Being respectful of others’ religions, or of those with no religion at all, is not an option. Yet we are caught in the net of history and, rejecting grace, we live caught up in that net, without ever asking ourselves what this means, ‘He tore the net and we escaped; our help is in the name of Yahweh, who made heaven and earth’ (Psalm 124). Who is it that we believe in, whose promises? What are we focused on, instead of keeping our eyes on Him?‘The life of discipleship can only be maintained so long as nothing is allowed to come between Christ and ourselves, neither the law, nor personal piety, nor even the world. The disciple looks always only to his master, never to Christ AND the law, Christ AND religion, Christ AND the world. Only by following Christ alone can he preserve a single eye.’
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Martyr 1945
In a world where religion is never made an object of discrimination or abuse (oh, would there ever be such a world?), it should be possible to have Christians, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, you name them, all living in the same apartment building, and greeting each other respectfully as brothers.
There’s only one God, and only one human race, and as far as we know, only one world which we can inhabit, and any religion which causes its members to afflict those of another faith (or no faith at all) is somehow lying to itself. I don’t mean to say that all religions lead to God, by no means. All I am saying is that I don’t know what God’s arrangements with the other people are. I only know what His arrangements are with me, and if I am sure of that, I will do my best to let others know they can be recipients of the same grace. Should they decline, then, I let them go in peace. In short, don’t do anything you don’t see Jesus doing in the gospels. Whatever churches say they believe, and whatever they do, as for you, you can’t go wrong if you just follow Jesus.
Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done [it] unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done [it] unto me.
Matthew 25:40 King James Version
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Martyr 1945
In a world where religion is never made an object of discrimination or abuse (oh, would there ever be such a world?), it should be possible to have Christians, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, you name them, all living in the same apartment building, and greeting each other respectfully as brothers.
There’s only one God, and only one human race, and as far as we know, only one world which we can inhabit, and any religion which causes its members to afflict those of another faith (or no faith at all) is somehow lying to itself. I don’t mean to say that all religions lead to God, by no means. All I am saying is that I don’t know what God’s arrangements with the other people are. I only know what His arrangements are with me, and if I am sure of that, I will do my best to let others know they can be recipients of the same grace. Should they decline, then, I let them go in peace. In short, don’t do anything you don’t see Jesus doing in the gospels. Whatever churches say they believe, and whatever they do, as for you, you can’t go wrong if you just follow Jesus.
Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done [it] unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done [it] unto me.
Matthew 25:40 King James Version
2 comments:
You have certainly accomplished that on your blog--letting others know...
I am so glad I found your writings (or that you found me), because you have changed my life.
If we follow Jesus, He sends us to people, and people to us. He is absolutely active in every moment of our lives. Elder Païsios, Mother Gavrilía, and Fr Alexander Elchaninov are three witnesses of this:
http://cost-of-discipleship.blogspot.com/2011/02/easy-as-1-2-3.html
As C.S. Lewis also writes, there are no accidents. Sometimes life seems to appear planless to a darkened mind, but that is only because it is all plan.
There are some who take this truth to an absurd and dangerous extreme, using themselves and their desires as a pole star, like the divorcée who, after dumping her husband and being forced to work in a book store (it was a 'New Age' bookstore), met the new man in her life this way: "When I saw him come into the store and our eyes met, I knew we were soul mates, and had been together in another life!" Yes, this story is actually true, and it didn't happen out here in hippie land West Coast America, but in the wilds of downstate Illinois.
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