It's week four of the five-part series: Christian Misconceptions with Biff R. Jones! This week, the misconception topic is that Christians are intolerant. To refresh from last week, Jones discuss how the world thinks that Christians are evil hatemongers and why that isn't true. To check it out click the link. Now, let's dive right into this week's topic.
BRJ: "4) Christians are intolerant and believe they are the only true faith.
False and true. To begin, let’s examine the notion of intolerance. The word, “tolerance” and its antonym, “intolerance” have fallen victim to being redefined by those who have specific agendas. According to one of the oldest, and most established dictionaries (Merriam-Webster), to be “intolerant” is defined as: “unable or unwilling to endure, or unwilling to grant equal freedom of expression especially in religious matters.” It is ironic that while being accused of intolerance, one of the things that Christians in the US affirm more highly than almost any other group is the Constitutional principle of religious freedom. According to the correct definition of intolerance Christians would have to be “unwilling to grant equal freedom” to those who do not worship, or express religious matters as they do--this could not be further from the truth. To accuse Christians of being intolerant under the correct definition is, therefore, a blatant falsehood. To apply any other definition of the word, “intolerant” should be seen as what it is--an unbridled attack on Christians by religious bigots who are in fact exhibiting the very behavior they are projecting toward Christianity.
For those who have an issue with Christians believing they are a part of the only true faith, I have a simple exercise. Please find a devout Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, Wiccan, Jew, Jehovah’s Witness, Mormon, etc., who espouses their faith because they believe it is false. Such a notion is absurd and ridiculous, so why should Christians apologize for believing that theirs is a faith of truth?
Christians come under fire, because they believe that Jesus is the only way to God, a belief which rests upon the following: 1) that God is pure and righteous, and cannot coexist with any evil (He is Holy and set apart); 2) that Mankind left to his own devices is inherently evil, and therefore cannot enter into relationship with a Holy God. The automatic, penalty for this inherent evil (sin) is death and eternal separation from God; and finally, 3) that Jesus paid the death penalty for the sins of man so that those who accept Him as their Savior can enter into a relationship with God. Jesus, in essence, bridges the gap between God and men, created by man’s inherently sinful nature. These truths undergird the entire Christian faith. So it must be understood that the Christian assertion that Jesus is the only way to God, does not come from a place of arrogant condescension, but is the bedrock foundation of the entire Christian faith."Even though Christians believe that they are the one true faith, I think it's safe to say that all religions believe that. Please stay tuned for the fifth and final installment of Common Christian Conceptions!
