“Hate” is a strong word, yet apt enough. My top eight reasons for being down on the dude.
8. He’s a terrible marketer. Most of the miracles attributed to Jesus are semi-private affairs. Why not do a red-sea thing or a stop-the-sun thing? Why prolong the whole drama? If you are the son of god or god or whatever, just give a big demo and let’s all move on.
7. He generally behaves like a dick. Read the gospels. This is an abrasive and ill-tempered individual.
6. He’s self-centered. C. S. Lewis made hay out of this quality, but I dare say that any of us encountering this sort of person will walk away flipping him the bird, either in real gesture or mentally.
5. He’s a zealot. This is not a good quality in anyone.
4. Parables suck. Parables are a terrible way to teach people. No one gets them, and no one gets them in the same way. If your goal is to help people and if you want them to gain knowledge, chances are you are not using parables as a primary teaching method.
3. He’s fictional. I think there probably was one person, maybe more, who was a Joshua-type, miracle worker, and associated with messianic claims. But the person in the gospels and worshiped by Christians is non-existent.
2. He’s derivative. Jesus is a rip-off of characters, sayings, and narrative from the Tanakh. There is virtually nothing original about him, his teachings, or his story.
1. He’s boring! Everyone around Jesus–in the gospels, the Greek testament, and later Christianities–is more interesting than he is. Mary, Judas, Pilate, Peter, Paul, Augustine, and so on. Jesus is an utter robot, and a completely un-compelling character.
