The exclusivity of true religion is directly related to any truth claim a religion makes; thus the only impossible position is that more than one be true.
If Christianity is true religion, and Christianity teaches that it is the only true religion, then saying that Christianity is true but other religions are also true means that Christianity is false.
I can respect anyone’s claim that their religion is the true one: we can talk about that. The claim that all religions are true is immoral, unnatural, and irrational.
We can’t talk about that because it is the same as the claim that all religions are false.
And if all religions are false then talking about them in terms of all of them being true seems either incoherent or intentionally misleading.
So let’s at least begin with the premise that we all think we’re right and everyone else is wrong because there is no other way to be honest, sincere, or reasonable people in the context of a conversation with vast consequences for our lives and the lives of others.
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[...] There can only be one true religion 2009 April 22 tags: god, presbyterian, religion by Neiswonger There can only be one true religion. [...]
Pingback by There can only be one true religion « Apologetics.com Neiswonger — April 22, 2009 @ 8:35 pm |
Sounds good to me.
I’m finding more to agree with than I would have expected in a blog titled ‘Christian Theology’. I don’t know that it’s necessarily true that every possible religion must be mutually exclusive with all others, but just about every formulation of Christianity I’m familiar with makes very definite claims which aren’t compatible with any other worldview.
Comment by Cubik's Rube — April 23, 2009 @ 5:18 am |
I don’t believe that all religions are false; they’re all simply built on irrationality and manipulation.
Comment by The Rambling Taoist — April 24, 2009 @ 6:14 pm |
The claim and concept that there is one true religion is a rational one
and the alternative, that all or many religions are true,
cannot hold logically.
Why would one be interested, fervent and a follower of one religion if one did not believe it was the one and true faith.
For these reasons I could never critcize those who speak of and follow to the best of their ability their one true religion, even though I might
disagree with their choice. In fact, I would be more critical of someone
who stated that all religions are the same, even in a sympathetic way,
and then opted exclusively for one religion.
On the the other hand, there is much to be said for the idea that all religions do share compelling portions of the Truth.
Comment by michael — April 27, 2009 @ 4:59 pm |
[...] Posted by Job on April 29, 2009 There can only be one true religion « Christian Theology [...]
Pingback by There Can Be Only One True Religion: Christianity! « Jesus Christology — April 28, 2009 @ 8:13 pm |
There is another possibility, logically, and that is that no religions are the one true religion. Don’t take this the wrong way; I’m no athiest. Jesus did not come to establish a religion called Christianity, and most of what we do in Christianity, and even many of our beliefs are cultural and not biblical. If we accept the cultural elements that dominate our own religion, then we must accept the cultural elements that dominate other religions. Their problem is not the way they worship, it is tha tthey give some of the glory that God alone deserves to lesser things. (Rom 1:23)
Comment by zach — July 29, 2009 @ 3:51 am |
What about the ancient Roman, Greek and Egyptian religions? They weren’t mutually exclusive, they just had different representations and names for their Gods, Norse could also be compatible.
Comment by Jeffrey — December 3, 2009 @ 10:04 pm |
The Romans, Greeks, Egyptians, and Norsemen would not agree. Their gods were severely ethnic and culturally specific. Bland similarities should not be confused with identity of perceived personage. Then again you had philosophers like Socrates that thought there was only one God, if that, and stoics that thought they were all the same, but the Romans were famous for slaughtering heretics (notably but among others, Christians). These people took their gods seriously and unitarian concerns were for the most part rejected. Even Socrates was sentenced to drink poison for the corruption of the youth; i.e. questioning the gods of Greece.
Comment by Neiswonger — December 3, 2009 @ 11:16 pm |