If the universalists are correct in saying that everyone is going to be in heaven regardless of what they believe, or the pluralists are correct that all religions lead to the same god, then the horrific death of jesus christ was completely unnecessary. Anyone who chooses a religion is also choosing a collective way for. He is the final and decisive revelation of the one true god. In this sea of chaos there are only two relationships. They assume that they have some unique perspective that allows them to pass judgment on all the worlds religions. In a fairly short book, michael green, argues the case that, no, most major religions are quite different. In a conversational style geared toward nonbelievers, green compares christianity, buddhism, islam, and other religions to help spiritual seekers navigate the multifaith maze. All religions lead to the same god, and all deserve the same respect. Contained in this site are some in depth bible studies that i have done trough the years on some very controversial doctrines or teachings of different denominations of the church. Some go so far as to say it is the highest order of blasphemy to say he does, and makes a.
O ne of the most common assumptions in our culture today is that all roads lead to god in the end. Many have developed various religious traditions in order to try to please god in different ways, whether through wearing round pieces of cloth on their. This revised edition of tough questions, designed for use in any small group setting, is ideal for use in seeker small groups. Its impossible due to the fact that god is who he is.
Anyone who chooses a religion is also choosing a collective way for worshipping and sharing the mysteries. If you let each religion speak for itself, you find religions around the world differ greatly on the basic conceptsgod, truth, reality, the basic human dilemma. While it would be impossible to cover each and every facet of every religion, green has done a great job of taking the main points and tying everything together in an easy to understand book. Omnism is the recognition and respect of all religions or lack thereof. Although the core religion teachings guide us to believe in god and to do good deeds to help others, scholars of each religion have distorted some teachings in order to prove that their religion is the only true religion and that they have the only way for salvation. A comparison is often made between the teachings of buddha and the teachings of jesus to support this idea. Aug 07, 2016 the bible says jesus is the very son of god. First, if its really true that jesus is the way to father and that no one comes to the father except through him, jn 14. In fact, jesus regularly claimed that religion would get in the way of finding him.
There is a popular analogy used to show that all religions are valid ways to describe god. Should christians try to covert people of other faiths. Truth be told, many religious people take the lords name in vain throughout their depraved lives. Religions vary greatly in their response to the standard argument against free will and thus might appeal to any number of responses to the paradox of free will, the claim that omniscience and free will are incompatible. The bible says jesus is the eternal god who created all things. In order to help spiritual seekers navigate in the multifaith maze, michael green addresses in but dont all religions lead to god. The pharisees were the most religious people around in jesus day, they taught that in order to be favoured by god you had to keep all the rules. Perhaps youve heard people say that all religions lead to god. God has provided both general and special revelation romans 1.
In this article i will briefly examine arguments for and against the claim that all religious paths lead to the same destination. Secondly, the question do all religions lead to god must be answered no because it simply is impossible. Vivekananda argued that the same god is the inspirer of all religions. Nov 24, 2018 if we think of god then we cant just imagine someone similar to our form. God cannot at the same time be both impersonal and personal, both singular and triune, both finite and infinite, both knowable and. Were all aware of personal failings and the need to be better. Satans biggest department is the department of religions. Sharing an exclusive jesus in an inclusive world baker books, 2016. The truth is they all lead go to the god of this world, and his name is satan. But dont all religions lead to god navigating the multifaith maze. Mar 26, 2020 o ne of the most common assumptions in our culture today is that all roads lead to god in the end. Roger worked as a school teacher in west yorkshire for over ten years. He came into the world 2,000 years ago by the virgin birth. The religions also do not teach the same thing about jesus.
In numerous places, including the book of john, the helper is said to be sent for the express purpose of leading us in to all truth and to bear witness of. Free will in theology is an important part of the debate on free will in general. Jul 15, 2002 every now and again you hear someone try to argue that all religions are essentially the same or that they all lead to god. Since the religions teaching about god is different, how can it be possible that they all lead to the same god. First is the fact that we live in a society that has many cultures and many religions, and we are to treat each with respect.
