I was lying in bed and was thinking about the Jesus I know and admire--the liberal, hippie-ish,  people loving, non-gun toting,  all forgiving,  let's take care of the hungry, poor, meek, and innocent children Jesus--you know--and I thought that there HAS to be other people who know this same Jesus.  There HAS to be books, websites, blogs and all kinds of resources about this Jesus--that aren't Bible based (altho the Bible may have been drawn on for resources.)  What terms would I even use to search Google?  Is there a New Age Christianity?  Pagan Christianity with Jesus and Mary Mary Magdalene as the heads of the pantheon?  Anything?  Am I totally crazy and off the wall?

Tammy... I can't recall the name(s) of the books but, in the store I have seen books that may be what you are looking for in the metaphysical section. I did a search and came up with this http://www.suite101.com/welcome.cfm/metaphysical_christianity   maybe that is a start?

Tammy try these : The Phoenix Affirmations: A New Vision for the Future of Christianity by Eric Elnes (Paperback - April 7, 2006)  & Asphalt Jesus: Finding a New Christian Faith Along the Highways of America by Eric Elnes.  The author is the leader of a progressive UCC church in Phoenix, and lead a  march accross the country to take back Christianity from the evangelicals (whom he and a lot of progressives feel have hijacked the word of god and jesus).  It's definitely christian based, but it is very open to other faiths as well.  I go to a progressive church and this new emerging group of churches accross the country have the same jesus you mentioned above :)

ETA: other sources- http://www.spiritualityandpractice.com/  ,  http://www.tcpc.org/template/index.cfm  ,  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Progressive_Christianity  , 

oh, I forgot to answer the last question- yes you are, and that is why we lurv you :)

Tammy, I hear you.   I want to find a group of "believers" that believe what I do.  Here is what I believe, in a nutshell.

- Jesus was a wise, peaceful, loving man and his teachings provide the proper way to live.  However, I don't believe he was "divine".

- I feel there is something more "out there" which we cannot yet comprehend.  I don't know that it is an omniscient diety or just an energy. 

- I think when we die, it's not the end.  I don't believe in a traditional Heaven, but I think we change forms.  We are made up of energy, and energy changes but doesn't dissipate so I have to believe this.

- I think sucky things happen on Earth because there is not really "Anyone" in control.   It's all chance, nature, and natural process.  So yes, bad things do happen to good people.

- I believe many of the "miracles" recorded in the Bible are nothing more than early man's attempt to explain encounters with alien beings.

- I don't believe people are "saved" by "inviting Jesus into (their) hearts."  I believe people create their own happiness and unhappiness by their actions toward other people.

I often feel so groundless!   I can't pretend to believe the basic principles of Christianity, which just do not make sense nor ring true to me.   I really just don't have answers for most of my questions, and it really leaves me in a bad place when it comes to giving my son any sort of spiritual guidance at all.  :(

Is there anybody else out there like me?

*raising hand*

*waves hand wildly*     Hi Sam!!  Nice to meet you!   :)

Wow Nancy, I'm going to have to do some reading about that.  Thank you!

Tammy, I think the Jesus you speak of still exists and is the same Jesus that others use to justify their agendas.  You can worship him knowing that he is the way you see him - and in doing so, will probably be closer to him than most.  You need to find a liberal, Christian-centered church.  Unity is probably a good place to start looking. :)

Beth, you and I share a lot of the same beliefs.  If you are looking for "like minds" in a group setting, you probably will just have to shop around at your local liberal churches and see what "fits".  Unity, Baha'i, liberal Quakers and the UUs are probably a good place to start, based on what you have written.  I have found that a good minister can really "make" a church and a duddy one can kill it.

I love the liberal Quaker friends meeeting here, and have yet to go downtown to our big UU church though I am UU.  My feeling is, the more you seek, the more you will find....and the more questions you will probably have. :)

Tammy, that's pretty much the Jesus I worship, and I get all my info from the Bible.  :)  Except I'm pretty sure Jesus carried at least a revolver.  Haven't you ever heard this story?:

Most people don't know this, but the bible actually ends with Vin Diesel showing up at the crucifixion with a pair of Uzi's and kicking some Roman a**. Vin Diesel was all like, "Jesus, I totally saved you." Then, off on the horizon, a bunch of Romans show up riding dinosaurs led by Mecha Pontious Pilate. Jesus busts out this sweet ninja sword and says, "Now it's my turn to save you." Then Jesus and Vin Diesel run towards the Romans in slow motion. That's how the bible ends. It's a cliff-hanger. I can't wait for the sequel, "The Bible 2: Water...Into Blood".

Sorry, I'm in a bit of a silly mood.  But I do think that the Jesus of the Bible was peaceful and completely loving.  I don't consider that New Age, I consider it Biblical.  :)  Although I obviously do differ on the part where people believe that Jesus was just a man--I'm not sure if that's categorized as New Age Christianity, or just personal beliefs.

