To My Non-Christian Friends: What You Should Know

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This is one of the most intelligent articles I’ve ever seen written by an evangelical Christian. I don’t have much more to say, just read the article, because everything I could say is already said here.

I’m a Christian, but so many Christians disappoint me because they cannot tolerate the fact that my Christianity isn’t exactly the same as their Christianity. I wish all Christians would think more like the person who wrote this article.

non-christian

I am a Christian. As a Christian- particularly one of the Evangelical bent- mine is a tradition that has a reputation for abrasive condemnations of those who aren’t Christians: screaming brimstone and judgment from street corners, condemning alternate viewpoints and pushing legislation in an attempt to perpetuate our own beliefs. We’ve not exactly painted ourselves in a good light.

But the flag under which Christians are called to die isn’t one of religious propaganda, nor is the heart of our gospel a ‘turn or burn’ story. That said, there are things I- as a Christian- hope, want, pray, desire and truly want all non-Christians to know.

Here’s a few of them:

1) You are a person, not a project.

When I look at you I don’t see a box to be checked, a sinner to be saved, a victory to be won or a task to be accomplished. I see…

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2 thoughts on “To My Non-Christian Friends: What You Should Know”

  1. This is interesting. My (non) religious views disturb people so I tend not to share them in the real world. But I will here. My position is that Christianity and other religions are illusory inventions of the prescientific world that have the following purposes:
    – To help people avoid the fear of death (e.g. by the illusion that they will go to heaven)
    – To promote an illusory sense of order, meaning, and goodness in a world which can be chaotic, capricious, random, and meaningless. Of course; these good aspeccts can be real, but in many real-world situations they fall apart; the illusion of an all-loving God and a divine order papers over the cracks.
    – To create the illusion that we can know and explain things that we cannot (e.g. how the world was created).
    – To bring people together as a community and serve as a protective extended family; in this way, religious groups are adaptive.
    I think the ideas above are unrealistic but evolutionarily advantageous – e.g. avoiding thinking about death reduces anxiety, feeling a sense of order and meaning when there is really none builds hope, etc. – they promote survival in difficult situations; in a sense, religion for me is the mind’s way of tricking itself adaptively. In this way, ironically, religious belief might be selected for in a Darwinian sense.

    When people ask me what religion I am I usually tell them I am one of the lost sheep (I could say that I am one of the devil’s minions, but I don’t want to scare people.)

    So I don’t believe in any religion, but am not an atheist. That position would be equally as mistaken, in my view, as believing in a God. Instead I am an agnostic; I don’t know if God exists or not, although I doubt it. I have to be content with that; there are many great thingsin life without needing a God. Also, if you don’t believe you are going to heaven, that makes every moment you have here more precious. And there are many agnostics and atheists who are much more honest, kind, and loving people than so-called Christians.

    A very good friend of mine is Christian; I don’t understand his viewpoint on that but I still respect him. And my old tennis coach was Christian and he was a great guy. I think being a worthwhile person is totally separate from the issue of religion.

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    • I used to think exactly the same way you did, so I understand where you are coming from here (and yes, I do still have doubts about Christianity). I prefer to take it on faith, but I appreciate people who are honest the way you have been, and your arguments do make sense even if I prefer to believe otherwise. I really can’t stand holier-than-thou judgmental Christians (or any religion) that tries to force their views on others. Thanks for sharing your viewpoint.

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