All religions lead to god, but only one religion will result in god s acceptance, because only through his salvation through faith in jesus christ can anyone approach him with confidence. These religions, many people believe, may travel different roads, but they all lead to god. Estimates suggest that some 70 percent of mankind belong to the five major religions. While these principles dont eliminate my angst in full, they at least cultivate a biblical view of gods character and remind me that i can trust him to do what is right. We love all of our neighbors, whatever their religion, but only the bible says god is love, and the bibles unique view of gods love is the basis of our relationship with him. Religions have very different ideas of god, so they cant all lead to the same one. Nevertheless, that person is the only one responsible for his or her actions along the way and has no right to shift responsibility for any personal decisions on to. If someone came to you and said that there are many ways to god. Recovering the mystical by marcus braybrooke chapter 4. The oxford english dictionary oed quotes as the terms earliest usage by english poet philip j. They are demons and deceivers and the way to test all claims to truth in religion is jesus christ.
All you need to be is sincere and it will all work out. The eight rival religions that run the world, he links the lack of basic knowledge of other religions, or even our own religion, partially to the idea that all religions lead to the same god, saying this lack of knowledge contributes to the erroneous assumption. God is personal, god is impersonal, god is spirit, god is in everything, we are god. But if the rest of our lives dont work that way think your bank account. Only christianity leads to gods mercy seat, where all true christians will stand before the judgement seat of jesus christ, and be judged and rewarded for their works. We are called to provide a biblical voice to the challenges we all. To them, it does not matter which road they choose, since all roads lead to the same place. Behind this is the idea that all beliefs should be tolerated and that any claim to ultimate truth is arrogant. Does biblical christianity advocate an overtly tolerant attitude toward other religions and faiths. Do all religions lead to god frontline apologetics. As he said, having been a christian for many years, the number of adult nonchristians that i know well are very, very few. If all religions lead to the same god, these five faiths surely ought to have many things in common in their teachings, their portrayal of god, and their explanation of gods purpose. Some think that all religions will eventually get you to god, but that is not what jesus said. How can i know for sure that i am following the correct religion.
The history of religion shows how immoral and violent religion can be. Going to a higher sense of living is what a religion should teach and you should practice. With jesus christ, you see god offering us a relationship with himself, not based on our efforts, but based on what he did for us. The existence of so many religions and the claim that all religions lead to god without question confuses many who are earnestly seeking the truth about god, with the end result sometimes being that some despair of ever reaching the absolute truth on the subject.
Buddhism is pantheistic and says there is no personal god and everyone can reach godlikeness on his own. The decision to embrace the truth about god is important for a simple reason. Many people think that is the case, because they assume that all religions are essentially the same when you get right down to it. Its often taught in schools to undergird the socalled british values of tolerance and respect, things which are surely essential in a. All religions are different paths to the same place. Aug 06, 2016 and it is this very nature of truth which tells us one thing very clearly about all of the world religions.
They say as long as you are good you will all arrive in heaven some day. An uncle played tennis with him and then explained the good news about jesus to him. Appealing to the idea of evolution, which was much in peoples minds at the time, he spoke of the knowledge and idea of god evolving in each religion. Just because all of the worlds religions express important elements of spiritual truth doesnt mean that they all represent enough truth to lead to god. Buddhism, christianity, hinduism, islam, and judaism.
Since all other religions say there are other ways to reach god, or many ways to reach heaven, they cannot all be right. Aug 19, 20 in the youtube video also titled, god is not one. In a conversational style geared toward nonbelievers and spiritual seekers, but dont all religions lead to god. Mar 30, 2020 the claim is that all of the worlds religions are equally valid, and they all lead to ultimate spiritual reality. People assume that all religions have nearly the same moral teachings and ideals. If all religions do not lead to god, then a common question that. Oct 01, 2002 in a conversational style geared toward nonbelievers, green compares christianity, buddhism, islam, and other religions to help spiritual seekers navigate the multifaith maze. When we consider the various teachings about god from different religions, we see that they cannot all be true. No, jesus himself said there is no other way to come to god except through him, and that if you reject him, you are rejecting god the father.
