"May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit." Romans 15:13
Most modern writers who treat the difficulties with Christianity do so with the objective of bashing the faith. Most colleges and universities are dedicated to the purpose of eradicating all religions. And because Academia is highly respected and trains most of our youth, Christianity has a bad name on most college campuses. Nevertheless, this opposition to religion by modern philosophers and scientists have tended to purify Christianity of false interpretations and imperiousness. In spite of criticism and even persecution Christianity is flourishing today.
I will first set forth my reasons for accepting Christianity as a guide for my life. By discussing my positive experiences with Christianity you can understand where I am coming from, and later when I describe troublesome things with candor, you will know I am not trying to sabotage the religion.
God knows there are plenty of books and articles about Chrisianity out there without me writing another. Most are written by proponents of Christianity or proselyting evangelists who are often ministers or priests. They generally agree with and support the organizations that ordained them. Therefore candor and dissent are not often the main features of religious books and sermons. I hope the pages I write will truly reflect my experiences and understanding of the Christian faith as a lay person. As an advocate of Christianity I hope to speak to its strength and weaknesses.
Many people are interested in religion but distrust promotions of it. Many folks living and working within the tragic pageants and cesspools of our modern world wonder what religion is all about. Is it a kind of magic salve or escape route from reality? Is it a crutch for the emotionally crippled or an easy but hypocritical path to social approbation? These negative and too prevailing views of Christianity can be displaced by positive experiences. Christianity can be defended rationally and logically. The remarkable features of Christian living must be presented in terms understandable to today's TV culture.
Christianity is a world view--a view that directs millions of lives. Christianity has strong social and community involvements and benefits. Rather than being descriptive and just list or introduce characteristics of the religion let me present the influence and appeal it has had in my life. Later more expository and critical discussions will be appended. To be understood, Christianity is best experienced.
Prayer, a kind of direct communication with God, is a common practice in most religions. Christians pray as Christ taught his followers to pray. Jews are devoted to prayer. Muslims pray 5 times daily. Buddhists have pray wheels and monks who are frequent in prayer. What is private prayer? It is a verbal, mental activity that men and women use to connect their lives to an absolute frame of reference. It is a means to examine our thoughts and lives by a source of values and wisdom unavailable elsewhere. This source must be approached with complete honesty without evasions. Humility and repentance for misdeeds are a part of this attitude. The conversations may be very brief or longer. Our prayer vocabulary depends on our family life, culture, language, and religious experiences. Even today some people use "thee and thou" to address God. But prayer is not archaic--it handles the dilemmas of modern days. The topics are often requests for help. Always there is a clarification of subjects into terms that give a clearer perspective of problems. It is a heady walk infusing courage and trust. Prayer is elevating and has eternal dimensions. There is no room for dissimulation or hypocrisy in private prayer.
Public prayers are words spoken out loud in the presence of two or more people. Presumably it is the same communion with God as private prayer. But the speaker must regard the characteristics of his audience. He or she needs to be understood, and often the speaker wants to impress other people present with his compassion, piety, and erudition. Group prayer has special advantages in communicating the needs of others and in confessing our faith but it is not a substitute for private prayer.
Prayer is supernatural telecommunication. Using a radio as an analog it is transmission of information without an audible response or direct evidence of reception. We ask God to intercede in our lives and give us gifts and favors. Many prayers are for health and cures of diseases. Many prayers are not answered in a way we can recognize. For some people prayer is a hoax and delusion. Let me tell you my experience. I find that with private prayer, in the spirit of putting matters in God's hands without seeking a solution by my own efforts, amazing things can happen. These are secret little encounters and assists. Sounds impossible doesn't it!
Prayer is the main motor force of religion. It conforms to any theology and requires (usually) no priest or special education. It is so simple. Following Christ is always just a step away. All true Christianity comes from the heart, our attitudes. How do we get the right heart=faith to seek and talk to God? Let us explore other dimensions of Christianity.
