I'm a sucker for any sort of challenge. I like to compete, I love to win. Sometimes I'd be better served by conceding defeat. In a hotly contested game of 'Apples to Apples', a game where people assign random adjectives to people, places, or things in hopes of being selected the best response, I thought I had played a real humdinger. My wife Jess was the proctor for the round and she chose some poor effort another person had made. I told her that was a poor choice, mine was obviously better. (Smart married people see where this is going...) She said, "Well, that's my opinion." To which I promptly and imprudently replied, "Well, then your opinion is wrong."
We like to be right. We like to win. We like knowing the answers. Since I write this blog with a mainly Christian audience in mind, then I need to share my point from that perspective. A recent study asserts that Christians, both Protestant and Catholic, white, black, and hispanic, don't know much about religion. (I won't get stuck here on the importance of religion, but a common ground understanding is essential for conversation) From Hinduism to Mormonism to Judaism to one's own faith tradition of Catholicism or Protestantism, ignorance seems to be in full effect.
Please be careful to understand I'm not advocating that we alleviate ignorance so we can best win religious arguments. Instead, we are creating the opportunity to engage in meaningful conversation with our fellow man about what is near and dear to their hearts. Life together starts with a conversation. That said, I challenge us to learn the basics about the other religious traditions, and dig in to our own with a renewed passion. God calls us to Grow Deep and Reach Out. Here is a place to start.
Pastor Luke
