This is one of those hard conversations. I wish to start it
from a place of compassion, love and recognition of your sacred attachment to divinity,
as you perceive it. For the last few years there have been ever increasing
protests that Christians in America are coming under persecution. As the
diversity of faiths that makes up the fabric of spiritual beliefs becomes ever
more diverse, there are those that paint this diversity as an assault on
Christian values.
If these “other” religions were based on a Christian precept
of converting those who do not accept them, the proposition that Christianity
is under assault could have some merit. The problem with the argument is that
these religions, with the possible exception of Abrahamic paths, do
not seek to convert Christians from their chosen spiritual paths.
If some Christians in this nation continue on the course of
attempting to erode the spiritual freedom of others, one day we will all live
under a theocracy. While the idea of a Christian nation may appeal to some
Christians, such a nation would erode the very foundations of Christian religious liberty
also.
Imagine a country where a single religion is adopted;
eventually a single interpretation of the bible would become dominant. As this coalescence
of religious principle evolves soon minority expressions of Christian faith
would become unacceptable. Evangelists or Catholics or Pentecostals, would flee
our nation in search of a land where religious freedom is guaranteed. Sound
familiar?
The emergence of other religions, rather than being viewed
as a threat can be seen as an opportunity to engage with other people of faith
in addressing the many tragic manifestations of hunger, violence and crime that
plague our nation.
We need not see our divergent beliefs as cause for friction.
In our collective voice, as peoples of faith, we have the opportunity demonstrate
that humanity can tolerate our differences and manifest real change that
reflects all religions’ common themes of love, kindness and honesty.
Christian Brothers and Sisters, join with the religions of
the world in putting an end to mistrust, division and the need to frame
religious beliefs as a struggle, one against the other. Together we can build a better world
for our children and grandchildren where we all love and respect our neighbors.
Rev. Peter Dybing
2 comments:
This is one of those interesting issues where the split isn't so much Christian vs. Pagan (or whatever other religion) as Fundamentalist vs. Accepting. Mainstream-to-liberal Christians will be fine having us around and working with us, I think, when they know more about us; from a hardcore fundamentalist perspective, though, "join[ing] with the religions of the world" in any sense is exactly what Satan wants. Doing so would be an acknowledgement that other religions are legitimate and that Christian doctrine isn't the One Right Way and therefore shouldn't rule the world. There are a lot of writings out there where they rail against interfaith work as a covert attempt by all those Others to weaken Christian faith and civilization and to steal their kids away from their worldview. I think we have to simultaneously bust our butts to try and educate people--which you've been doing!!--and keep fighting to limit fundamentalists' political power to enforce their beliefs on everyone else when it's necessary.
'I think we have to simultaneously bust our butts to try and educate people--which you've been doing!!--and keep fighting to limit fundamentalists' political power to enforce their beliefs on everyone else when it's necessary.'
You're right, Nicole Youngman, that's the only answer. The fundamentalists take to heart such verses as 'He that is not with me is against me, and he that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad' (Matthew 12:30). Not all of them are like me, who used to be one, but chose a different path (only after moving to a new country and escaping the clutches of the Bible belt where I was raised). The pragmatic answer is to limit the political power of the fundamentalists--which is formidable.
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