The Bible is the best textbook on Christianity. It is authoritative and held by some to be free from errors--inerrant. It presents Jesus's teaching and life in some detail. The Bible writers give information about God and his purposes. It is composed of many books written by many people over a span of hundreds of years. It is full of contradictions and supernatural events. For believers it is a text venerated and followed. By unbelievers it can be misunderstood and it is often considered unreliable and foolish.
So how are we to make an objective evaluation? First one should read the Bible and know what it contains. Most preachers use little snippets of scripture making understanding of the Bible in context difficult from sermons only. The Bible has been translated into most languages and into the vernaculars of modern Americans. It is readable.
To render a judgment on the merits of the book we must compare it with other books about living this life--and on other views of the amazing world in which we live. We must search to find other books that present any guides for living or any theories of why we are here. The early Greeks and Romans and the philosophers of Western Civilization have approached these questions seriously and with some success. These writers were generally religious until about the beginning of the nineteenth century. Often borrowing from the classic thinkers, Plato, Aristotle, and Socrates, Christian philosophers constructed concepts of God and his world. The later schools of Scholasticism and Idealism, including the works of Aquinas, Spinoza (highest good the "intellectual love of God"), Descartes, Pascal, Leibniz (we are in "the best of all possible worlds") and Hegel, are authored by Christian thinkers. But in this century the Existentialism of Sartre and the aggressive atheism of men like Freud, Russell and Feuerbach and the modern nihilism of Deconstruction writers have made it academic suicide to profess any belief in God. The utter bankruptcy of modern subsitutes for religion can be understood by reading a recent book "The End of Science" by John Horgan who interviews most of the great scientific minds of this era. None of these famous men offer an explanation for the meaning of life or guidance for living it. They are an unhappy, confused set of people--regarding the fundamental questions addressed by religion.
Although the classics are seldom studied today in a serious attempt to find truth, earlier philosophers still have much influence in our culture--much as Roman Law in beneath much of modern law. Theologians of this era, Tillich, Barth and Kng for examples, still present a theist and Christian interpretation of life. The Bible has been an instruction book and reference for all religious philosophers--Jewish, Christian and Muslim.
(If you are a Bible scholar skip to the next topic.)
So what does this important book, the Bible, give us? The Old Testament begins with creation and the origin of mankind. It moves quickly to an account of one family tree stemming from Abraham. A history of the tribes of Israel is given in some detail with biographies of leading men like Jacob, Joseph, Moses, and David presented with candor. Rules for living and conducting business are elaborated along with the wisdom and poetry of this nation. It is the history of a scholarly race with a sense of ethics. Israel engaged in many wars, and they had mostly a motley set of kings. Their prophets saw God working in history-- hardships were viewed as punishment for transgressions. Their prophets--Samuel, Joel, Amos, Elijah--and many others rebelled against the kings and priests. They spoke for God and championed the cause of the poor and the despised peoples.
Jews have separated themselves by blood-lines and language forming ethnic enclaves over the world, and they have recently established sovereign Israel again in their historic homeland. They have often suffered dreadful persecution due to their identifiable different status. They look for a Messiah sent by God to establish a Kingdom on this earth ruled by this Chosen People. The prophets foretold of such a Messiah. Christians believe that Jesus Christ of Nazareth is the Messiah.
The New Testament is appended to the Old Testament to form the Bible for Christians. It begins with four gospels that present information about Jesus, a humble itinerant teacher who picks followers and starts a new Kingdom. Although we have none of his writings, he was well educated in the Old Testament and his teachings instruct his followers in a life of the highest ethical living and to be servants, not rulers or wealthy persons. He was a healer and attracted large crowds. Like the prophets before him he opposed the religious rulers of his era and for this he was tortured to death with common criminals. He miraculously came back from the dead to further establish his Kingdom through his disciples and the power of his living spirit on earth. Details about the establishment of the early Christian Church are included in the book of Acts written by the author of the Gospel of Luke. Christ's spiritual presence converted a Jewish enemy of his Kingdom, Paul, into his most famous missionary who aided by others spread the Christian message and discipleship over much of the Roman Empire. Paul's early activities are described in the book of Acts. Paul wrote many letters guiding the affairs of fledgling churches in Asia and Europe. The New Testament writers proclaim that believers can obtain forgiveness of their sins and eternal life through Christ's sufferings and sacrifical death. Ritual baptism with water marks the start of a Christian life, as it did for Jesus's ministry. Christians reenact the Last Supper of Jesus to remember him and rededicate themselves to the way of life he taught.
