Vince Deagler

i was at a bible study this past monday morning and someone in the group had a letter to the editor from the modesto bee dated may 6, 2009 under the heading “religion touches a nerve”.  it was written by a gentleman from modesto in reaction to a previous letter that suggested “we should return to moral and spiritual absolutes” as a nation.  in his response, he bashes christianity and makes a case for how tragic this would be based on a cursory glance at history.  unfortunately, this gentleman was either uninformed or intentionally biased in his review of history.  first off he bashes christianity as if it were the only belief system that valued moral and spiritual absolutes.  anyone familiar with current events knows islamic fundamentalists would like to impose sharia law on the whole world.  my point, there are other belief systems that value absolutes.  to bash christianity on the basis of a cursory glance of history should require an honest evaluation of that history.  and he never does address the idea that all our laws reflect some kind of absolutism that in the case of america are based in the bible.  where does he think our laws against murder and stealing come from?  should we get rid of them because they are tragic and dangerous?

a second problem i have with this particular letter is that all the old examples are dredged up and used to support the tragedy of absolutism.  the crusades, the inquisition, the witch hunts, the holocaust, the slaughter of native americans, and the vague, generalized summary statement “and many other horrible acts”.  he said that same type of thinking is still alive and well today.  he pointed to book banning as an example.  now lets honestly examine what he says.  first, one of the main tenants of evangelical faith today, and it has been written into the constitution, is that the state should not establish any religion.  our founding fathers migrated to america to escape religious oppression.  they wanted america to be a place where there was freedom to practice their religion.  this was largely based on their experience with the state run churches that dominated europe.  please don’t confuse what took place in the crusades and inquisition as being reflective of christianity.  it is reflective of what happens when the state absorbs the church, namely corruption.  the crusades and inquisition were not christians acting in obedience to gods word.  it was the state/church mutation acting on a variety of impure motives, none of which reflect the teachings of jesus.  not everything done in the name of jesus is the failure of christianity.  there is a difference between genuine christianity and cultural christianity.  unfortunately, not everyone understands that or is willing to look beneath the surface.  they settle for the cheap, albeit misinformed, shot.

but that is just the tip of this ice berg.  the witch hunts, the abuse of native north americans are also reflective of political corruption distorting the mission of the church.  the holocost is almost laughable.  just because germany is a lutheran stronghold does not mean you can attribute the actions of hitler to christianity.  there is much evidence historically that men like, diettrich bonhoffer and karl barth, christians, led the movement resisting hitler, often ending in their death.  secondly the whole arian race thing stems from an occultic background not christianity.  again do not confuse christianity with political manuvering.  but there is more.  where does this gentleman point to the atrocities committed by the likes of lenin, stalin, mao tse-tung, the khmer rouge, what about the genocide in rwanda, darfur, or any number of the equally horrible moments in human history not attributed to christianity .  to point to only selective examples in your cursory glance at history to support a claim that christianity is dangerous is less than honest.  if everything else is far worse, then christianity with all its imperfection, is still the best belief sytem, ethic, and moral compass available.

and where does this gentleman present the other side of christianity.  where does he think public education from pre-k through the university system finds its origins???  thats right, christianity.  where did public health care begin, you know things like hospitals and clinics???  thats right, christians.  what would the world actually be like without those evil christians???  there wouldn’t be as many homeless shelters, rescue missions, relief agencies, rehab centers, orphanages, literacy programs, etc.  and the ones that survived, would not have the staffing or resources they presently enjoy, because this is the imprint christ makes in the life of the christian. i could go on, you get the point.  it is dishobnest to present a negative view of christianity without painting the other side.

and book banning.  from reading the letter, it is quite obvious the gentleman is a liberal/progressive as far as his political leanings are concerned.  and whether he realizes it or not, it is his peers that are trying to censor the world with their view of politically correct thinking and speech.  look at what has taken place in the state of california.  twice now the people have spoken to support a definition of marriage that defines marriage as a union between a man and woman.  the first time was prop. 22 ( i think that was the number) back about 2003 or 2002, and then again prop. 8 last year.  in other words, we the people have spoken…twice.  but our voice has been censored, banned, deemed unacceptable.  so i would keep a lid on that whole book banning thing, it makes your argument look silly…but then again…if the shoe fits…(i’m sorry, that’s not really very nice is it). 

now please understand, i am not saying christianity has no flaws.  that would be dishonest on my part.  no, we have gotten the message of christ wrong many times.  but that is not an indictment on christ, or the movement he started.  that is evidence that we as christ followers are broken human beings who have experienced forgiveness, have embraced his teaching, and are seeking to live out that truth, but will do it imperfectly.  so to all you folks out there who have only seen or heard a distorted picture of christianity, may i apologize to you for we christians not doing a better job of reflecting our leader, jesus.  but please do not judge him by our weakness.  and before you dismiss him, imagine what this world would be like without his influence.  john lenin once sang the song “imagine”.  he dreams of a world without heaven, hell, religion, no countries, possessions, no greed or hunger, a brotherhood of man living in peace.  he even sings…you may say i am a dreamer.  why?  because everything we see in human history says that is off the charts unrealistic.  he blames much of the worlds problems on religion.  let me suggest he has been infected with the same distorted worldview as the gentleman from modesto.  sure christianity has its flaws, to say anything less would be dishonest.  but the world is a better place because of christianity.  it has left an indelible mark, most of which is quite positive.  so before you start bashing, make sure you know the whole story.  and believe me, i have just scratched the surface here.  the story of christianity is the story of the world being transformed slowly but surely whenever, whereever christianity has taken root.  why not crack open a bible sometime, may i suggest starting with the gospel of john, and check it out for yourself.  before rejecting jesus, read what he teaches, evaluate his life, see what he offers.  you just might be surprised what you find.  thanks for reading.  blessings.  vince