Religious Pluralism has become common in our daily lives. Not only do we live in a religiously diverse nation, one that claims to uphold each individual’s right to choose their faith, we also live in a culture that has adopted the belief that all religions are fundamentally the same.
I’m daily confronted with the reality that many people believe all religions are true, teach the same thing, and lead to the same place.
Yet any serious student of religions will quickly be able to see that religious pluralism as a belief system is contradictory and cannot sustain itself. Religions that make contrary truth claims on the nature of God, the material world, morality, humanity, and eternity cannot be fundamentally the same; it’s impossible. Also, to claim that all religions are equal in their beliefs is to misunderstand and misrepresent the rich variety of religious observance.
Still, the belief that “all roads lead to Rome” is prevalent and for the Christian poses a unique challenge. How do we communicate what we believe, and why we believe it, in a way that remains true to the message of the Bible and at the same time respects the diverse worldviews that surround us? As I have thought through this question, I believe there are four principles that can help Christians explain their faith graciously in a culture that promotes the worldview of Religious Pluralism. These principles form the acronym DARE
:
Dig Deep into God’s Word
Ask Questions
Respond with Respect and Kindness
Expect God’s Truth to both be Resisted and to Bear Fruit
Dig Deep into God’s Word
For Christians, the most important thing we can do in preparation for responding to religious pluralism is to know what the Bible teaches and why we believe its message is true. If we don’t understand what we believe and why, we shouldn’t be surprised when those of differing faiths dismiss our attempt to share our beliefs with them.
In his book Encountering Religious Pluralism, Harold Netland identifies six key biblical truths that are foundational for shaping the Christian understanding and interaction with religions. They form our knowledge of the nature of God, the character of humanity, the way God interacts with us, and the way we should interact with others.
- God: Both the Old and New Testaments affirm that there is one eternal God who is holy and righteous in all His ways. He is morally pure, free from all evil, and completely just. (Lev. 11:44-45; Ps. 77:13; Isa. 6:1-4; Acts 3:14; Rev. 15:3; etc.)
- Creation: The one eternal God has created all things and when He did they were good. His creation includes human beings made in His image. Since He freely created our universe, this means God is distinct from His creation. In other words, the universe is not an extension of God, nor did it naturally emanate from Him. (Gen. 1-2; Isa. 40:28; 1 Cor. 11:7; etc.)
- God’s Revelation: God has graciously taken the initiative in revealing Himself to humankind through various forms, including natural and special revelation. His definitive revelation of Himself has come through the Scriptures and Jesus Christ, which are the ultimate authorities for Christians and must shape how believers understand God, themselves, and other religions. (Jn. 1:1-14; Heb. 1:1-3; 2 Tim. 3:16; Rom. 1:19-20; etc.)
- Sin: God’s creation, including humankind, has experienced corruption because of sin. Every major religion begins with the assumption that something is fundamentally wrong in the universe and that the evil we experience is due to this problem. The Bible claims that the problem is sin, a heart condition that affects all aspects of what it means to be human, alienating us from God and from each other. Sin is not a popular concept, but you cannot fully grasp the message of the Bible and the hope of Christianity without understanding the seriousness of sin. (Gen. 2:16-17; Rom. 15:2; Rom. 3:1-18; Isa. 59:2; Isa. 53:6; Jn. 3:36; Rev. 20:11-15; etc.)
- Salvation: The hope of the Bible and Christian message is that God in His mercy has provided a way for sinful humanity to be reconciled to God through Jesus Christ’s death on the cross and resurrection. The heart of the Gospel is that God, the Word, became flesh and that he himself provided the basis by which humanity can experience salvation. Because salvation is the work of God and not the result of human effort, it can only be received by an act of faith. No amount of human effort can carry out what God has already done. (Jn. 1:12; Jn. 3:16; Act 2:21; Acts 4:12; Rom. 3:21-26; Rom. 6:23; Rom. 10:9-13; Gal. 2:16; 1 Jn. 4:8; Eph. 2:8-10; Titus 3:4-7; etc.)
- Discipleship: The Bible makes it clear that those who have received the gift of God’s grace are to share the good news of Jesus Christ with others, including those who sincerely hold to other religions. This emphasis on introducing others to Jesus Christ and helping them grow in a relationship with him is especially controversial in the context of religious pluralism, so Christians need to honestly wrestle with the methods and ways in which they practice this command to make disciples. (Matt. 28:19; Mark 16:15-16; Luke 24:45-49; Jn. 20:21; Acts 1:7-8)
Digging deep into these biblical truths will not only deepen our understanding of what we believe, it will equip us to better engage with the beliefs of others.
Ask Questions
The second principle is to ask questions. Asking honest and respectful questions lets those with differing beliefs know that we care about them as a person and honestly want to know what they believe and why. When we ask questions, we need to make sure to listen to what the other person is saying! Why does he believe that? Does it make sense? Does it contradict itself? How did he reach those conclusions? Asking questions not only affirms the other person, it gives us the credibility to share what we believe when asked about our faith. It demonstrates a humble willingness to learn and to work through our own reasons for the hope we profess.