That very briefly summarizes what the Bible contains. The Book is venerated and gives much pleasure to many readers. It is denigrated by many who question its miracles, angels, demons and its rules for living. The Bible has had and continues to have great impact on the lives of humans.
If we do the homework of studying the Bible, what important lessons can we learn? The Bible reports many incidents wherein God acts in the affairs of people. It appears that God punishes or destroys cities when the people are wicked but withhold his hand when folks repent. There are a couple of fascinating conversations with God reported regarding the sparing of Nineveh (the book of Jonah) and the judgment of Sodom and Gomorrah in Chapter 18 of Genesis. The life Joseph who was sold into slavery by his brothers and later forgave them is a moving drama illustrating how God works. And then the prophet Elijah a brave champion of God and a healer who wanted to die but was taken up to heaven. Joseph and Elijah were in many ways similar to Jesus. The parables of Jesus often describe the character of God. In the parable of the Prodigal Son the father represents God and his judgment. In the Bible we encounter God in every book. He is portrayed as forgiving and full of love and grace...but also capable of punishment and vengeance. There is a pretty clear account of the deeds and attitudes we must avoid and the kind of actions and activities that should fill our lives. The Christian life is not so difficult and can be happy indeed.
The Bible is not just a program or rules for conducting our lives. It offers us help along the way and promises a heavenly consummation. It is written for the poor, the wretched, the despised of secular society. It contains some miraculous medicines. Let me try to explain things that I have known or experienced in this category.
The world is full of criminals today, people bursting with hatred, selfishness, and addicted to drugs, alcohol, and sex. Society locks them up in prison but when they are released they continue with crimes of greed and violence. There are Christian programs in prisons that often turn these people around into honest and productive citizens. These have been quite successful in Brazil and Charles Colson's work in the United States is favorably documented. Charles Colson himself is a convert to Christianity after having been one of the dirty players in the Nixon administration. This process of turning to Christ for help and guidance is not limited to criminals. Conversion from a wasted, rapacious life to Christian work is a common blessing of our faith. Jesus states that he came not to call the righteous but sinners. Christianity spread through the slaves and the poor of the Roman Empire. Today it is in Africa and South America among the poorest people where Christianity is flowering.
Saul or Paul of the New Testament was a convert--turned 180 degrees around from a religious persecutor of Christianity to the most successful Christian missionary by a miraculous spiritual encounter on the road to Damascus. Miraculous encounters with Christ and the Holy Spirit are a powerful resource of the Faith, are well documented in the Bible, and occur frequently today. Perhaps in an hotel room you have found a Bible placed there by the Gideons. The Gideons form a lay Christian organization that believes that troubled peoples can find help from the Scriptures while alone in a motel or hotel room. The Gideons also work in prisons and on college campuses. I am a member of this rescue organization.
Evidence of God's presence amongst us is commonplace in Pentecostal branches of the Christian church today. The word Pentecost refers to the report in Acts 2 of the evidence of miracles--speaking in tongues and exotic signs-- on the holiday of Pentecost. These were important supernatural events in the formation of Christianity and continue to be so today.
