Offerings/rituals to the Lord and Jesus?

[LadyCelt]

I have recently thought of this. I do give money in church, and it does go to a good cause. but, I don't tithe/offer/sacrifice to the Lord or Jesus. I know Jesus replaced the lambs etc, but communion is still taking from Jesus and the Lord, it is not giving to them in my opinion.

With people asking for proper rituals and offerings to deities on here, I got to thinking.

Maybe frankinsynth adn myrr incense for Jesus would work. Maybe leaving red wine out or some type of red juice to symbolise his blood. maybe something to represent his flesh.

I give thanks to the Lord when I pray for my fiancee and my family and my cat and being a live and all the prayers that have been answered.

But, I am kinda drawing a blank on rituals or offerings for the Lord and for Jesus.

I still feel in a way my tithes/offerings at church are for the church. Yes, it does good things, but is it to the Lord and Jesus?

I guess the closest thing I could come up with is Lent or fasting. But, with diabetes running in my family and having to have my brain to full power for classes, I don't know if this is safe.

I also feel maybe the best hting I can do is try to recycle more and be better to the earth. Its hard in today's world, but maybe that is an idea.

Any thoughts or suggestions?

thanks.

[Cassie]

I am sure the lord you worship would appreciate the love and creativity that goes into your poetry;- could that be used as an offering?

[LadyCelt]

you mean making songs or poems about and to jesus and the lord?

[Morgandria]

I think if you're going to honour the Christian God and his son, Jesus, you should do it within the ways laid out by Christianity. Incense is part of Catholicism, but might not work for a Protestant. I wouldn't go so far as food offerings, back to them....not really part of the deal, except as a reenactment of the Last Supper, which really seems to be out of the hands of the lay person, at this point.

Christianity really doesn't do much with the idea of offerings or sacrifices, because unlike the Jews of the Old Testament who did offer directly to G-d, Jesus is a sacrifice himself, to God, on behalf of mankind. You really can't offer anything equal or greater than that, in the Christian faith.

Personally I don't think a Christian deity, or his son, would be very impressed with recieving pagan-style sacrifices.

[Nadeshda]

I was wondering about the same thing, LadyCelt!

I live in Portugal, and here is the Sanctuary of Fátima, where Our Lady showed up to three children nearly 100 years ago. Many people who ask our Lady of Fátima for graces thank Her by walking all the way from their homes to the Sanctuary (it takes weeks, sometimes), or by going from a statue in the sactuary to a small chapel on their knees. But I don't think these were the kind of things you were looking for.

I believe that maybe doing some charity or volunteer work might be seen as an offering to God. I'm thinking of going to a church and asking a priest how I can thank God for my prayers He has answered. If it doesn't slip my mind, I'll post it here :)

[semi]

Based on my understanding, Jesus was a supercool hippie kind of guy who was all about peace and love and being nice to people. He wasn't into physical goods all that much. Therefore, I think that anything you offer him would be graciously accepted as long as the offering was done with genuine love and honor. I'd give him some of the things that you enjoy. Do you like a good strong cup of coffee in the morning? Give him one, too. Do you like pizza? Give him a slice now and then. You know what I mean? I'd give him things that aren't permanent, like food or lit candles or incense, because he is an image of transformation, life and rebirth, dynamicism rather than staticality. Also, he was very much into service and self-sacrifice so you could use service as an offering. Volunteer time to work with mentally retarded or developmentally disabled people, for example, as an offering. Serve your community the way he did. I don't personally know the guy (I was thrown out of Sunday school when I was 4), but I think he'd like that.

[Tobias]

There are a few ways to give sacrifice to the Christian God, without really being tied to church or altering the religion. The first one that comes to mind is giving a Sacrifice of Praise.

Hebrews 13:15
Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that confess his name.


Praising God is about counting your blessings, and thanking him for his part in giving them to you. Don't feel obligated to thank him for things you don't feel he's done, or for things you don't appreciate. Just keep it real. :)

Tithing is another way. Know this though, that the truth about tithing is rarely taught in your local church. According to the Bible, it was originally supposed to go to the widows, orphans, strangers in their land, and to the priests. Somehow over the years it has turned into a tax for the church. Go figure.