We accept all religions as true, swami vivekananda told members of the world parliament of religions, which was held in chicago in 1893. After all, its easy to find honest, moral people who do not follow yeshua or god at all. Lutzer are the gods of hinduism and islam merely another expression of the christian god. A common response is that all religions may have their own different ways of interpreting god and divine revelation, but they are nonetheless all pointing back to the same universal truth. They reason that there is only one almighty god, so all religions must ultimately lead to him. If all religions are different paths to the same place, then why do the paths contradict each other. We should take the question of gods existence seriously and invest our utmost in answering it.
Jesus is the litmus test for all religions, including judaism. No religion has ever or will ever lead any one to god. When purchasing a new vehicle, if we set aside time for research in order to find the car best suited for us. Religion professors especially love this analogy, because it equalizes all religions, making all religions equally true in their description of god. Although all three are monotheistic, judaism and islam are unitarian monotheists the belief that the being of god exists as one person. For god so loved the world, that he gave his only son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.
Or they end up embracing the universalist claim that all religions lead to god. There are clear, logical answers to help us correct the ideas that sincerity is what matters or that all religions are the same, leading to the same god. But dont all religions lead to god navigating the multi. Some religions dont even believe that god exists, while others are entirely centered around the existence of god. The belief that all religions are merely different paths up the same mountain is something of a cultural norm today. Aug 04, 2017 no matter what they hes talking to pharisees who really said they trusted and believed in the god of the old testament said about god, he responded, no, you dont because you dont accept me. We cant all be right but we can encourage one another in our quest for the truth. Do all religions lead to god frontline apologetics page 2. Sep 06, 2017 the belief that people of all religions worship the same god, just in a different way, seems to be the cultural norm today. Roman catholic theologian hans kung says that the major religions do indeed share some basic tenets within the realm of human relations. Some of these are offshoots of more prominent religions. My conclusion from the bible is that there are real supernatural beings behind other religions, but they are not the true god.
Some of the books of other religions say god never had a son. They might have different names for god, but it is the same god. In this insightful and compelling book, michael green. Just among these seven religions only, there is disagreement between the number of gods. Jesus christ clearly taught he was god, acted as if he was god, and attributed to himself the characteristics of god. Christianity, he says, is different from all other religions because of jesus himself. And in islam, the individual follows religious laws for the sake of paradise after death. Christian articles, christian books, whats new faithwriters. Yet no one is led to god by simply giving or helping anybody. Even in the three monotheistic world religionschristianity, islam, and judaismthere are fundamental differences in god s character, attributes, and especially his nature. Any religion that refuses to worship him is a false religion. And those who tell this story are also making a grand assumption. If there were multiple paths to god then we wouldnt have the laws of logic, reasoning, or the need for persuasion.
Aug 02, 2018 yes, all religions do lead to god in fact, all paths, including atheism, communism etc. Ivp intervarsity press 2018 registered charity no 1105757 ivp is a subsidiary charity of spck, registered charity no 231144 36 causton. Most modern people would look upon the actual practice of many extinct religions with horror. Roger carswell became a christian as a teenager on holiday in the lebanon. Islams holy book, the quran, is described as a revelation from allah to his prophet, muhammad.
Paulo coelho all religions lead to the same god, and all deserve the same respect. If all paths do not lead to the same destination then it would seem that each person must make an informed choice which may have significant consequences. They teach many different things about who god is and what he expects of us. What illustration helps us to see that not all religions teach the truth. Your salvation depends on something you have to do such as good works, alms, sacraments, ceremonies or rituals.
Some people say that different religions are like different roads leading up a mountain. To talk about the one god we have to go to the beginning to the universe itself not just earth. The purpose of this site is to get to the truth of the matter. Jonathan morrow helping a new generation build a lasting faith. Again, all of these religions are mutually exclusive so it becomes impossible for all religions to lead to the same god. The second reason all religions do not lead to god, he argues, is that humankind is too wicked and selfcentered to want to truly seek god. But dont all religions lead to god navigating the multifaith. He is the reason why we exist in the first place and he is lord over all human life regardless of whether we claim to be religious or not. Buy a cheap copy of but dont all religions lead to god. I continued to mull over his seeker book and purchased dont all religions lead to god, just to see.