This year I happened to be reading A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens over Easter. It was this that finally crystallised the problem I have with Christianity. Its central premise doesn’t make any kind of sense.

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (John 3:16)

Yet in ATOTC, we have Sydney Carton willingly giving his life to save not the whole human race (or at least the ‘born again’ portion of it), but just one man. With no promise of resurrection, and no seat at God’s right hand at the end of it.

Let’s leave aside that the whole premise is mad. No, in fact, let’s not. If Yahweh/Jehovah/whoever created the Universe, and everything that exists, then presumably He made the rules too. Why make a rule that sin requires propitiation by a blood sacrifice? I’m not the best mother in the world, but I don’t feel wrath when my child falls short of my expectations (at least not every time!). I certainly don’t expect him to go and kill something to make me feel better. Why would God be less understanding than me, a rubbish human?

But anyway, let’s take it as read that this madness is true. Who wouldn’t give their only begotten child to save potentially the whole human race? Granted, I’d rather it was me who had who had to do the cross thing (though if we believe in the Trinity, then it would be me, wouldn’t it?), but given that I’d be God, and I’d thus be sure that Little ‘Un was going to be resurrected, and all he had to do was suffer horribly for less than a week, well, it’s worth it, isn’t it?

Abraham had no such assurances, and he was still up for it – not to save the human race, but to satisfy God’s whim. Our troops are over in Iraq sacrificing their lives to satisfy Tony Blair's whim. The papers often report on people who give their lives for strangers, dying to rescue them, and a good proportion of them, according to Christians, are going to hell. It doesn’t make sense, and I don’t believe it.

AND it’s got nothing to do with eggs!