One place it even sais you are supposed to take your tithe and go party it up before the Lord, eating and drinking whatever you want in his presence! Apparently having a party in his favor is an acceptable way to honor him.

Deuteronomy 14:
23 Eat the tithe of your grain, new wine and oil, and the firstborn of your herds and flocks in the presence of the LORD your God at the place he will choose as a dwelling for his Name, so that you may learn to revere the LORD your God always.

28 At the end of every three years, bring all the tithes of that year's produce and store it in your towns,
29 so that the Levites (who have no allotment or inheritance of their own) and the aliens, the fatherless and the widows who live in your towns may come and eat and be satisfied, and so that the LORD your God may bless you in all the work of your hands.



I suggest getting creative with your tithe, if you choose to do this. Back when this was written, it was obviously the widows and fatherless children who were always in a bind. I think the spirit of this is to give to the needy, using our brains to tell us who needs it, if you know what I mean...

The principle of First Fruits kind of goes along with tithing, but I see it more as a ritual. There is a lot of symbolism in giving the first and best of what we have back to God. It symbolizes our lives on this plane of existence. If we offer up to God the fist part of every action, or let him be a part of the decission making process, then he is faithful to guide our steps. There is a lot of depth in applying this to your life. I'm not much of a ritual type of person, or I would surely have found a way to symbolize this important spiritual step in the giving of First Fruits.

Communion is another ritual you should feel free to try. No, it does NOT have to be administered by clergy. If you are Catholic, you may disagree. I'm not sure if all protestant denominations feel this way, but it is quite common for lay people in Evangelical, Bible Believing churches to offer communion to each other at home. Just find the relevant scriptures, and go for it! You can even use real wine like Jesus did, if you like.

That's all that comes to mind right now. I hope this helps!

:)

[Romani Vixen]

simicivilized has some great ideas up there. I always think of Jesus as a hippy. :)

[BlueMoon13]

Lots of good ideas already put forth. Service to the needy,be it visiting the sick, volunteering in a soup kitchen, shoveling a walk for the elderly,and so on strike me as a an excellent way to offer up a sacrifice. Did'nt he say something like if you do this for the least, you've done it for him?
One of the most touching things I've noticed happening more and more over the past ten years or so are more Christians observing a Seder (Passover meal) on Maundy Thursday, then observing a night long vigil, as a re-enactment of the Last Supper and the night in the garden. Perhaps you might want to do the same. There are many Haggadahs-books outling the ritual meal-the are either half in English or all English, readily available.

[MariThorn]

As a Catholic Witch who used to be a Protestant I can say that what Tobias said is somewhat true about the Eucharist. I do not any Protestant's personally who offer it in their homes, but Catholics do not believe that is a Sacrament that lay people can do. On the other note . . . the greatest praise you can offer Jesus or YHWH is to clothe yourself as Jesus did and be a walking witness to the World. Singing your praises, writing poems/ hymns (even David did this), giving to the poor and the needy (if you have doubts about whether the Church you attend is doing this, then do it in person), Prayer (Catholics have the Rosary), and simply worshipping Him.

I do all the above, and yes I have a small shrine on my main altar with Mary on it. (Saving up for the Crucifix.) If you are a Catholic it is easier to combine Paganism or the Craft with your other Walk. Offering incense is also a good thing, and I do believe that in Deuteronomy or Leviticus the ingredients to the Sacred incense to YHWH are listed. We are not Jewish (at least I am not) so I don't think the taboo still would apply. (The taboo being that only the Priest could do this.) I will look in my Bible for that reference unless someone already knows it.

MariThorn

[aluokaloo]

Hey Lady Celt, how about sweat and blood work? Jesus healed the sick, was kind to the poor etc. So maybe you can volunteer at soup kitchens, homeless shelters, convalescent homes, that sort of thing. However if you want to go ahead and make physical offerings, think of the things he is associtaed with. Lamb, fish, wine, bread, carpentry. Perhaps keep the meal simple.

