The Christian's Attitude Toward World Religions

by Ajith Fernando

Book Overview

No Synopsis Available.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0842302921
• ISBN13: 9780842302920
• Release Date: January 1987
• Publisher: Tyndale House Pub
• Length: 192 Pages
• Weight: 0.50 lbs.

Customer Reviews

Well presented, but...well researched....?

This book was written by a Shingalese Christian leader of Youth for Christ, who spent his life ministering to people of other faiths. The book is an apology for Christian exclusivism. Using the text of Paul's speech at the Aeropagus (Acts 17:1-34), Fernando argues that Christians ought to refrain from mere proselytizing, but rather try to persuade others in a gentle, yet firm manner. He is interested in finding points of contact with other religions, as if they were an airstrip on which to land the Christian gospel. Christians should not help Buddhists to be better Buddhists: all people need to turn to Christ. He also warns against an excessive contextualization. When interacting with and studying about other faiths, always remember to do the following: 1)Cultivate the Scriptures: the Christian who studies other religions must first of all be a student of the Bible. To live within the confines of Scriptures is a free choice, not a prison; a whole lifetime is not enough to dig out all the nectar and spiritual food they contain. 2)Continue to fellowship with other Christians: go to Church 3)Continue to witness According to Fernando: a)all non-Christians are lost and doomed to hell. Christians have lost the meditative and contemplative aspect of life (which explains why they get so little respect from Asian religionists) b)there are different degrees of punishment in hell as we learn in Mt 11:20-24; Lk 12: 47,48; Rom 2:11, 12; Heb 10:26-29. This idea fits in nicely with my view of different rewards and degrees of joy in heaven. c)The two texts in 1 Pt 3:19, 20 and 4:6 do NOT deal with the issue of an opportunity for salvation after death. In 1 Pt 3, we find mention of pneuma (spirits), without any mention whose they are. In the NT (Mt 12:45; Lk 10:20; and Heb 1:14) the word "pneuma" denotes good and bad supernatural beings. Are they the disobedient angels of Gen 6:1-4? Besides, the verb used is "kerusso", which means "to announce" (maybe his victory and their doom that has come through his death and resurrection) and not "euanghello", "to preach the gospel." Also, was that announcing done to the "spirits" before or after they died?