I love Tammy's vision of Jesus.  That's pretty much how I always thought of him, except I do believe he is a deity.  And I totally nominate Brenda to produce "The Bible:  The Action Movie"  :)

Thanks for all the thoughtful replies.  I intend to look at all the links.  Brenda,  Are you sure it was Vin Diesel and not Sylvester Stalone?  Isn't he as old as Christ?  LOL

I've made no secret that I was brought up in a very conservative Christian church.  Even during my wanderings and trying on other religions/belief systems I've always felt close to Jesus,  and of course, other religious icons--from Buddha to Vishnu to even the non-prophet Gods and Goddesses like Isis and Hecate and my patron, Lilith--who was demonized by the Christian church.

My main reasoning and goals for wanting to find more information is because I live right smack dab on the belt buckle of the Bible belt.  I am a member of a huge minority in a local culture where there are churches on every corner.  Heck, I live in a very rural area of my country and I have a Bible Baptist Church 2 blocks over and a HUGE Mexican Catholic church 1/4 mile--and both fill up on Sundays and Wednesdays--and I don't know where the people come from because there aren't that many people out here LOL

Anyway,  LG, I've tried the UU church here, and while the people there were extremely nice and the building was oh so beautiful (2 story with a tall watchtower, surrounded by a garden that anyone would envy--all in a place where the only multistory buildings you see are the apartment buildings)  the church felt too Wiccan to me--which was fine when I was Wiccan for a few short years--but I feel that I've spiritually evolved past the Wiccan belief system--which,  to me, mirrors Christianity in many ways, altho to outsiders looking in it looks bizarre.

Beth,  Many of your ideas match mine.  I believe that we are ALL part of the divine--each a little spark of divine--so in essence we are all Gods/Goddesses--but only as an extension of the whole of Divinity. 

Again,  I plan on looking at all the links provided.  I've been on a perpetual search for my version of the truth.  I KNOW in my heart that the traditional Christian churches aren't truth--they may have been at one time, but they've evolved.  Of course I'm generalizing--I'm sure that there are still those who strive to emulate Jesus and all he stood for.  I don't have any expectations for my search.  I expect that I'll always be "spiritual, not religious" BUT if I can find something that I can reconcile my personal beliefs with an organized belief system, then, and only then, could I "fit in" to my local society and be able to integrate into west Texas culture without being on the fringes of exile.   I think this has become more and more important to me as I get older and especially being a grandmother. 

Thanks for listening to me ramble.

Oh, and Brenda, I wanted to compliment you.  It is easy to recognize you on these forums as a very devout, Christ loving,  walk the walk, talk the talk Jesus loving Christian.  One of my disillusions with Christianity has been people who proclaim loudly that they are God's people--but then I see them ridiculing others, belittling,  being aggressively disagreeable, etc.  I KNOW that no one is perfect, but the people I've witnessed acting less than Jesus-like know what they are doing and feel justified.  I'm not just talking about this board, even tho I've witnessed the same thing here--I'm talking about in real life.  For example, in my teen years we had a pastor who preached and condemned fornication, adultery,  etc.  It seemed like EVERY sermon was somehow laced with sexual morality.  That, in itself, was not a problem--until we all found out that our beloved pastor was poking any of the ladies of the church who would let him--married, single, young, old--and he himself was married.  And we found out he had a drug problem.  That kinda crushes the ideology of a young 'un when they witness something like that and many other examples. 

Tammy, you might try the Sojourner's website run by Jim Wallis and others: http://www.sojo.net/  They have a different perspective on Jesus than what has been in the forefront of the Evangelical movement the past couple of decades.

Nancy - thanks for those links about the Emerging Church - - that's a really facinating phenomenon and fills a need that a lot of people have. 

Ron, if your interested, you're welcome to come join us any Saturday night.  We're casual and like to eat and gab after the service: http://www.ducc.us/  We have folks come down from LAebanon, so you'd be just a hop, skip & jump away compared to them. One of our ministers is a former Buddhist, and the other is a Reiki healer :)

Tammy, you might feel at home at Unity, they are very accepting of every faith and have no dogma or even any rigid beliefs.  They accept the original teachings of Jesus as  wisdom from an Elder Brother, the Way Shower, but also accept that the Christ spirit is in all of us.  New Age, or better termed New Thought with metaphysical leanings.  Check'em out online: www.unityonline.org

Unity offers a friendly community and most churches have many different groups and classes. 

Margaret

You are not alone, Beth N.   Except for the "encounters with aliens"  theory about  the "miracles", I'm with you.

Looking for a church home, about 55 years ago I joined a Unitarian Church in Virginia (named for Thomas Jefferson, third president of the U. S. A.).  Then, later on the Unitarians merged with the Universalists to make the present-day UUA (Unitarian-Universalist Association).  One thing that appeals strongly about this group is the fact that it is NON-creedal.  There is no reciting "I believe . . . . . . . .etc."   Nowadays, it's a pretty big "umbrella" group, and in a U-U church or fellowship, you will meet some quite interesting people.