go about it yet.
Fact is, right now the blog is how I encounter people of different faiths. Work is pretty conservative and “christian” and even for those who are not of the same faith it’s not a great place to witness. The rest of my time is either spent at home with Hannah, working on books, or interacting with friends in the Church. I don’t want to be in a bubble, but right now life has kind of put me in one.
I realize this is sort of a prayer on paper, I’m writing some of the things I’ve been thinking about with God. Fact is if not contagious I’m at least bubbling about a lot of things besides my faith. Fractals, Star Trek, Writing in General, Babylon 5, anything tangentially computer related, video games, etc. Why is faith something I only seem to talk about on Sundays or the occasional plaintive post?
I think life can make us like Zombies, can rob us of zeal and of sharing the things that make us who we are. If it’s the drudgery of routine, or TV, or the same meal every Tuesday or whatever, life can get us down.
As always I want this blog to be a place where that isn’t true.
In what ways do you share your faith, your cherished beliefs?
PS. Pastor Rich’s sermon has some pretty great stuff about Zombies and more. You can hear it here, or read a transcript here.
[BTW] : Ben Trube, Writer 
I, for one, would love to read more posts about your views on Christianity, especially the difficult parts.
Churches, it seems to me, have become obsessed with the core teaching of Christianity, the John 3:16 stuff, to the exclusion of all else. It’s like taking a math class that only ever talks about arithmetic. Sure that’s fundamental, but what about the more complex, subtler areas?
For instance, what about 1 Corinthians 7:8, where Paul says it’s good not to get married? If not getting married is preferable, why do so many Christians disregard this advice? Of course there are good answers to such questions, but they’re rarely ever discussed. I would love to hear your take on some of these thornier issues.
Transparent post indeed! I appreciate your comments on “Zombie Christians” and actually think I am one myself, depending on the day and how I’m doing on the inside. (Since my husband’s diagnosis, I’m not very contagious, I fear.)
You make some very good points and some thought provoking ideas. In my better moments, when I am not attending radiation treatments with my husband, I ponder these things too.
I have come to the conclusion that our American culture is somewhat to blame. Third world believers in Christ seem to have less to distract them and more persecution to keep them on their knees praying for help.
Thank you, BTW, for your blog! As a subscriber, I enjoy it greatly.
Ben, great piece!!! Life (and God) have us all at different places at different times – meaning, we are used differently by Christ as we pass through lifes stages. I like to think as long as we remain open to the opportunities that present themselves that we can push through the “bubble”, even though it may not always seem so and we feel more like zombies than Christians. Thanks for a great article.
I’m not a Christian although I was raised to be Church of England. I don’t know when I stopped believing in the teachings of the Church- just that I found the hypocrisy and arrogance too much to take at some point in my teens and now entering into my fifth decade I find myself asking questions, lots of questions about religion and faith and all the things that human kind does in the name of God. I do believe- in lots of things. In the inherent goodness of human beings, in the generosity of spirit and the brightness of laughter and life that some special souls seems able to bring with them wherever they go, in life turning out the way it does for a reason, not always clear or easy to see at the time but always for a purpose. Do I believe in a divine being? I’m still trying to find the answer to that one but at least with posts like these I’m getting closer to defining the question a bit better:)
“In what ways do you share your faith, your cherished beliefs?”
For me, it’s every day actions. Feeding a hungry man will move him more than any words ever could. And if it leads to conversation, even better.
I admit, my faith isn’t exactly fit for a postcard. It’s rough around the edges, with more questions than answers. I cling to it because something inside of me refuses to give up and let go.
However, I’ve come to understand through my trials in life the difference between believing something and living it.
My beliefs have become my actions. My lifestyle. I believe Love is the root of faith. The root of all of us, really. That’s what made Jesus so popular among people whose hearts were open and searching for something real. When we show that, we find our connection with the Great Mystery (or God). I’m always amazed at the impact showing compassion on someone, using their name and recognizing them as someone who matters can have.
And in that moment I feel like if the Great Spirit is anywhere, it’s there, in that moment.
I don’t get the appeal of the whole zombie craze either. I don’t want to one and the idea of its contagion reminds me of the cliche misery loves company.