Respond with Respect and Kindness
We need to avoid caricatures and simplistic generalizations when we interact with people of differing faiths. Don’t assume that because you have a basic understanding of, say Islam, you can or should begin telling your Muslim neighbor what she believes and why she is wrong. Seek to learn where she is coming from and how she has personally applied her faith. Seek to earn the right to question her beliefs and explain to her the message of Jesus Christ by treating her respectfully and with kindness. This kind of respect is exactly how we’re commanded to give the reasons for our hope in Christ (1 Pet. 3:15).
This point became personal for me about a year ago. At a large Memorial Day BBQ someone introduced me to a young woman who defined herself as a Buddhist Catholic. Her Christian friend introduced us by saying, “Hey, you like apologetics. Tell her why Buddhism is wrong.” While I don’t question the good intentions of her friend, needless to say, we were both put in an awkward place. The way we met immediately put us both on edge and did not encourage either of us to expect anything but hostility from the other person. The conversation did not go nearly as well as it could have if we could have begun our conversation about faith by asking respectful questions and listening. to what the other had to say
Expect God’s Truth to both be Resisted and to Bear Fruit
This last principle emphasizes that as Christians interact with religious pluralism, we need to keep in mind the reality that if Christianity is true, and the Bible really is the Word of God, many people will resist its message. Humanity has rebelled against God’s truth since the third chapter in Genesis. Therefore, we should expect the same thing to happen today. Yet the opposite is also true; if Christianity is real and the Bible is the Word of God, we should expect that it will have an impact on people and they will respond to God. He is in the business of giving sight to blind minds and opening hard hearts to His grace. People may resist what is true, but it’s still bearing fruit.
The belief that all religions are the same is common today, but that does not mean we need to back away in fear from sharing what we believe and why. If we practice the following: dig deep into God’s Word, ask questions, respond with respect and kindness, and expect that God’s truth will be resisted and bear fruit, we can have confidence in our conversations with others.
What about you? What principles have helped you to interact graciously with those who do not share your faith?
*Cross-posted at Penny of a Thought*
I think you have your work cut out for you, Sarah, but it’s refreshing to see a believer appreciate the scope of the exposed problem when religious claims are in direct conflict and opposition. Unfortunately for those willing to believe, the only lasting solution is to provide a means independent of a particular dogma to show why this religious set of tenets is true while those other sets of tenets are demonstrably false. Failing to provide such a method to accomplish this herculean task is the reason I think younger people are finding out for themselves in ever increasing percentages why all religious beliefs are equivalently dubious and equivalently worth discarding entirely. After all, there’s a reason why the internet is known by this younger generation as the place where all religious beliefs come to die.
Thanks for your comment! I definitely agree I have my work cut out for me, but I’m actually excited about the challenge 🙂 I also agree that a belief system needs some form of evidence to back it up (i.e. just because it says its true doesn’t mean its true). However, I can’t help but wonder if the statement “… all religious beliefs are equivalently dubious and equivalently worth discarding entirely,” which sounds like dogma to me, can stand the test of independent means proving it is true. Isn’t it just as necessary to provide a means independent of ‘no religion at all’ to demonstrate that all religions should be disregarded as it’s necessary to provide some form of independent means that one religion is true?
Thanks for your comment! I definitely agree I have my work cut out for me, but I’m actually excited about the challenge. I also agree that a belief system needs some form of evidence to back it up (i.e. just because it says its true doesn’t mean its true). However, I can’t help but wonder if the statement “… all religious beliefs are equivalently dubious and equivalently worth discarding entirely,” which sounds like dogma to me, can stand the test of independent means proving it is true. Isn’t it just as necessary to provide a means independent of ‘no religion at all’ to demonstrate that all religions should be disregarded as it’s necessary to provide some form of independent means that one religion is true?
All religious claims are equivalently dubious because none has any means to be independently tested and verified. Reality is not allowed to be the arbitrator of faith-based claims and this creates the tension between claims about reality informed by faith-based and not evidence-based beliefs. Faith-based belief claims, no matter the religion or subject, are all of a kind yet produce opposing and conflicting claims about the reality we share and all have no means by which we can evaluate them fairly. Any methodology that requires faith to be virtue unsullied by reality’s arbitration of it is worth discarding because it’s a method that guarantees a way for us to fool ourselves… whether the subject is religion or raiki, historical revision or homeopathy, snake oil or superstition. Trust in faith-based claims is misplaced because it offers a special exemption to having to show the link between cause and effect and this has a very rich and deep vein to mine for evidence for foolishness – and often tragic consequences – in its support. In other words, Sarah, your efforts are doomed as long as your methodology breaks the link between claims of causation and claims of effect.
I don’t think you answered my question. Maybe I wasn’t clear (its been known to happen) Let me try to reword it by asking another one first. What are your beliefs if you say all religions are dubious, and how do you see those beliefs linking externally with reality? How does that impact how you respond to religious pluralism (other than thinking all religions are dubious)?
I try my best to hold justified true beliefs, which means I do not see any compelling reasons to hold any religious faith with an equivalent respect I hold for knowledge because faith-based beliefs of any kind do not link to reality for their support. Religious pluralism, therefore, is fine as long as each holds to the boundary that separates its proper role to be in the private domain separate from the public domain (meaning public institutions like public governance, public law, public education, public defense, public policies, and so on). No religion deserves to have a place at the table in any of these areas of public consideration nor hold any privilege in them. Religious belief – like belief in astrology – is simply a private issue.
If I may ask, what do you see as the justified true beliefs that compel you not to hold to any religious faith?