Posted by permission
by Kari Browning
thebeautifulrevolution.org
What if the version of Christianity many of us inherited isn’t what Jesus intended at all?
What if the liberating message of Jesus—centered on justice, compassion, and harmony with creation—was gradually replaced by a religion shaped more by empire, patriarchy, and control?
Somewhere along the way, Christianity became less about following a revolutionary rabbi who stood with the vulnerable and the oppressed… and more about preserving power structures, obeying hierarchies, and escaping the world instead of healing it.
Instead of the teachings of Jesus—a way of living in harmony with each other and the earth—we got the religion of empire.
And honestly? It explains a lot.
It explains why so much of the church today aligns more with nationalism than with Jesus.
It helps explain how the earth came to be violated and Indigenous peoples oppressed—justified by distorted doctrines like “dominion” and “manifest destiny.”
It explains why so many of us are walking away—not from Jesus, but from what’s been done in His name.
Maybe the answer isn’t to give up on faith, but to reclaim the beautiful Gospel that empire has tried to erase.
The one that says:
You are the beloved.
This earth is sacred.
And liberation and wholeness are possible.
Done with Religion 