The Holy Spirit is forecast in the Gospels and has various names, Comforter, third person of the Trinity, Consoler, Paraclete etc. The Holy Spirit does not seem to be part of John the Baptist's ministry although John mentions the baptism of fire that Jesus will use. Paul (Acts 19:1-7) and Peter (Acts 10: 44- 48) knew that God had accepted the Gentiles when the Holy Spirit filled them in the same manner it had the new Jewish Christians. It is from this divine Spirit that healing, prophecies, slaying with the spirit, and speaking in tongues arise. People have such supernatural gifts today. I have seen and heard speaking in tongues and slaying by the Spirit. These are common happenings in some Christian communities. They appear to be emotional states that perhaps psychiatrists can explain although I have not seen such scientific reports. Most mainline churches ignore and even forbid such spiritual demonstrations. They are not religious acts that can be administered by most priests or ministers and easily incorporated into the liturgy. These are gifts to humble persons walking Christian paths. For me they are proofs of God's presence among people.
Love is the first commandment in Judaism and proclaimed a new commandment in Christianity. The primary meaning of the word love is strong personal liking and affection for others. Love to God and from God are primary themes in the Bible. Jesus offers a remarkable personal, reciprocal love to his followers. Religion can forge bonds of love in a community or church. Love can extend to strangers and enemies and result in charity and giving of help and care. The acid test of a congregation is whether love is obviously there and is unfeigned and working.
As a church goer I have met a lot of unpleasant, boastful and selfish people in congregations. People often attend church for the benefits it gives themselves--sympathy, counsel, and hope of salvation. Other motives too bring in members: opportunities to exhibit social rank, new clothes, and ostentatious piety. But in spite of flaws congregations are often very loving to each other and reach out to their fellow men and women.
There is a little study program in Christianity that I attended, called Cursillo which means little course in Spanish. The main tenets are to be humble and pious, study--especially the Bible--and to work to help others in need and to encourage their faith. My big surprise however was in the love the people in the course showed to each other. This benefit was perhaps outside of the curriculum but it demonstrated to me the genuine Christian spirit and power that pervaded the short course.
There is a deadly sin called pride (self-pride), that is however, construed today as a virtue in most contexts. It is natural to look after Number One, me. Virulent forms of self- love are called solipsism or sometimes egotism and Narcissism. We meet such insufferable people every day. These personalities may be the result of over-indulgent parents or perhaps the modern school system that exalts self-esteem. But love for others is the central teaching of religion. From this fabric cooperating societies can be built. Love is an emotion that gives great satisfaction to both lovers and loved ones. It is a big plus for the Christian churches that practice it.
In these times that advocate freedom of choice, religion is one of the those things people can take or leave, say modern educators. Children are encouraged to ignore the wisdom of past cultures and simply choose what gives them the most pleasure and wealth as individuals. I see serious dangers in the effects of modern psychology on the rearing of babies and in the school systems. The Bible teaches that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. It also teaches us to be humble--pride is a cardinal sin. God can forgive sin but he also punishes us for our sins. All these basic attitudes about authority and self- esteem are contradicted by secular teachers of children. Today most children are not punished for disobeying parents or teachers. Often they are destructive and disrespectful of older people. According to child-care advisors spanking causes children to be violent and resentful. They do not learn violence on televison? Their attacks on playmates with teeth and nails are not considered violent and need not be punished. The modern molders of our society do not consider the lack of discipline and character of children a liability: for academic achievement in schools, for taking orders when employed, for service in the armed forces. Do these unruly children contribute to family discord--to divorce and abortion?
In most religious societies children are taught obedience to parents and teachers as soon as they are born. Parents love their children and give them much kindness as well as spankings. Although early training is the most important factor in shaping the next generations, the libertine codes of adults as prevail today can result in moral decay and destruction of nations and cultures. Certainly drugs cause precipitous social decline. But unrestrained freedom and hedonism is seen also by some historians to cause the fall of empires. At Harvard University early this century Sorokin pointed out the historic relationship between high social morality and societal survival. His warnings have not been popular. Even Machiavelli in The Prince understood the religious sources of national strength. But our educators today do not read the historians, and few dare to speak out about the dangers of undisciplined children, rampant drugs and alcohol, horrible TV, movies and musical lyrics, and the love of luxury and money. Please see the companion essay, SCIENCE AND RELIGION, for a more general discussion of Christianity's impact on history.
