Christianity – a religion that is followed by millions yet retains an equal amount who condemn it. Christianity has been the cause of major catastrophe in the form of the Crusades, the Exploration Age, and The Old and New Imperialism, respectively in the 1000s – 1300s, the Late 1400s – 1500s, the 1500s – 1700s, and the Late 1800s A.D. It is viewed as the destroyer of the light that shines in all human beings whether it be the unholy invasion of the Holy Land or the White Man’s Burden that weighed heavy on the Africans. The Spanish colonies even experienced this dreadful belief while millions of Native Americans died in spite of its inspiring message of hope. This is the picture that is painted in the classrooms of America.

What I fail to understand is where Christianity went wrong. We learn about how the Romans persecuted these poor followers of a man who seems more like a betrayer than a savior. Jesus promised a saving grace yet most early Christians were saved for crucifixion. This, however, is why we call these people early Christians. They came before the “free” Christians. We learn in our history classes that this change is seen through Constantine the Great. The man who legalized Christianity -- but for the wrong reasons. Christianity to Constantine seemed like a religion that could be used for power only and not salvation. What Constantine saw was that he won battles under the banner of Christ. What the whole empire saw was death if they angered this God. Christianity, at this point, lost its glamour. It turned into a religion of power rather than maintaining its integrity of peace and humility. This is what cascaded Christianity into the mess it is in today.

What we learn in school is that this religion is the cause of these dreadful events. What we learn in Christianity is that humans have strayed away from God. It is the human side of us that believes that we are competent enough to handle ourselves. It is the Christian side to not trust in man, but in God. Therefore, Christianity is the admittance that humans are too incompetent to handle this world by themselves and realize that humans need God in order to function in harmony. Putting all of the power of Christendom in the Pope is not the same as putting all of that power with God. So while those humans who reject Christianity continue in their struggles, they must realize the underlying source of these ethical problems. It is the people, not the religion.