Archive for the ‘Christianity and Culture’ Category
|Are Christians Narrow-Minded?
Monday, August 23rd, 2010
I want to begin by stating unambiguously that I am convinced that Jesus Christ is the only way to God and that there is salvation in no one else. I’m fully aware of the fact that for me to say something like that is to invite accusations of everything from “hate” to “intolerance”, “bigotry”, “narrow-mindedness”, and “arrogance.” I suppose that one of the reasons that people react this way is because so many people have bought into the idea that truth is “relative”- that everyone “has their own truth.” Another reason has to do with the fact that in today’s world, the term “tolerance” has been radically redefined to suggest that everyone’s view is correct and that no one can ever say that someone else’s view is wrong. As a result of such confusion, whenever someone comes along and suggests that some views are wrong and that some ideas are more true than others, that person is immediately labeled as narrow-minded. Given that such misguided views of truth and tolerance are so pervasive in our culture today, how do we, as Christians, respond to such charges without compromising the truth of the Gospel?
I believe that there are at least three points that need to be made when addressing this accusation of narrow-mindedness. First of all, it’s important to point out that we are not the ones who came up with the idea that Jesus is the only way. Jesus is the one who made that claim. So, whenever someone asks me if I believe that Jesus is the only way to God, I often tell them that I am convinced, after looking at the evidence, that Jesus was telling the truth when he made the claim that he is the only way to God. Stating it this way makes it clear that their struggle is not really with us, it’s with him. If they feel that such a claim is arrogant, narrow-minded, and intolerant, then they’re going to have to take that up with him, since he is the one making the claim.
Secondly, when someone accuses us of being narrow-minded on this issue, it’s important for us to point out that if they are not willing to give an open, honest, unbiased examination of the evidence supporting Jesus’ claim, then they are being closed-minded themselves. Interestingly enough, it is often those who are the most vocal about open-mindedness and tolerance who turn out to be the most intolerant and closed-minded people of all!
Thirdly, it is extremely important for us to understand and to point out to our critics that truth, by definition, is narrow and exclusive. It always is. For example, suppose that I make the truth claim that my keys are in my right front pocket. If that really is the case, then that statement is absolutely true. And not only is it true, but that truth is also narrow and exclusive. Think for a moment about just how narrow that truth really is. Out of all of the infinite possible locations in the entire universe where they could have been or may have been, we have narrowed it down to only ONE location that is true. Furthermore, not only is that truth extremely narrow, it’s exclusive as well, because in telling you where the keys are, it’s also telling you where the keys are not. It is excluding all of the other locations as false. As I said, truth, by definition, is always narrow and exclusive.
One final point. If anyone is going to accuse Christianity of being exclusive, it’s only “exclusive” in the sense that it’s making a truth claim. But, as we’ve just seen, this is the case with any truth claim. On the other hand, Christianity is NOT exclusive with regard to the extent of its invitation and to whom it is offered. This becomes clear as we consider a few of the passages of Scripture referring to God’s offer of salvation. Jesus said, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink.” (John 7:37). “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16). “(God is) not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” (2 Peter 3:9b). “(God) wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.” (1 Tim. 2:4).
The message of the Gospel is clear. God is offering his salvation to anyone and everyone who is willing to come to him. Our refusal to do so and our insistence that God should have come up with a plan that meets our approval, only goes to show that we are the ones who are being narrow-minded, not God.
Tags: Christian, Christianity, intolerance, Jesus, narrow-minded
Posted in Christianity and Culture | 1 Comment »
Playing the Hate Card
Monday, May 31st, 2010
I’ve always had a fascination with magicians and illusionists. When I was a kid, my father would order magic tricks from a mail-order novelty company and I was always anxious to impress the kid next door with my “prowess” as a magician. Although I never pursued it as a serious career or hobby, I am still impressed when I have the opportunity to watch some skilled magician who does so professionally. One thing that’s clear is that in order to become a successful illusionist, one must master the ability to divert people’s attention away from the very thing that they were supposed to be watching.
Diverting people’s attention away from the important thing is something that is certainly not limited to the world of magicians and illusionists. For example, in debate there is a fallacy known as a “red herring” where someone introduces something that has little or nothing to do with the subject being discussed, in an attempt to divert the other person’s attention away from the main issue or topic.
Of all of the diversionary tactics that people use these days, there is one in particular that I wish to focus on at this time. I call it “playing the hate card.” By that, I’m referring to any situation where someone FALSELY accuses another person of being “hateful” or “spreading hate.” No doubt, there are times when this accusation is made in a legitimate way. But more often than not, people who falsely accuse others of hate are using it as a diversionary tactic to draw people’s attention away from the real issue at hand. Worse yet, it is now being used by many as a bullying tactic intended to intimidate or to silence others from merely stating their view. If you watch closely, you will notice that people often accuse others of hate for the simple fact that the other person happens to disagree with them.
