Christianity and...

Here is an excerpt from Chapter 25 of The Screwtape Letters, by C.S. Lewis. Screwtape, an experienced demon, is counseling his nephew Wormwood, on how best to lead astray a young Christian:

The real trouble about the set your patient is living in is that it is merely Christian. They all have individual interests, of course, but the bond remains mere Christianity. What we want, if men become Christians at all, is to keep them in the state of mind I call "Christianity And'... Substitute for the faith itself some Fashion with a Christian colouring.

Have you ever noticed how much excess doctrinal and political baggage is associated with the words "Christian", "evangelical", or "born again"? Most people hear those words and think "Republican", "TBN", "Bible-thumper", and "abortion clinic bomber". I think Lewis was right when he warned us of appending personal preference onto the core of Christianity, and generally considering it a cohesive whole. Mere Christianity, as Lewis puts it, is the message of God's sovereignty and offer of salvation and can be found all throughout the Scriptures in one form or another. There is no reason why we should add anything else to that core.

Claiming more than that as your religion has a tendency to build a sense of superiority and pride. If I am a Christian And Republican, it would be very difficult to not look down on those of a different political persuasion as somehow not worthy of the same religious views. This, of course, is 100% counterproductive to the spread of the Good News. Claiming "Christianity And" anything else also causes most of the aforementioned [sometimes] negative public opinion. When someone claims something extra-Biblical as being "Christian", people will take it at face value. Unless there is a strong movement to unify in the elements of "mere Christianity", the public face of Christianity will continue to be a convoluted, inconsistent image of the real thing.

What to do? Go back to the basics. All one needs to know is "What must I do to be saved." This question is answered all throughout the New Testament. It is this message that should be preached; it is this message that saves. While the Bible also directs us to do (and not do) certain things, one's adherence to these other laws and principles is not grounds for personal comparison and does not affect the eternal status of that individual.

In my own search for the basics, I have found Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis to be an excellent treatment on the subject. If you've not read it, please do. You might learn something new, or unlearn a malformed belief.

in the player: Sixpence None the Richer - Sixpence None the Richer