Many, if not most religions of old times and some now deal with animal sacrifice. A First Nations Bredren I used to Reason would always say a prayer thanking the Creator and the animal for the loss of it's life for his food. He would also take some and leave it beside a tree as a sacrifice.
Even though sacrifice was and is used, it is not necessary. The Ethiopian Orthodox and most other Christians don't deal with animal sacrifice. RasTafarI people definitely don't deal with animal sacrifice. Here are some Reasonings about it, and also about the sacrifice of Cain and Abel.
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Sacrifice
The churches have misinterpreted the meaning of Christ dying for our sins. The way I see it is that the reason why we are saved is because of what Christ taught I and I about how I and I should live.
The sacrifice of Christ was that he taught I and I Jah way because he knew that he would have to sacrifice his body to teach I and I this because he knew that babylon would crucify him for teaching the truth to the people. But he still showed I and I the truth, he sacrificed himself for this. So when people forget his words and teachings it is a disrespect to the sacrifice Christ gave in order to show I and I these words.
That is why I feel that it is so important to live by his words. He sacrificed himself to teach I and I these things. If he didn't speak the things that he spoke, they would never have crucified him.
Selassie I showed I and I,
When He sacrificed himself at Golgotha for the atonement of our sin, He prayed with His last breath for the forgiveness of those who had tortured Him saying, 'Father, forgive them for they know not what they do'.
Shame on those of us who are Christians and do not follow the way of the Savior of the World, whose life was filled with kindness, humility, and martyrdom! If we lived by the laws he gave us and were worthy of being called Christian, peace would have reigned on this earth.
Men were supposed to be the equals of the living angels who unceasingly sang praises before the eternal God. Had this been so, peoples of the world would not have been divided along lines of enmity.
Often in the churches, they speak that there use to be animal sacrifice, but by Christ being crucified, this sacrifice replace the sacrifice of animals, so people no longer need to sacrifice animals. Or they say that by Christ being crucified and sacrificed, it cleansed us of our sins so that Jah would forgive I and I. They like to believe that the death of Christ saves them to relieve their guilt for crucifying Him and justify their wickedness of crucifying Him. They also want to excuse themselves from living by His example. When the real way Christ saves us was by teaching I and I how to Live by the example of God and be One with God. Animal sacrifice was never necessary and Jah was always willing to forgive I and I of our sins.
The sacrificing of animals was there to cause people to acknowledge their sin, a process to help them recognize the significance. Jah requires I and I to repent and Live by his ways. If this is done, then no sacrifice is required. The law only has an affect on Sin. There is no law against righteousness.
Jah is perfectly clear in Ezekiel about what he requires, he didn't say that the people must repent and sacrifice. He only said that they must repent and Live in righteousness and their sin will not be mentioned, but they will be remembered for their righteousness.
Ezekiel 18
20 The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.
21 But if the wicked will turn from all his sins that he hath committed, and keep all my statutes, and do that which is lawful and right, he shall surely live, he shall not die.
22 All his transgressions that he hath committed, they shall not be mentioned unto him: in his righteousness that he hath done he shall live.
23 Have I any pleasure at all that the wicked should die? saith the Lord GOD: and not that he should return from his ways, and live?
24 But when the righteous turneth away from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, and doeth according to all the abominations that the wicked man doeth, shall he live? All his righteousness that he hath done shall not be mentioned: in his trespass that he hath trespassed, and in his sin that he hath sinned, in them shall he die.
25 Yet ye say, The way of the LORD is not equal. Hear now, O house of Israel; Is not my way equal? are not your ways unequal?
26 When a righteous man turneth away from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, and dieth in them; for his iniquity that he hath done shall he die.
27 Again, when the wicked man turneth away from his wickedness that he hath committed, and doeth that which is lawful and right, he shall save his soul alive.
28 Because he considereth, and turneth away from all his transgressions that he hath committed, he shall surely live, he shall not die.
29 Yet saith the house of Israel, The way of the LORD is not equal. O house of Israel, are not my ways equal? are not your ways unequal?
30 Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways, saith the Lord GOD. Repent, and turn yourselves from all your transgressions; so iniquity shall not be your ruin.
31 Cast away from you all your transgressions, whereby ye have transgressed; and make you a new heart and a new spirit: for why will ye die, O house of Israel?
32 For I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord GOD: wherefore turn yourselves, and live ye.
All the laws, procedures and ceromonies were needed by man, not Jah. Because their faith was and still is so weak that they required these things to help them believe. Just as some feel that they need many people to pray for them to be helped by Jah, or the people that believe that they must repeat their request over and over again to be heard. The Ones that have Faith that Jah will help them without them asking for this or that, but trust in the Most High to provide what they need, their Faith will be fulfilled.
When you look at the scriptures when Christ healed the people. Some people had Faith that they would be healed if Christ touched them, and they were healed. Christ showed them that "your Faith has healed you". Some people had Faith that they would be healed if they only touched the clothes of Christ, and they were healed. And one man had Faith that Christ could heal his servant from across the city, without even seeing the servant, and the servant was healed. Christ said of this man:
Luke 7
9 When Jesus heard these things, he marvelled at him, and turned him about, and said unto the people that followed him, I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel.
The people that had Faith that they would be healed when Christ touched them did not have Faith that Christ could heal them without even being near them. But the One that had the Faith that Christ could be far away and still heal, his Faith was fulfilled.
In those times, people put too much dependence on the laws and sacrifice and walked away from Faith in the Most High. Christ showed the Truth, and afterwards, instead of listening, people replaced the old doctrines of men with new doctrines of men, and put aside the Word of Jah as shown by Christ. Christ showed them what is truly required, it is not the doctrines of man, but it is the Livity of Jah. It is not to force your body to not sin, but it is to remove sin from you thoughts and Spirit. It is not to be part of the faithless generation, but it is to be the generation of the Faithful.
Christ showed the original way, the way for the faithful generation. Doctrines of men and animal sacrifices was for the faithless generation.
John 6
63 It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.
Word manifested in Flesh, and Flesh manifested in Word to enter into I and I.
I and I should never underestimate the Power of Faith. With Faith, nothing is impossible, NOTHING. We needed Christ to bring the Flesh(Words) of Jah to I and I for us to see the Truth and the example of Jah. Because if we didn't see the Truth of Jah, then we would have surely died in our sin. But by the Grace(divine direction) of Jah, I and I will Live by the example of Jah. Without Jah guidance, this could not be so, but with Jah guidance it must be so. Christ left so that the Spirit of Truth could come to I and I, to show us where and when all of I and I steps should be made. But even after he left, people ignored the Spirit of Truth, and instead only spoke about how great Christ was and how it was impossible to Live by His example. Even though Christ came and told us to Live by His example, and sent us the Spirit of Truth to lead I and I in Jah way.
Christ sacrificed himself so that we could hear the Words of Jah. That is why he was crucified, and He knew that they would hate Him for showing the Words and example of Jah. This is the sacrifice. The action of Christ is the sacrifice, not the action of wicked men that crucified him. And the action of Christ was to remove the cloak and reveal the Truth. The sacrifice was the teaching of Jah example and it occured before the crucifixion, the result of the sacrifice was the crucifixion.
The teachings of Christ are the example of Jah. Let I and I Live in the ways of I and I Father.
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