Monday, May 03, 2021

I read this survey in Brian McLaren's book and thought it was so interesting. He asks to rate yourself using this 0-5 scale: 

0 = absolutely untrue

1 = strongly disagree

2 = disagree

3 = somewhat agree

4 = agree

5 = strongly agree  


 __ 1. Validity: My Christian faith is highly significant to me because it adds true meaning and value to my life. 

__ 2. Intentionality: For me, Christian faith is not merely an unchosen inheritance, a social custom, a matter of convenience, or the path of least resistance; it is an intentional commitment that I uphold and practice by conscious choice. 

__ 3. Durability: I plan to remain at least as committed to my Christian faith as I am now, over the course of my lifetime, through both hard times and easy times, and I hope to pass vital Christian faith on to my children and grandchildren. 

__ 4. Intensity: My Christian faith is so central to my life that it requires of me sacrifices and commitments that are sometimes costly and even painful. 

__ 5. Purity/Consistency: I conform to the beliefs, behaviors, habits, examples, prohibitions, ideas and values that are consistent with my Christian faith, and I resist or reject their opposites as inconsistent with my Christian faith. 

__ 6. History: I consider myself to be part of the history and traditions of my faith community; Christian history is in some real sense my history. 

__ 7. ResponsibilityI feel responsible for the health and wellbeing of the Christian community, now and in the future. 

__ 8. Missionality: I invest my time, energy, money, and abilities to participate in the Christian mission as I understand it. 

__ 9. Loyalty: I feel a special sense of loyalty to my fellow Christians because we are connected to one another through our shared faith and mission. 

__ 10. Hostility: I see other faiths as wrong, false, or evil, and I maintain a posture of opposition to all faiths but the Christian faith.

His emphasis is on question 10. He poses the question, "Is number 10 essential to the list? Must you as a Christian maintain hostility to other faiths if you are going to hold a strong Christian identity?"

He then goes on to suggest an alternative number 10 and replaces the word Hostility with Solidarity describing it as follows -- 

"My understanding of Jesus and His message leads me to see each faith tradition, including my own, as having its own history, value, strengths and weaknesses. I seek to affirm and celebrate all that is good in each faith tradition, and I build intentional relationships of mutual sharing and respectful collaboration with people of all faith traditions, so all our faiths can keep growing and contributing to God's will being done on earth as in heaven."  

If hostility could be replaced by solidarity, would any of the previous nine items need to be changed? 

This comes from his book, "Why Did Jesus, Moses, the Buddha, and Mohammed Cross the Road." I find it to be a very challenging book and very relevant.  


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