The Christian Church is splintered and speaks with many voices. There are about one billion Muslims and Jews, and Eastern religions-Hindus, Buddhists, Confucians-have nearly as many adherents. Agnosticism and atheism too, are very prevailing and powerful in most governments and universities around the world. New Age religions abound and often worship nature, evil, or pleasure. Religious extremists are sometimes called cults. Conservative groups of all religions often seek and win political power. World population is growing rapidly, to perhaps 12 billion people in the next century. That briefly is the world's religious scene.
Let us consider the Christian denominations in terms of what they offer and their memberships approximately. In the United States there are about 60 million Roman Catholics, nearly 20 million Baptists, maybe 10 million Methodists and nearly as many Lutherans. The Pentecostal churches have approximately the same total membership and they are growing rapidly. Mormons number 4.5 million and we could list a half dozen other religious groups with over 1 million adherents. (see World Almanac). Christian church in the United States is often seen divided into the(1) Main Line Churches including the Catholic, Episcopal, Lutheran, and most of the big, well-established, and older denominations and (2) the Reformed and Pentecostal denominations. These are not precise labels but help to distinguish the activities and growth patterns in Christianity. The older division of the church since the Reformation in the 15th Century was into Catholic and Protestant branches, although a Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Catholic split had occurred much earlier. Now both Catholics are considered part of the Main Line division of Christianity.
The word "reformed" gives a clue about the formation of factions in Christendom. Most of the splits came over disputes about doctrine and interpretations of the Bible. Reformers are sure they have true and divine inspiration and they convince followers to form a new religious denomination. Often, too, the reformers rebel against a corrupt church that has great secular power. Some reformers like the leaders of the Mormon Church and Christian Science Church write new books to elaborate the new doctrine and these books become sacred. In many cases such ruptures in the Christian Church have led to bitter quarreling and bloodshed. There are some ecumenical movements today toward reunion and reconciliation, but the breach in the Catholic Church--Roman versus Eastern Orthodox--and the Roman Catholic versus Protestant disagreements have not healed in over 500 years.
Perhaps these break-away or spin-off denominations are vital for the refreshing and purification of Christ's kingdom. Often the new branches grow most vigorously. But the controversy and hatred fomented by these ruptures in the Church is un-christian. The Bible clearly teaches that fighting over doctrine and leaders is a sin (read I Cor. 3). History documents many wars and much suffering resulting from feuding in the ranks of Christendom. The hostility and bickering does little to invite new Christians who can sense the bitterness and rivalry among denominations.
Most new denominations insist they are separating from corrupt church leaders who are not faithful to the Scriptures. Perhaps the clergy or the hierarchal structure is the problem causing splintering. Some successful religious groups do not have paid clergy. Muslims, Mormons and Quakers are lay-led groups. Struggles for salary and authority can be corrupting but I think the main causes of Christian controversy today is over issues. The most evident differences are over the questions of abortion, divorce, homosexuals, women as ministers and priests, and the acceptance of Jewish and Muslim other religions as valid worship. Conservative factions in many denominations take strong negative positions on all these issues--they are against all on the above list. They often quote scriptures to prove they are right (righteous) and those who oppose are sinners. The Christian Coalition is a political active group of Conservatives that seek power to make laws so all must refrain from such sins. Massachusetts had rule by Church government giving us Blue Laws that are still in force. Right wing Moslems in Afghanistan have recently made it illegal for women to work outside the home.
