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{"id":8103,"date":"2010-09-29T13:55:07","date_gmt":"2010-09-29T17:55:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.christandpopculture.com\/?p=8103"},"modified":"2010-09-29T13:55:07","modified_gmt":"2010-09-29T17:55:07","slug":"apparently-evangelicals-dont-know-nothin-about-religion","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/christandpopculture\/2010\/09\/apparently-evangelicals-dont-know-nothin-about-religion\/","title":{"rendered":"Apparently Evangelicals Don't Know Nothin' about Religion"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

You have probably heard the news<\/a>, you may have even taken the test<\/a>, but apparently atheists and agnostics know more about the major world religions that evangelicals do.<\/p>\n

You may be surprised by this\u2013I wasn\u2019t. \u00a0I am not sure how accurate these pew forums are, but in the end, I think its probably true that most Evangelicals don\u2019t know all that much about world religions. \u00a0Some may argue that if Christianity is true, we don\u2019t need to know about other religions. \u00a0While I would agree with the first half of that proposition, I would say that such a sentiment is unfortunate at best and unbiblical at worst. \u00a01 Peter 3:15-16 says, \u201cin your hearts regard Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; 16 yet do it with gentleness and respect.\u201d \u00a0This would indicate to me that we ought to be able to converse with people of other religions and be ready to answer them with the hope of the gospel of Jesus Christ.<\/p>\n

This calls for empathy, understanding, and some basic knowledge of what people believe\u2013if we are really going to give an answer for the hope that is in us.<\/p>\n

So how might we better educate ourselves about world religion? \u00a0I have three suggestions:<\/p>\n

1. \u00a0Make friends with someone of another religion. \u00a0Don\u2019t treat them like a project, but really get to know them, ask them questions about their religion and let them answer those questions. \u00a0Ask them more than just about their religion\u2013ask them about their families, their lives, and their interests. \u00a0As important as it is to get to the gospel, you must express genuine love for them as Christ calls us to.<\/p>\n

2. \u00a0Read. \u00a0There are articles written by Muslims and Buddhists in our American newspapers and periodicals every day\u2013instead of simply reading a book written by a Christian critiquing world religions\u2013read about them from those who profess to believe that way themselves. \u00a0There is certainly value in reading books which criticize world religions, but to understand a particular religion fully, it is worth reading them directly. \u00a0If we really believe the gospel of Jesus Christ, we shouldn\u2019t be afraid to do so and doing so will enable us to have more informed, more intelligent, more fruitful conversations with unbelievers.<\/p>\n

3. \u00a0Read the Bible. \u00a0Some of you are thinking, \u201cwhy didn\u2019t you put this one as number one?\u201d \u00a0I put this last because I didn\u2019t want you to miss out on the importance of 1 and 2! \u00a0The saddest part of that ABC video<\/a> was professing believers who didn\u2019t know some pretty basic and important facts about their own professed religion. \u00a0If we are going to have worthwhile conversations with people of differing faiths, we need to know what we believe and why\u2013and where better to go than the original sources! \u00a0Of course every Christian knows we are supposed to read the Bible, but I want to encourage you to read the Bible not so much for ammo to defeat the enemy, but for encouragement to speak the truth in love and to live out the gospel. \u00a0Always read the Bible as if it were addressed to you (obviously it was originally addressed to specific readers\u2013I am not saying not to be mindful of that) rather than someone else who needs to submit to what it says. \u00a0The Bible is always far more powerful when we let it minister to our hearts than when we try to apply it to other\u2019s lives without their permission.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"