Of course, there are a number of problems that arise when someone begins to illegitimately accuse others of hate or “hate speech.” For one thing, they are often being inconsistent from a moral standpoint. Those who play the “hate card” are oftentimes the very same people who claim to believe that when it comes to matters of right and wrong, each person should be allowed to “decide for himself.” But clearly they don’t believe that each of us should be allowed to decide whether or not hate is wrong. They believe that spreading hate is morally wrong for everyone- that it’s absolutely wrong.
Another thing that’s tricky about falsely accusing others of hate is that the knife cuts both ways. In other words, if someone labels you as “hateful” just because you happen to disagree with their view, then by their own definition of “hate”, it makes them just as hateful since they obviously disagree with your view! Furthermore, when someone falsely accuses you of hate, they are encouraging others to hate you for something that you’re not even guilty of.
When it comes to this recent redefining of the word “hate”, I think that the most dangerous thing of all is that it is now being used to silence or punish Christians for sharing the Gospel and for speaking out on social issues. If you don’t believe me, just ask Swedish pastor Ake Green. A few years ago, pastor Green was arrested and charged with violating one of Sweden’s “hate crimes” laws. His crime? During a Sunday morning message, within the privacy of his own church, he made mention of the fact that
God destroyed the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah because of their sexual depravity. What happened to pastor Green is not an isolated incident and it’s already beginning to happen here in America as well.
The bottom line is that “playing the hate card” is usually nothing more than name-calling, labeling, bullying, and intimidation. It is often used by those who are unwilling to engage in open, honest discussion on important issues that impact our lives. It is unnecessarily divisive, counterproductive, and contributes nothing towards any real social progress- especially when it comes from those who pride themselves on being known as “progressive.”
Posted in Christianity and Culture | 7 Comments »
Why NOT Discuss Politics and Religion?
Monday, May 3rd, 2010
It’s election time again which means that it’s time for voters to begin the process of weighing out the candidates as well as the issues that are up for discussion. Once again, friends, family members, and co-workers will engage in discussions that tend to come up during a political year. Unfortunately, conversations of that nature have a tendency to stir up people’s emotions and before long, what started out as a civil discussion often turns into a heated argument. Eventually, some well-meaning person listening in will try to ‘put out the fire’ by saying, “You see? That’s exactly why I say that you should never discuss politics and religion!” But even though people often say such things, there is a very real sense in which everyone brings politics and religion into their normal, day-to-day conversations and they don’t even realize it.
Take religion, for example. I often hear ‘unbelievers’ say, “Don’t bring religion into this!” (By that, they usually mean “Don’t bring Christianity or Christian values into this!”) But the fact of the matter is that even those who would consider themselves “non-religious” have a ‘religious’ view of their own. The reason that they may not think so is because most people today think of religion as ‘a belief in God’, but such a simple definition is inadequate because there are some religions (such as Buddhism) that do not necessarily believe in God. So, that brings us back to the question, “What is a religion?” A religion is fundamentally a worldview, a perspective, a set of assumptions, a ‘lens’ if you will, through which a person looks at everything in life in order to try and explain how all of life fits together in a coherent and comprehensive way. It is a ‘framework’ through which a person is trying to make sense of the world around them. This is extremely important to understand because it tells us that everyone, whether they realize it or not, is operating on a set of beliefs (a worldview). This means that everyone, including the atheist, is ‘religious’ in that sense. Furthermore, it tells us that ALL views expressed are ‘religiously motivated’ because they are an expression of that person’s worldview. In other words, any time an individual gives their perspective on a matter in almost any conversation they are, in fact, bringing their religion into the conversation just as much as anyone else!
Even political discussions are not entirely avoidable. Why? Because political issues are ultimately about moral principles. They have to be. If you don’t believe me, think for a moment about the kind of issues that we typically refer to as ‘political issues’. Most political issues involve that which is right or wrong, good or bad, just or unjust, fair or unfair- all of which are moral issues. Even the questions of how and why people should be treated equally are moral questions. In other words, by what objective moral standard did we determine that it is right (morally) to treat people equally and that it would be immoral to not treat people equally?
So, just as with religion, everyone has a moral point of view and they are asserting their moral point of view every time they use words such as ‘right’, ‘wrong’, ‘fair’, ‘unfair’, ‘just’, ‘unjust’, ‘good’, ‘bad’, ‘should’, ‘shouldn’t’, ‘ought’, ‘ought not’, (etc.). It’s unavoidable. So, the next time you hear someone insist that people shouldn’t get into discussions about politics and religion, you may want to point out to them that they just did!
Tags: election, moral issues, morality, Politics, Politics and Religion, Religion, Right or wrong, worldview
Posted in Christianity and Culture | 6 Comments »
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In today's world, there is a great deal of confusion when it comes to matters of truth, meaning, morality, our origin, and our destiny. The purpose of Renewed Thoughts is to bring clarity to such issues by examining them in light of a Biblical worldview, using the tools of science, philosophy, and critical thinking.