These matters troubling our Christian churches are also central to the concerns troubling our secular society. The first question (abortion, divorce, homosexuals, women's work) deals with roles of men and women and sexual relations in all of society. The second issue, the superiority of one religion to another, is linked to the ethnic conflicts ravaging the planet. Abortion and birth control methods are factors in preventing over population of the earth. Divorce, and the work men and women do, affect the families and the education (attention and love) that children receive. We are born with our sexual drives and they should not prevent us from productive work, but restraint on sex is necessary to shelter the children that result and in the control of venereal diseases. My observation has been that many women make excellent, sensitive ministers. The Christian and Jewish teachings endorse justice and help for the weak and oppressed. If the main tenets of Christianity are love and forgiveness it could be the main force for resolving the problems of societies and nations--rather than causing them. We should read all the Bible and not assail others with a favorite verse as a club.
The Bible tells of judgment after death when all people will be assigned residence in heaven and given a new everlasting life of happiness, or sentenced to hell a place of torment and eternal suffering. This binary decision will be made for each of us based on our earthly deeds and sins. Sins may be forgiven and covered by the atoning blood of Jesus assuring penitent believers of a place in heaven.
How are we as Christians to understand this harsh and fateful doctrine of the afterlife? We can study the Bible and seek more information. There is very little written in the Old Testament about human resurrection. Perhaps Ezekiel 37 describes a kind of rapture or rebirth. The question, "is there an afterlife?", (see Matt. 22:23-33) was put to Jesus by the Sadducees religious sect of the Jews who did not believe in resurrection. The Pharisees, the sect to which Paul belonged, believed in life after death and his letters (see I Cor. chapter 15 referenced above for example) give some sketchy descriptions of heaven and God's judgment. Hell and the final judgment are described a bit in the book of Revelation (chapter 20:11-15) and in Matthew (chapter 25) and other verses.
Is there any historical evidence documenting resurrected persons? Are there scientific theories or psychological hypotheses that give credence to life after death? Human life is consciousness--awareness of self and memory of experiences. This is mental stuff, spiritual or soul if we use religious terminology. It is a field of scientific investigations that is poorly understood. The mind has come under serious study in recent years but progress is small. This incredibly powerful "computer" with billions of bits of information stored and retrieved is not understood and can not be duplicated in the laboratory. Science has a huge ignorance-gap relating to questions of the human intelligence and spirit. But ignorance is not proof or evidence. It simply suggests (if we are honestly seeking the truth) that we are dealing with subject matter about which our scientific knowledge is incomplete.
Whatever God's plans are in these transcendent dimensions they will be just and merciful--based on how we know him to be from scriptures and personal encounters. Reality for Christians embraces mental communications with God and his Son beyond earthly confines. Death always defeats life, but Christians have a hope beyond.
Heaven's Gate suicides in California recently and the earlier killings by Jimmy Jones in Guyana (1978) have alerted everyone to excesses of religion. Groups that engage in such deeds are often labelled Cults. The two cults cited above had their roots in Christianity. The early Christian Churchs in Asia Minor and Europe were considered superstitious cults by the Jewish and Roman authorities. Many cruel acts are recorded in Christian history; crowds of children were sent on the Crusades to Palestine and most perished or were made slaves; some Catholic monasteries denied men opportunities to speak to family members and required fasting, hard labor, and silence; the Spanish Inquisition tortured non-believers; etc. For many people cults are any religious group that has heretical beliefs that deviate from their own religious views. Perhaps we should define cults more narrowly as extreme religious groups that advocate harmful treatment for themselves or anyone and who maintain secrecy about their activities. Even with such a restricted definition many Christian groups have cultish attributes. We must be careful about using the pejorative label, cult. We should study the Bible regarding acceptable worship, prayer and work in the Kingdom or Church that Christ established.
The Gospels describe how Christ sent out his disciple and 70 followers in pairs to heal the sick and proclaim the Kingdom of God. He gave them instructions requiring them to go without money from town to town and depend on hospitality. This model is used perhaps by the Jehovah Witnesses and the Mormons today. Paul's letters have many instructions about living, marrying, and working in this world. Paul's advice is not to follow the legal codes of the Jewish Old Testament. He approved of a more liberated life depending on wholly God's Grace. But he denounced many sins (crimes) of duplicity, violence and sex. The book of Revelation has report cards grading some churches in Asia Minor.
