Monday, June 23, 2008

Time Shocked By Tolerant Christians

Here’s an article from Time about a survey on religious tolerance.

Americans of every religious stripe are considerably more tolerant of the beliefs of others than most of us might have assumed, according to a new poll released Monday. The Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life last year surveyed 35,000 American, and found that 70% of respondents agreed with the statement “Many religions can lead to eternal life.” Even more remarkable was the fact that 57% of Evangelical Christians were willing to accept that theirs might not be the only path to salvation, since most Christians historically have embraced the words of Jesus, in the Gospel of John, that “no one comes to the Father except through me.” Even as mainline churches had become more tolerant, the exclusivity of Christianity’s path to heaven has long been one of the Evangelicals’ fundamental tenets. The new poll suggests a major shift, at least in the pews.

Notice the shock expressed that Christians are quite tolerant (by their definition).  Also notice that nowhere in the article do they tell us the same tolerance of the Muslim folks who were polled. 

Telling.

 

(2) Comments
Posted by Owen at 1708 hrs
Culture + Politics + Politics - General

  1. Yeah, you’re right.  It seems odd that Time would be surprised that what these Christians actually believe is completely different from what their religion doctrine says.  That’s actually pretty par for the course for most of the Christians I know.

    Posted by jesusisjustalrightwithme on June 23, 2008 at 1727 hrs


  2. “Even more remarkable was the fact that 57% of Evangelical Christians were willing to accept that theirs might not be the only path to salvation”

    Owen said: “Also notice that nowhere in the article do they tell us the same tolerance of the Muslim folks who were polled. “

    Muslims polled that question at 56%. Only 16% of Jehovah’s Witnesses and 39% of Mormons felt that way about other religions.

    Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on June 23, 2008 at 2010 hrs


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