[LadyCelt]

I wish Christians did things for passover. Its a pretty darn big event.


I really want to be a penpal to at least one prisoner, but my mom isn't into the idea :(

I want to reach out to someone there and I feel that is a great gift to humanity. I wish I could do it.

[aluokaloo]

Do you have spare time to do volunteer work?

[Tobias]

I wish Christians did things for passover. Its a pretty darn big event.



Messianic Congregations take a lot of Judaism, and mix it with the teachings of Jesus. They keep the feasts, and some of the other laws and rituals of the Old Testiment. Many feel that this is the way Jesus lived, and therefore the right way to do things. The Passover (Pesach) is probably their biggest celebration.


Congregation Beth Messiah
(248) 559-1535
25835 Southfield Rd # 110
Southfield, MI 48075


Here's one I found on Google that's in Detroit. If nothing else, I'm sure they would have information available for conducting a Passover Sader. The book you're looking for is a Haggada, which walks you through the ceremony.


Many churches have prison ministries, too. Mabey your mother would be favorable to your participation in something a little more structured?

[LadyCelt]

thanks for the help

my mom is against my contacting prisoners for safety. She's agnostic so she isn't into relgion etc though.

[Shadowsong]

I have to agree with Morgandria. In my opinion (which ain't much, believe me, so ya may as well disregard it) Jesus was all about love and kindness. I do not think that he would really care much for the idea of sacrifices--I think, and when I say this I speak for any Deity (though this is just according to my own beliefs) what They want, above all else, is what comes from your heart and spirit.
JMHO though.

Shadow

[Pol]

I'm not going to do much but echo others here. Worship the Christian God and His Son as they see fit. Sure, the Bible is possibly innacurate and unreal, but if you follow the religion it is just about all you have. They have laid out ways in which to worship and honour them throughout that Bible, and it's best to stick with what They want.

Having said that..Biblically, Jesus was not a cool hippie love everybody kind of guy. At all.

[JadeNSC]

I have recently thought of this. I do give money in church, and it does go to a good cause. but, I don't tithe/offer/sacrifice to the Lord or Jesus. I know Jesus replaced the lambs etc, but communion is still taking from Jesus and the Lord, it is not giving to them in my opinion.

With people asking for proper rituals and offerings to deities on here, I got to thinking.

Maybe frankinsynth adn myrr incense for Jesus would work. Maybe leaving red wine out or some type of red juice to symbolise his blood. maybe something to represent his flesh.

I give thanks to the Lord when I pray for my fiancee and my family and my cat and being a live and all the prayers that have been answered.

But, I am kinda drawing a blank on rituals or offerings for the Lord and for Jesus.

I still feel in a way my tithes/offerings at church are for the church. Yes, it does good things, but is it to the Lord and Jesus?

I guess the closest thing I could come up with is Lent or fasting. But, with diabetes running in my family and having to have my brain to full power for classes, I don't know if this is safe.

I also feel maybe the best hting I can do is try to recycle more and be better to the earth. Its hard in today's world, but maybe that is an idea.

Any thoughts or suggestions?

thanks.

I'm a little bit confused as to what you mean by Lord? Do you mean the Christian God? If you do "Lord" references both God and Jesus in Christianity. Jesus was the son of God as well as God Himself so they are actually one in the same. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are not three separate entities, but are just different aspects of the same deity (God).

As for offerings most Christians I know choose to volunteer and do good works in Jesus's name. Like volunteer at a soup kitchen, donate blood, help teach children and adults how to read, etc. They do this of their own free will and receive no payment for this. They thank God and Jesus for the opportunity to serve their fellow man as well as serving Them. You can also donate some money to various charities (Toys for Tots, Salvation Army, Red Cross, etc.).