Right and wrong, and the workings of conscience are well explained in the Bible. The Christian teachings sanctions honest occupations, marriage, and most unselfish activities not hurtful to others. Christian life can be very happy and productive. But following the Christian road can be rocky. It means surrender to Christ and then accepting the nudging of our conscience that now directs our lives.
The Bible reports many miracles; healings, resurrections, calming of storms, feeding of multitudes with a few loaves and fishes, and other supernatural events. In the Bible angels carry messages and demons possess people. These miracles have been troublesome to many Christians. Thomas Jefferson re-wrote much of the New Testament omitting the miracles. Some Protestant denominations have eliminated miracles from their creeds and preaching. The Universalists and Unitarians have constructed Christian doctrines of ethics and living that don't rely on, or refer to, supernatural marvels. Although they have not been too successful, (In Acton, Massachusetts their church buildings are now used as a theater and music store.) these denominations and similar ones are active and appeal largely to a skeptical, intellectual constituency. The Bible stripped of miracles loses much of its power to change peoples lives and to provide help and hope for the suffering. Prayer often becomes vain and self- centered. Modern-day and Biblical demonstrations of the Holy Spirit are denied. God is impotent. Divinely sanctioned commandments are scoffed at and morality is a relative matter. Religion is just a philanthropic and moral dimension of human behavior.
One should not criticize people who do not, or can not, believe in miracles. Faith is a gift. It is by Christian experiences that we sense the presence of God in our lives. By recognizing little miracles we begin to accept them all, realizing that God is not limited. Perceiving that God is near and powerful makes the believing Christians able to pass on their Faith to others. The result is a growing fellowship full of action by Christian workers.
The last book of the New Testament is different. In some ways it is similar to Old Testament books such as Ezekiel and Jeremiah where God is seen to judge and punish nations. Because of its enigmatic imagery and frightful forecasts of the destruction of Rome, Christian readers have sought to use Revelation to predict the End of the World and to interpret its cryptic passages as referring to recent history and to future events. The book talks about terrible catastrophes such as wars, plagues, and famines that will afflict mankind. In a sense these predictions have been remarkably accurate. Such disasters have happened repeatedly causing ghastly suffering on the earth. The author of Revelation describes a royal court over which God presides and in which most of the reported actions and announcements take place. From his throne God sends out his angels to wreck havoc on the earth, angels, mounted sometimes on horses, like riders of the famous four horses of the apocalypse. Gods character seems harsh and avenging--reminding us of Old Testament calamities, for examples, the Flood and the Babylonian captivity.
In the first chapters Jesus visits the churches and discusses their strengths and weaknesses. His personality and views are not too different from those portrayed in the Gospels. There are glorious scenes, especially in the last chapters, announcing that God will wipe away all tears and death will be no more. A new Jerusalem will appear with radiance like a very rare jewel. And the Nations will walk by its light. Revelation seems wonderful and horrible at the same time. It has been troublesome to many scholars including Martin Luther. And the predictions made by its interpreters using the numbers and symbols contained in the book have often been wrong and ridiculous.
Now for the hard part: summarizing what is a Christian life and why should one live it. We have mentioned some of Christianity's components; prayer and living a moral life filled with love of God and all people. We asserted that prayer and divine help can rescue people from criminal lives of drugs and harming others. We claim that supernatural experiences are available today in prayer and through the Holy Spirit's manifestations in speaking in tongues and in healings. Christians assume God is always available by prayer--and that we can reach him--and he cares about us and can help us. This means Christianity is spiritual or mental stuff. It is more than rules and advice for living our lives--beneficial as these directions may be for society. These are remarkable conclusions.
