Hegemony of Imperatives

Mark Twain said that India is the ultimate travel destination. In my years of world travel, perhaps I spent more time in India than in any other foreign country. On one visit, sharing a train compartment with the Indian Minister of Travel and his son (the son was returning to a university in England), I was asked if I had traveled through India previously. I said, “yes, and nothing ever changes. Every time, I feel like I am in the Gandhi movie, the train, and everything on either side of the tracks.” The minister said, “you are right, it has not changed in 2000 years.”

The most revealing thing about India is religion, India is the most religious nation in the world. Everywhere, there are temples of some sort, monkey temples, Brahma temples, Jain temples. You walk up to some place and someone anoints your forehead. Their great, aged temples whose walls are covered with pornographic figures such as those at Khajuraho; at other temples, mothers throw their babies from the tops of the temples in a ritual. I was allowed to cross the bridge and enter the gold temple of the Sihks at Armistar, turbaned Sihks were preparing a great abundance of food for pilgrims. In other areas of the Himilayas, Asia, there are Buddhist monasteries, boys and men of all ages serving as monks. In Sri Lanka, out in the countryside, I was awakened early as a band came down the street escorting devotees, taking food to the monks at their monastery. At Kandy, Sri Lanka, followers of Buddha were lined up in a monastery just to view a tooth of Buddha.

I am sorry to report that the passion and integrity of Christians has disappeared in most parts of the world, particularly in Europe. In my many visits to the Vatican, those visiting for the first time were easily recognized, tears came easy to those went into St. Peter's for the first time.

There is a difference in spiritual awareness and spiritual/physical happenstance (following laws and rules) such as you find in an Islamic mosque. The mosque is much more concerned with your physical appearance...shoe-less, head and limbs covered. I had great difficultly learning the actual devout places of Muslims, but often without knowing it, I would go into a Muslim holy place and someone would come running with a towel for me to cover up my legs if I was wearing shorts, or if a woman companion was wearing a short sleeve blouse. At least, there are some religions that still do have controlled rituals.

I am sorry to report that most “Christian” churches are no longer easily recognized, just another auditorium. I may not be right, but I want my church to be right, I want my Christian church to show Christianity, with a cross, alter, sacred music. I may not be right but I want my pastor to be right, not a Joel Osteen, Rick Warren, Robert Schuller, one who has forsaken doctrinal foundations. The best example of this was shown recently, when Larry King interviewed Joel Osteen. Osteen, who never went to a Bible college or seminary, who has done nothing in his life, except take over when his preacher father died, who smiles and jokes his way through his “sermon-ettes”, mostly for “Christian-ettes”, seemingly does not know who will go to heaven or hell.

KING: Because we’ve had ministers who said, your record don’t count. You either believe in Christ or you don’t. If you believe in Christ, you are, you are going to heaven. And if you don’t, no matter what you’ve done in your life, you ain’t.

OSTEEN: Yeah, I don’t know. There’s probably a balance between. I believe you have to know Christ. But I think that if you know Christ, if you’re a believer in God, you’re going to have some good works. I think it’s a cop-out to say I’m a Christian but I don’t ever do anything

KING: What if you’re Jewish or Muslim, you don’t accept Christ at all?

OSTEEN: You know, I’m very careful about saying who would and wouldn’t go to heaven. I don’t know . . .

KING: If you believe you have to believe in Christ? They’re wrong, aren’t they?

OSTEEN: Well, I don’t know if I believe they’re wrong. I believe here’s what the Bible teaches and from the Christian faith this is what I believe. But I just think that only God will judge a person’s heart. I spent a lot of time in India with my father. I don’t know all about their religion. But I know they love God. And I don’t know. I’ve seen their sincerity. So I don’t know. I know for me, and what the Bible teaches, I want to have a relationship with Jesus.

Dr. Robert Schuller, pastor of the, now bankrupt, Crystal Cathedral, believes that anyone and everyone will go to heaven. Rick Warren, pastor of the “believe anything” Saddleback Church in California, believes it is a matter of thinking good things and doing good works, a part of the emergent church movement.

This past weekend, just a few miles from my home, a large tent meeting called the Wild Goose Festival, attracting thousands with such modernist, liberal religionists as Brian McLaren, Jay Bakker (gay son of Jimmy and Tammy), Shane Claibourne, and musicians such as David Wilcox and Michelle Shocked. The organizers say that they want to distance themselves from the “politicized versions of Christianity.”

One of my friends, Martha, active in this new-age, new-world church movement said to me, “Tom, God loves these people as much as He loves us.” I said to her, “Martha, Christ died for everyone. To the Cross He took all the sins of the world, all the sicknesses of the world, but it is our privilege to follow Him, not Him follow us. He has told us that if we love Him, we will keep His commandments. He preached Himself. 14 times in the book of John alone, we are told that we can know we are saved. He is the truth, the way, the life.” (John 14:6) Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not. (1 John 3:1)