Ignorance Is Not Cool

Disclaimer: as usual for me, this is not meant to be an extensive researched thesis on the topic, only my personal commentary on an issue.

What I believe is one of the biggest problems with Christianity today isn’t that we don’t know our faith well enough. Even from a preschool age, I learned those catechisms. “Who is God? God is a spirit and does not have a body like man. What did God make? God made the heavens and the earth. What else did God make? God made me and all things. Why did God make me and all things? God made me and all things for his own glory.” You know how it goes. There are many more that I can’t remember at the moment. Then there were countless Bible verses learned at home and in Sunday school. I’m sure some teacher somewhere still owes me a Snickers. There are some preachers who love to dive into the intricate minutia of the Christian faith. Others preach a gospel message every other Sunday. Not knowing our faith well enough? Debatable. But what I believe is one of the biggest problems with Christianity today is that while we know our friends, we don’t know who or what we’re against.

Now I know, I’m 20 (almost 21!). I’m not a super Christian. I’ve asked God “why” before. I have actual struggles that I have to deal with every day. I don’t remember the exact day or even year I was saved (let’s save this topic for another day shall we). So what authority do I have? None. But luckily for me, the internet is a thing and Holy Spirit insight is also a thing so I get to tell you what I think anyways.

It seems many Christians I have come across are dedicated to debunking the myths of other religions. Which is fine. Except they’re debunking something that does even exist. The classic straw man argument. We seem to want to generalize all non-Christians and/or cults into one argument and shoot them down with our brilliantly crafted words, yet we get upset when others blame us for the deadly crusades. The hypocrisy is astounding. Or we misrepresent the words or ideas of someone and “defeat” an argument that person didn’t even make. Some people give out Christian literature and are upset when people don’t read it, yet the first thing they do when someone such as a Jehovah’s Witness, Muslim, or atheist comes to the door with something for them ready, they immediately throw it away. Why is it that we expect others to listen to what we have to say but refuse to engage them when they share what we believe?

We’re not commanded to shut down the opposing voice. Elijah let the prophets of Baal have their turn. Jesus engaged demons in conversation. But some people want to turn Christianity into a tyrannical religion where no opposition is allowed to exist. Should people stand for what they believe in? Of course. I’m not saying there is no absolute truth. But handle the truth with basic human decency. Don’t be the reason someone discredits Christianity as a whole because you forget the most basic rule of human interaction: treat others like you want to be treated. The Bible tells us to be ready to give an answer. We can’t answer something that is never stated or something that isn’t even an idea.

So please, if you hear about something that an atheist said, check it out. Go to firsthand sources and see if that is correct. We can’t base entire propositions on hearsay. If someone from a different religion comes to your door, engage them. I’m not asking that you be converted to everything obviously. But engage in polite conversation and maybe, just maybe, actually treat them as Jesus would. Because if we don’t know what people out there are saying, we’re spending all our time “beating the air” as Paul talked about. Ignorance is one thing. We can’t know what something is about if we have never come in contact with it. But willful ignorance is a whole different matter. We need to understand the world around us so we know how to interact with people. Being ignorant about what people believe and then telling them why what they believe is wrong doesn’t even make sense. It’s absurd.

Ask for wisdom as you engage others. Ask for wisdom as you read about the real life beliefs of other religions/cultures. People don’t open up to or listen to people who don’t understand them on a basic level. “But hey, you’re turning into one of those young evangelicals who preach the social gospel!” Nope. But God put us in the world. We’re going to be around people. And it would do you well to figure out how to deal with them.

Ignorance is not cool.

-RST