Perhaps other people are as irrational and insane as I and interpret Christianity as I do. Let me quote from a paper entitled, A Neuropsychological Analysis of Religion: Attempting to Determine Why God Won't go Away. "Andrew Newberg presented a neuropsychological analysis of the mystic religious experience. These are consistent with relatively modern definitions of religion: Schleiermacher: Religion is a feeling of absolute dependence on God. Otto: Religion is the sensation of numinous (holy) awe, fear, and fascination.
Mystic experiences are cross cultural. They express oneness, unification, loss of space-time limitations, and ineffable and sublime joy. Pleasure is processed in the frontal lobes of the brain. The mystic experience of absolute unitary being, (AUB) is an overall brain function. This experience also involves the automatic nervous system as well as the limbic system. Newberg said that dreams and hallucinations are real to us when we experience them. However, after they occur, we evaluate them as not being real. Mystical religious experiences, on the other hand, are evaluated as being very real, in fact as transcending the reality of our ordinary experience."
If we accept such "analysis" we understand Christianity to be "mental stuff", which are substances in a poorly understood scientific realm . By implication of the above quote, we have an extraordinary window to God by a special bridge of thought. God is all pervading, permeating all reality. (This is how it is whether we believe it or not!) This is the basic inference in Christianity and other theistic religions.
Christians believe that this ever-present and available God is accessible through prayer to Jesus. We must hear his voice and open the door or window to reach him. He will then direct us to be his holy disciples. This is a life of service to others and worship of God. This life can be all consuming and separate us from worldly activities, depending on God's plan for us. The Bible and teachings of Jesus are the blueprints for living. It can be a happy and satisfying life.
This amazing picture of reality is frightening to me. I can't understand it. God appears as a veiled being, concerned about moral behavior and giving love and help to weak and suffering persons who seek him. Yet His interceding in human affairs does not stop the pain and disasters that constantly happen to righteous and unrighteous people. I am troubled, too, with the exclusiveness of Christianity that helps to divide the earth into warring camps of rival religions. The formulas for salvation including the sacraments trouble me as they deny heaven to most of man- and womankind.
But a critical examination of Christianity, as I have tried to present, is vain and does not win people to Christ and enlarge his kingdom. And without evangelism Christianity will disappear. What are the actions that propagate and spread the Christian faith? (Historically the sword and gun have been the main tools for spreading religions, including Christianity. We don't recommend such tactics today. In most of history people believed in Gods and the question was which one. Today atheism is the competitor of Gods although belief in luck is wide spread among atheists.)
Several ways for recruiting Christians are listed below: 1) Model lives lived by Christians can result in imitation and emulation. This is apostolic action without words. 2) There are schools, courses, churches, sermons and verbal teaching and persuasion that most main-line churches rely on. 3) There is the inner quest for hope not satisfied with secular philosophy or psychology. This search may lead to private prayer and to God. 4) The many tragic events of life can turn us to Christ-- diseases and suffering, deaths, lose of jobs and homes, divorces and social conflicts--that are like fox-holes in war in which there are no atheists. 5) The revival meeting with its articulate evangelists that bring people to their knees in repentance and results in men and women giving their lives to Christ. 6) People turn to religion out of fear of death or fear of God and of judgment. 7) One-on-one verbal witnessing seasoned with love by Christians. Team or two persons teaching is more in accord with Bible Instructions for winning people to Christ.
All of the above may be effective. Or perhaps none of the above is the best approach to finding faith, because God seeks us and not we God! I did not put "critical searching" (as this paper may be considered) on this list. But then if one reads some Scriptures; Job, Ecclesiastes, and Paul's letters to the Corinthians, etc., we hear of doubts and contemplation, and not always claims of absolute certainty about religious truths. The words of Jesus and Paul are often introspective and personal.
If we honestly admit our problems with our religious faith we may find divine answers. Much of the Scriptures are a search for such answers. Our lives give us a little time to test. God help you in your quest for wisdom and peace. cjs
Reference: "A Neuropsychological Analysis of Religion: Attempting to Determine Why God Won't go Away." by Andrew Newberg and Gene D'Aquili ZYGON: Journal of Science and Religion, 1993