The recent Pew Forum study on religion, widely reported in the media, shows that the vast majority of Americans remains religious: 92 percent believe in God. This percentage has remained relatively stable for more than half a century.
Atheists remain a tiny proportion of the population with some interesting anomalies: 21 percent of self-identified atheists say they believe in God, with nearly 10 percent of them "absolutely sure" of it. What this means is that 21 percent of self-described atheists are highly confused and 10 percent are certified nut-cases.
What got the most attention, however, was Pew's discovery that a majority of religious Americans believe that other religions make valid claims about God and can lead to heaven. Around 80 percent of Catholics, Protestants and Jews, as well as 55 percent of Muslims, reject the idea that their religion is the only way.
These findings, however, hardly suggest that pluralism has overtaken truth as the defining feature of American religion. First of all, Christianity is the only religion to hold another religion to be wholly true. That religion is Judaism. Second, Catholics and Protestants have become increasingly convinced that it is fidelity to creedal Christianity--and not the denominational differences of past centuries--that is decisive for salvation. Finally many people don't realize that just as Christianity sees itself as succeeding and incorporating Judaism, so Islam sees itself as coming after and incorporating both Judaism and Christianity. Consequently I'm not surprised that most Muslims view Jews and Christians as fellow monotheists rather than hell-bound infidels.
Soon my Orange County debate with atheist Christopher Hitchens and Jewish radio host Dennis Prager will be up on the web and I'll link to it. The debate, amusingly billed as a Christian-Atheist-Jewish showdown, had some fiery and fascinating exchanges. At one point Hitchens sought to alienate me from the Jews in the audience by asking me if good and decent Jews can go to heaven. I said I believe they can. This is no denial of the central Christian proposition that Christ is the way to salvation. The Bible clearly specifies that there is salvation through Christ for his followers.
But Scripture and Christian teaching leave open the question of what happens to virtuous non-Christians who either lived before Christ or who have not had a chance to accept him. My hope and belief is that God's mercy can extend to them also, as it did to Moses and Abraham and the God-fearing Jews of the Old Testament. If so, they too would be saved through Christ's sacrifice on the cross, even if they did not consciously and explicitly embrace that sacrifice. As for atheists who reject God and affirm with Hitchens that they want nothing to do with heaven, we can be reasonably confident that God will respect their free will and reluctantly grant their wish.
There are two kinds of pluralism: the kind that holds that truth does not matter, and the kind that holds that truth matters greatly but as flawed human beings our reason and experience gives us only limited access to the truth. The first kind of pluralism is deadly for religion, and is typically embraced by flaccid people who are too lazy to think or who have been seduced by postmodernist flimflam. The second kind of pluralism is the shared ground of debate between intelligent believers and unbelievers. The stakes could not be higher.
Reader Comments ( Page 69 of 69)
1021. American Soldier,
"You are the one playing with words."
NO I'm not. I have knowledge. You only have a belief, and you are lacking knowledge. All you have is words.
"I will go as far to say that you are the wolf in sheep's clothing."
It is clearly evident, that you read nothing of what I wrote. A preacher, teacher, priest, reverend and so forth can be a wolf. I am not one. I talk about LOVE Soldier. LOVE. You will see nothing from me about Division, Fear, Hate, or anything like that. Why? Because I believe in Christ's teachings, and HE the one YOU believe in, preached LOVE. But you don't listen.
"You are not sticking to the 1st Century teachings of Christ's doctrine and the Apostolic teachings"
Please....1st century, 2nd century, whatever century. The whole entire law is based of one thing for us to do. LOVE.
Let me help you listen.
'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.' "This is the great and foremost commandment. "And a second is like it, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' On these two commandments depend the WHOLE Law and the Prophets." ( Matthew 22:37-40)
Let me repeat....The WHOLE Law.
"A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another." ( John 13:34-35)
Soldier, I am a disciple. What are you?
"But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return; and your reward in heaven will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High; for He Himself is kind to ungrateful and evil men." ( Luke 6:35)
Are you listening yet?
"If I then, the Lord and the Teacher, washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet. For I gave you an example that you also should do as I did to you." ( John 13:14-15)
"You have changed it to conform to your own feel good feelings."
When you love, does it feel good? It does for me. Christians that get the meaning of what is taught, feel pretty darn good. Is there any other way to live? Loving is great and wonderful.
"But a real friend will tell the truth. Even when it is not easy."
Believe me, I know what you mean. It has been real hard trying to talk to you. It's difficult when someone like yourself is completely brainwashed off of False Teaching (From a Wolf), but all I can do is be your friend, love you, and tell you the truth.
"The truth is if you deny Christ He will deny you."
You should know this first hand, because the Holy Spirit has never communicated with you. You have been living the opposite of what Christ teaches, and yet you use his name. Is there anything worse than that?
"They then choose eternal seperation from God. They choose a devil's hell."
We'll let God sort them out. But you, you focus and live the way you are supposed to. And if you do, not only will you be almost everyone's friend no matter what their faith or lack of faith is, but you just might win a few souls along the way.
That is witnessing. It starts and ends with love. No threats. No condemnation. No division.
Learn it, love it, live it.
Botts at 10:13PM on Jul 10th 2008
1022. Christianity is the only way.
Also, the Holy Spirit moves in the quiet and in gentleness and in Peace, not in pain.
Do not be deceived. Especially by charlatans.
Now, Possession, on the other hand...
Christian at 4:55PM on Jul 11th 2008
1023. the front of my head has a pulsating pain, and I break out into an unbelievable sweat. But it is powerful
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now, SEIZURES on the other "other hand".. LOL !
ex-christian at 9:49PM on Jul 11th 2008
1024. Marcia J– post 859 – I agree, Jesus does change our lives if we will let Him.
Ryan - do not lose faith because of some secular non-believer adding footnote to the Holy Bible.
Post 872 – Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John were written in their lifetime. You think Mark pen that gospel before Matthew? Who cares? The Holy Spirit canonized the scriptures in His time. You must have faith that God the Holy Spirit moved upon Holy men and penned the scriptures in His perfect time and place. I also trust that He will do His duty and preserve the Word for all times.
American Soldier - lighten up some of us are on your side. Stay safe.
PV - The Catholic Church has done more to crush Christianity than the atheist. Why have y'all left the apostolic teachings of Peter, Paul, James, and John? Because they contradicted the traditions of men.
Read Foxes Book of Martyr’s, or the Trail of Blood by JM Carroll, a good book on Christian history. You will find that those who stood on the 1st Century teachings of Christ and the Apostles were persecuted unto death, and come around 400 AD your Church was leading in the persecutions.
Man_in_Wilderness at 4:42PM on Jul 13th 2008
1025. Is Christianity EVIL???
Discuss...
http://saintbrianthegodless.blogspot.com/2009/01/evil-that-men-do.html
Saint Brian the Godless at 1:29PM on Jan 11th 2009