Jesus is an Infidel
Benjamin B. White
Alien Buddha Press, 2025
ISBN: 9798313005775
Print, 63 ppg.
When someone reads a book that is about a religious figure and/or deity, it’s important to have an open mind. This is especially true if the book in question is a collection of poetry.
I am not a religious person. I have no religion and I don’t hold myself to any dogma or beliefs. I used to be a Christian (among other things), so I know a bit about the Bible, church sermons, Sunday school teachings, and basically living as a Christian. I am no longer a Christian, but that doesn’t mean I entertain hatred towards the Christian faith. All the same, even as I am exposed to blasphemy and hate towards a religion, that does not mean I’ll jump on that bandwagon. I take what I see, read and experience with a critical eye.
That said, this collection of poetry does contain some blasphemous material (if you’re a Christian), but I perceived it as non-religious writing. Just another person’s opinions and ideas. None of the stuff in this book is meant to be a call to attack Christianity; it’s only literature.
I actually found some of the poems to be thought-provoking, as well as entertaining. I was laughing in some parts of the book and rolling my eyes in others.
“Fall into Place” is a poem that touches on the fact (NOT a “theory”) that the King James Bible was changed and revised according to the whims of a group of men in government. The Bible we know of and read today (KJV) is the result of all of those changes and wrong translations. It is not the original Word of God.
The last 8 lines of the poem “Carpenter” made me laugh!
In the poem “Pity,” these lines stood out, in talking about Jesus:
“As his is a religion
Of self-pity
Built on obeying
And staying
Out of the orchard
And within the parameters
Of behavior
Without thought
Where knowledge
Has always been
Forbidden.” (Page 43)
This is one thing that always bugged me about being a Christian. Being told that I had to obey and not ask questions. Heck, when I read the Bible, I filled up pages of a notebook with questions! And any time I tried to learn about other religions, I was scolded by Bible-bangers and warned that I would start growing horns on my head. When I studied the Druids for research for my novel, my dad kept warning me that they were evil, Devil worshipers and that I shouldn’t believe what I was reading about them.
I believe we should be allowed to ask questions. We should be allowed to think for ourselves. We cannot blindly follow leaders! We should not be forced into compliance without being able to have a voice or to seek understanding. But that is what my experiences with Christianity was like and I refused to play along. (And that’s actually not the reason why I decided that I no longer wanted to be a Christian.)
Now back to comments on the poems in this book. I have just one more!
“The Exorcist” was a hilarious poem! But, really, would Jesus actually choose to drink Cherry Coke? I always thought he would be more of a Mountain Dew guy.
Jesus is an Infidel is a collection of poetry showing a different, less brainwashed view of what Jesus’ life was like, how he probably views the Christianity of today and what sort of twists his original idea of religion has gone through to this day. I do not feel that the Christianity that is preached by conservative followers of the faith is not the same that Jesus envisioned (because didn’t he tell us to love our neighbor?), and a lot of the poems in this book address that very thing and goes on to add a bit more of just how far Christians of today have strayed from the path of their religion.
Five stars
Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book as a gift from the author without any expectation of a review and this review is entirely voluntary.
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