Donner,
You see Jesus as a teacher. This is not an uncommon position for many who wish to embrace some of the teachings of Jesus and certainly he was this--a rabbi. C.S. Lewis would argue that there is no middle ground with Jesus. You either take him a the Son of God, which is his claim or you take him as a mad man. If you are interested in that argument, you can google Lewis.
When I said "first" priest, I did not mean that in relation to all of history, merely the first priest of Christianity--the model for all Catholic, Anglican or Eastern Orthodox priests. Most protestant denominations eliminated the ritual of sacrifice (the Eucharist) and thus they do not have priests, but ministers.
Is is the belief of many that men and women do need a middle-person between the divine and the human. Certain people are called to that role and become the shamans or the priests. He or she is not merely a teacher, but a nexus between human and the divine not through teaching but through action. The fact that some people are more innately spiritual, perhaps due to brain structures, suggests that some people are more fitted to the role. Given then that the priest is a link between human and divine spheres, how could such a role not be more perfectly realized in the figure of Jesus as both man and God? He is the perfect nexus between the human and divine as he is both.
Bear in mind in Jesus' time there were still Jewish priests in the temple performing sacrifices, and this is precisely the role and definition of a priest--taking actions to connect human beings and God. (The nature of the need for sacrifice is a whole other issue.) As such, the performing of sacrifice by the Jewish priests gets taken to its ultimate level by Christ as priest who sacrifices himself-as the lamb of God. The ultimate action for the ultimate linking of the divine and human.
Again "Priests" today are nothing but a way for the powerful to maintain a control of the masses through FEAR (like the FEAR of going to some place called Hell after you die). The Pope and the Bishops of the Catholic Church are good examples of how the the concept of Priest has been thoroughly corrupted by Power.
This is a vast oversimplification based upon stereotypes and misinformtion. Priests actually believe in hell and most of the ones I know make it their life's work to keep themselves and others from going there. Certainly, in order to be priests they have been invested with a certain kind of spiritual power. Yet such power can only be granted by consent of the faithful. You do not stand in awe of priestly power because you do not believe, thus for you they have no power.
In general, your problem is not that people have power to control masses (maintain or foster a kind of order is another less loaded way of putting it) as judges, politicians and police officers do it all the time. Your issues is that you disagree with the order or the moral teachings that priests believe, thus you dislike the kind of order they are trying to foster and as a result it becomes far easier simply to see ALL priests as some kind of machiavels, acting only for some kind of personal delight and satisfaction to be found in controlling people.
I enjoyed talking to you, but I have taken up far too much time today posting. Life's duties call.