If you want some more ideas, the Book of Matthew in the New Testement might give you some. Read what Jesus spoke about in regards to giving to the poor and loving your neighbor. He even talks about praying to God and how you should go about doing it. The best reference in how to serve and honor the Christian God and Jesus is your sacred text, The Holy Bible. :) You could also check any book store, or better yet a Christian bookstore to see what other Christians say about honoring God and Jesus. :)

If you are a member of a church, see if they are active in the community. You can also ask your preacher what he/she thinks you could do. Just ask and I'm sure they'll be thrilled to answer any questions you might have.

Good luck.

PS: No, I'm not Christian, but I do live with one. ;)

[charmedkisses1]

My mother, a Christian, tithes to support her church, who in turn pretty much give most of the money to fund medical missions and things like that. I think that, if the church uses it appropriately, it's sort of like doing Jesus's work...

I don't know.

[Ninjakitten]

I think everyone here gave really great ideas for how to honor Godde and Jesus. I think the most important point is that whatever you do, whether it's specifically to honor Godde and/or Jesus or going about with your everyday life, that you do it all with honor to Godde, rememberance of Jesus' sacrifice, and knowing you are a walking representative of the Christ to the rest of the world. I admit that I, myself, haven't been doing much of a good job at all of doing this, but it doesn't make that untrue. There is only so much that an imperfect human can offer to a perfect Godde and His/Her perfect sacrifice. It's your meaning behind what you do to honor them that counts, so long as you don't do something like rob a bank to tithe the church with or something like that.

[Paracelsus]

Some interesting things in this thread - although of course, you should recall that Christians do in fact celebrate passover - it's Easter! There is a clear relationship in the gospels between the sacrifice of Jesus on the Cross, and the sacrifice of the lambs in the temple (John's gospel even "warps" time a little bit so that the two events are simultaneous - unlike the others where the last supper is clearly a Seder meal, and of course, the lambs would have to be sacrificed before that).

I think that this is a very difficult area - as many have said, there are lots of good ways of worshipping Jesus, and they are practiced widely in Christianity, but I think that it might be worth examining Christian ideas about Sacrifice, if you are going to move on.

The Christian concept of sacrifice, as outlined in Pauline theology and by the church fathers, is that Jesus (as God incarnate), voluntarily sacrificed himself - thus removing all need for further sacrifices in order to redeem individuals from sin. Thus, any form of sacrificial offering is out - and your statement that the "Eucharist is all about taking", is not really correct. It is about moving into unity, and is often interpreted as a symbolic offering of the world, and each individual particpant, to God.

Now in terms of offerings, it is pretty clear that many of the ideas above are pretty straight up - getting invovled, and offering blood, sweat, toil and tears, seems to be what the Christian God requires - The Old Testament prophets were much exercised with this, and came to a pretty resounding conclusion that personal righteousness, kindness, and morality were by far the highest things - Micah, for example states. "He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God" (Micah 6:8), although my personal favourite is Amos: "I hate, I despise your religious feasts; I cannot stand your assemblies.Even though you bring me burnt offerings and grain offerings,I will not accept them, Though you bring choice fellowship offerings,I will have no regard for them.Away with the noise of your songs! I will not listen to the music of your harps.But let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream!"

Personal righteousness is the key, I think

[Paracelsus]

Oh Sh*t, just remembered this as well -
Try reading Teilhard de Chardin's "Mass on the World".
He was a rather unconventional Jesuit Mystic/Scientist, and this particular book invovles an imaginative offering of the whole world in the euacharist - maybe particularly appropriate for those juggling with Christian and Pagan ideas.

[Jolantru]

Actually, I remember attending a church service when I was still an undergraduate. The church was innovative in a sense that they actually created a Passover feast in which they laid out a wooden banquet table and on the table itself were food used in a Passover. So, as we sat for this 'feast', scripture was read at particular intervals and we ate accordingly. The entire event was clearly planned to be a reflective session, so that people could reflect on the significance of the Passover feast.

I personally think the reading of poetry is a beautiful way to offer to the Lord and Jesus. And singing is a great way - songs of praise and worship are always good in my books.

Cheers,
Jolantru

[LadyCelt]

I know Eastre is aroudn the time of Passover but I mean celebrating passover too.

thanks for singing suggestion.