Keiran,
Be aware we as Christians worship the character, attitudes, actions, wisdom and revelation of who we believe is very God. Jesus never encouraged worship of himself as a man but even his own worship was of God. We do not direct worship to a human of history, but to the very nature of the eternal God as a human he revealed [incarnate]. We worship the very nature of his character as upon his character, attitudes, actions we ourselves follow him as disciples.

What one thinks of him will reflect upon wether one views his character as being the very nature of God. The ultimate model upon which we image ourselves. The ultimate true character in a Christian view is one who gives himself sacrificially for the blessing of all mankind even his opposition [enemies].

Philo - well said. You got me thinking, though. The tradition of the Church claims that outward sacrifice is only genuine when it is the expression of spiritual sacrifice.
Jesus claimed not to want our sacrifice but our mercy. [Gospel according to Matthew Chapter 9, verse 13 and 12:7, recalling the words of the prophet Hosea: "I desire mercy not sacrifice" Hosea 6:6.]
Fasting is one kind of sacrifice which may have become forgotten in the West. Our Muslim brothers and sisters fast from dawn to sunset during the month of Ramadan, and Catholics from Eastern and Arabic rites also value fasting during certain days of every week. I think that fasting is a sign that the best is yet to come: life in eternity with Christ Jesus.
I worry that considering the popularity of Mel Gibson's The Passion of Christ, people get the idea that Christ came to die, rather than to submit to his Father's will, and ultimately redeem the world from the power of death and sin.

Kieran mentioned Buddha's enlightenment and mused whether Jesus had a similar transformative event. Whilst Buddha is not comparable to Jesus, (in the sense that he is not God and never claimed to be God), naturally, Jesus' life was punctuated by significant events.

Jesus submitted to his baptism, which marked the beginning of his public ministry. John Paul II instituted a fourth mystery to the Rosary in the latter years of his papacy. The 'Mystery of Light' focuses upon the 5 events of Jesus' mission:
1) The Baptism in the Jordan
2) The wedding feast of Cana
3) The proclamation of the kingdom of God
4) The Transfiguration
5) The institution of the Eucharist

You can find the bible reference for each of these mysteries by clicking on the numbers you see near the Rosary beads at this Vatican web page:
http://www.vatican.va/special/rosary/documents/misteri_luminosi_en.html

Renee,
My point about sacrifice isn’t self-inflicted like fasting, self-mutilation etc, but living in the dignified service that blesses others; not with low self-esteem, but as a saintly person that enhances and lifts failing hopeless lives. Not motivated to be recognised but to genuinely care.

The Apostle Paul identifies sacrifice that is spiritual worship in Romans 12: 1–2. “In view of God’s mercy, offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God – this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of behaviour of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”

Christ demonstrated sacrifice by organising and feeding multitudes, caring for sick, depressed and oppressed, calming the terrified and giving life to the grieving. Our lives are truly fulfilled in human relationships that bring peace, joy and enrichment to people. Christ demonstrated and had more to say about this than any notion of a meditative trance giving spiritual enlightenment or an afterlife.

Compare for example Roman and Greeks that viewed gods in their own passions of mind and body. For instance the Greek goddess Aphrodite or the Roman goddess Venus they believed aroused their sexual passions. So in their worship of these gods to indulge in sexual immorality, adultery and fornication was religiously acceptable. In fact the temples to these goddesses were places of prostitution where priestesses served. Beside the god Juno represented the natural passions of a man for another man.

When Christianity came it changed the view of people toward their passions and made them personally responsible for and identified self-denial as spiritual service to the purity of God. Philosophies that do not practise self-denial flaunt their natural passions as acceptance behaviour or contrastedly those fully covered or mutilated women who supposedly reduce the temptation, men equally lack self-discipline.

Modesty is a virtue in Christianity, which means not flaunting ones passions in an endeavour to arouse undesirable passions in others. What one does in a total life-committed sanctioned relationship that brings mutual pleasure doesn’t qualify as impurity for unto such we are created

If we are always to ask questions and if Jesus asked leading questions about himself like, "Who do people say I am?" and "Who do you say I am?" then it naturally follows that Boaz will come up with similar ..... "the crucial question Keiran is ....who is Jesus ..'to you'?".

Just seems a bit sinful of Jesus not to give a straight answer if we are to believe what's presented in the Bible. Well in response it may be only proper to answer a question with a question too. Like ....... who do you (or would Jesus) think I am? Well in answer to my own question (i.e. my conscience at work) I'm just a nobody with a bit of curiosity about the world and certainly not some member of a playpen seemingly moving in unison with the group toward this need and fulfillment of a single, well-laid-out messianic purpose. My need is not about basic salvation stories nor about the longing for a messianic savior. It would be interesting to ask why people believe this claptrap of urgent messianic tidings guiding them inexorably toward the final redemption. Is this not fatalism or more correctly messianic fatalism. Some of these beliefs even suggest a messiah in the form of a realestate agent for goodness sake. Just how can this peculiar blind faith provide any solutions?

As I have said, process and any understanding of causality are simply not needed by those infected by this teddy magic and that is my concern. Causality may mean different things in different ages with different circumstances but in understanding Buddha it is plainly clear where he was coming from and the choices he made. There is no attempt nor reason to obscure the origins of his enlightenment.

Forgive the spelling."The man's wilderness years" were probably spent like the rest of the prophets, in Egypt.you know learning the truth to all of this madness. King James was the one who made it a sin to eat from the tree of "knowledge". Like the history book says "God created man in his own image. When you look in the mirror, what do you see? Your own image. Who can see every thing you do behind closed doors? YOU! I believe, if a person lives and dies for there religion, it shows devotion and love. The grain of a mustured seed is accomplished, but for the curious one (like myself) to obtain that seed of faith, will take hardcore evidence to live and die for. You are wrighting your own personal Bible. The chapter of sacrafice in mine is, my father dedicating his life for his children. Giving up everything he wants out of life, to provide for his loved ones. He would jump in front of a bullet to save us. The world is in a religion that was fit for the king. Jesus was a great man. I find it more honorable to see him as a man just like me. It would be easy for the creater to become flesh and do what He did, but to think of him as a normal human, going through the pain, is much more admirable. To fight (under any circumstances) for what you love is the whole essence of our souls. Once "YOU" find for "yourself" the world is an atom, and we are electrons and protons of "ONE" mechanism. You to will sacrafice your life for our brothers and sisters in the name of love. Fun thing to look at: find out when William Shakespear was born. Ad up the years to 1608 A.D. (year Bible was published). He was 46 years old, look at Psalms 46,and the 46th word from the begining, then (with the exeption of salah) the 46th word from the end. The truth is in there, but in allegorical form. www.myspace.com/leeroysnext

Jesus was completely human and intrinsically divine. And so is his Holy Spirit today. This spirit is characterised by Jesus' gift of eternal life to us and yet also by our inheritance of his human love.
By this I mean that when we pray for the Holy Spirit's gifts (wisdom, knowledge, understanding, counsel, fortitude, piety, fear of the Lord), and believe that we receive them, we participate in the eternal dimension of life.
Through Jesus' great love all people are freed from death and its interference in our life with him. Just as he is a part of the Trinity of Father, Son and Spirit, I may love and receive grace lovingly within my family and the world. By loving, I increase the possibility of reaching my human potential.
All else seems to be futile, by comparison.