Religious "tolerance" and Christianity

Okay, now I'm out of good poems (well I hope you thought they were good, otherwise nevermind); I'll add more if I write any, but since I haven't done so in several years, I'm not holding my breath. Instead you will get my take on what, I believe are important discussions about the Christian faith. Like this one...


People of other religions (or none) often talk of the need for "religious tolerance", and they usually point to Christians as a great hindrance to this goal. But why are many Christians vehemently opposed to tolerance of all religions?

I think the answer has to do with belief versus Truth. Most world religions depend on the belief of people: they present a set of precepts and followers can take them or leave them, or mix and match, and it doesn't really matter too much. In such cases, it really is easy to be tolerant of others' beliefs and to agree that all religions are equal.

Yet if all religions are equal as they claim, then all religions are false, the wishful imaginings of an ephemeral species, alone in a doomed universe. Because various religions teach various things about gods, god, or no-god. And even with the Universalist's claim that each religion is a window to some aspect of God's revealed personality, we are left with a god who contradicts himself, is confused, easily manipulated, and no god at all. Which, again, stinks of wishful thinking.

However, Christianity stands out (Islam and Judaism also, but they are beyond the scope of this discussion) because Christianity is about ultimate Truth that governs the universe outside and the heart and mind inside man. While liberal Christians will protest, our faith is based on the authority of the Bible as God's word, but it is also grounded in history. This historical foundation is critical, because if those men who wrote down the Scriptures never really lived, or if Jesus really did not say those things He is quoted as saying, Christianity has no claim to ultimate Truth and is truly equal to all other religions.

But if those men really did live, and if Jesus really did say those things, then our faith is grounded in history and not just made-up legends. And if this is the case, we must deal with Jesus very seriously, because He said some extremely provocative things, such as "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." (John 14:6) So if we are to take Him at His word, then we must acknowledge that no other "way" can lead to God, and therefore no other religion can hold the Truth.

Liberal Christians like to gloss over such uncomfortable statements, but in doing so they do Him a terrible disservice, one that I do not believe will be overlooked.

** For an exhaustive discussion of the objective truth of Jesus and his apostles, I recommend Josh McDowell's book, The New Evidence That Demands a Verdict. It's a huge tome because there's a lot to cover, but an invaluable resource.