Sunday Reflections

By Rev. Dai Morgan

When talking about religion, sometimes one will hear an opinion such as, “All paths lead to God” or “All religions are basically the same.” I suppose that there are a number of reasons that someone might express this point of view.

Frankly, when I hear this kind of thing, it makes me think that the speaker is uninformed. Certainly, the various religious traditions of the world have some beliefs, values and practices in common. But, they also have differences which are significant and, in many cases, mutually exclusive—for example, the claim to recognize one god or many gods.

To assume that all religions are somehow the same, that their understanding of humankind, the nature of divinity and of ultimate purpose is similar, simply shows lack of knowledge.

In this week’s column, however, it is not my intention to understand why anyone might claim that all religions are the same. On the contrary, from a Christian perspective, I want to elaborate on the point of view that all religions are NOT the same.

It needs to be mentioned, at this point, that I believe there are lessons to be learned from the various world religions. I think that all religious expression is inspired by a God-planted impulse in the human mind to seek God. Furthermore, God will judge as God pleases, so I am not willing to condemn other religions.

Nonetheless, I am a Christian clergyman and I believe the eyewitness accounts of the New Testament. I believe that Jesus was the revelation of God and that Christian faith accurately represents the relationship of the universe, humankind and God. To me, there are differences between my faith and the other world religions.

Consequently, I present three ideas that are unique to Christian thought:

1) SIN. In Christianity, sin is not simply being “bad.” Sinfulness goes beyond acts of evil, immorality, unrighteousness, criminality—choose your own words. It goes beyond behavior. Christian thinking perceives sin to be a state of being. It is inherent in human nature. It results in strife and contention with our fellow human beings and with God. In the other religious traditions—as well as for the secular world—it is assumed that “wrong” behavior can be balanced or offset by “right” behavior, by being “good.” Not so in Christian theology.   

2) RADICAL LOVE. The desire for peace, to some degree, is common across religious traditions. There are variations on the Golden Rule in almost every religion: Do unto others as you would have others do unto you. A function of religion is to define group identity and encourage harmony. However, in addition to identifying who belongs, religion can also identify who does not belong. It can reinforce the sense of “us versus them.” But, Jesus’ one command to his followers is to love God and neighbor. For Christians, there are to be no outsiders, no “thems.” Love even your enemies. This is radical. Do Christians follow this principle? The answer is: Not always (see point 1 above, regarding sin). However, it is our goal.

3) THE NEED FOR A SAVIOR. Christians believe that human beings, by ourselves, are incapable of earning relationship with God, because of our sinful nature. No amount of sacrifice, good works, obedience, piety, or right behavior can lead to God’s grace. Since God desires relationship, but humankind is not capable of achieving it, God creates the way. Jesus Christ—the incarnation of God, as Christians believe—who is acceptable to God, becomes the substitute for human beings. Christ becomes the savior, bringing those who will receive this gift of substitution, into relationship with God.

There are indeed differences among the various religions of the world. As a Christian, I have presented three examples from my own faith tradition. One can accept or reject these ideas. However, one cannot say that they are common to any other religion.

The Rev. Dai Morgan is pastor of Living Spirit Ministry-