Friday, January 9, 2009
Crazy Crap / Silverman Southern Baptist Leader Distressed to Learn Many White Evangelicals Aren't Nutjob Ideologues
Posted by Jack Silverman on Fri, Jan 9, 2009 at 10:04 AM
Note to R. Albert Mohler Jr., president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary: When even Bill O'Reilly thinks you're a Bible-thumping crackpot, it's serious cause for concern.
A new Pew poll showing that many white evangelicals don't buy into a vengeful, egocentric God who damns all non-Christians to eternal hellfire is causing consternation among Southern Baptist theologians, though the rest of mankind is breathing a sigh of relief.
According to this story from the Nashville-based Southern Baptist Convention's Baptist Press wire service, "a significant minority of self-identified evangelicals believe that many religions can lead to salvation, even though some of those evangelicals apparently are confused over what the term 'religion' means."
An earlier Pew poll led to some confusion as to whether different Christian denominations counted as different religions, and this poll sought to clarify whether people felt non-Christian religions could lead to salvation. According to Baptist Press:
In the new survey, 47 percent of professing evangelicals said they believe "many religions can lead to eternal life," a decline of nine points from the earlier poll. Pew then asked that same group how many non-Christian religions they believe can lead to eternal life. More than one-fourth (28 percent) said "none," giving credence to the theory that some evangelicals confused "denominations" with "religions." Still, 72 percent of those who said "many religions can lead to eternal life" cited at least one other non-Christian religion.Assuming my math skills haven't totally failed me, if 47 percent of professing evangelicals said they believe "many religions can lead to eternal life," but only 72 percent of them actually cited other non-Christian religions as potential tickets to paradise, that still means a solid 34 percent of all these evangelicals don't believe you're automatically damned if you're not riding the Jesus train. Though I was pleasantly surprised to learn that a solid one-third of professed evangelicals haven't completely lost the ability to reason, R. Albert Mohler Jr. (featured in the video above), president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, was less than thrilled with the news. From Mohler's website:
[T]his report reveals that a good number of those who attend evangelical churches either misunderstand or repudiate the Gospel. The New Testament reveals not only that Jesus claimed to be the only way to the Father [see John 14:6] but also that the Gospel of Christ is the only message that saves [see Romans 10]. This claim has been central to evangelical conviction -- at least until now. I am confident that much of this confusion can be traced to the superficiality that marks far too many evangelical pulpits...Time and space won't permit a full theological exposition of who's really confused and superficial here, but to the one-third of you evangelicals who haven't been completely suckered in by the fear patrol--who haven't bought into the absurd notion that, as the late comedian Bill Hicks put it, "eternal suffering awaits anyone who questions God's infinite love"--well, we offer you a hearty "amen."
Comments (2)
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We'll see who's right...I'll put my trust in Christ. You can take a chance if you like.
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Posted by
Ivan
on January 10, 2009 at 10:06 PM
Ivan:
Despite the absurdity of the proposition, supposing you were right, and God is so arrogant and egocentric that he damns those who don't recognize Jesus as their savior to eternal damnation, then I'd rather burn in hell for eternity than be a part of his self-aggrandizing racket.
And accepting Jesus as your savior because you're afraid you'll go to hell is so clearly self-centered and CYA that I'd hardly call it spiritually enlightened. Someone who was truly selfless and spiritual wouldn't be so concerned with their own well-being, they'd be concerned about being good to others, treating people with respect and helping those less fortunate.
Posted by
Jack
on January 11, 2009 at 11:57 AM
