Pope Francis and Non-Christian Religions
This weekend Pope Francis, the persistently provocative Roman Pontiff, made comments sure to cause facepalming among his advisors and frustration among his faithful. In remarks in Singapore Francis said,
Religions are like different languages in order to arrive at God, but God is God for all. Since God is God for all, then we are all Children of God . . . If you start to fight, “My religion is more important than yours, mine is true and yours isn’t,” where will that lead us? There’s only one God, and each of us has a language to arrive at God. Some are Sheik, Muslim, Hindu, Christian, and they are different paths [to God].[1]
Francis has a long record of statements that elicit cringes from those around him. Sometimes they will say it is an error of translation, other times they will say the Pope was unclear, and other times they will say the Pope needs to be heard in fuller context. Whatever his other gifts, Francis often makes those around him scramble.
A Disclaimer
His comments on religions here are problematic. Before delving into them in detail, I want to give a disclaimer. There are some Protestants who view Catholicism as non-Christian, and there are some Catholics who believe the same about Protestants. I disagree with both of these sentiments.
As a Baptist, my many disagreements with the Roman Catholic Church are significant. The meaning of Baptism and the Eucharist, the nature of the Church, the nature of the priesthood, the role of tradition, relative authority of tradition and the Scriptures, the role of works and grace, the nature of sainthood, the role of Mary, are among them. These are important distinctions.While the differences are deep, I can still recognize Catholics as faithful believers.
I also note that my differences with the Roman Catholic Church are mostly over secondary issues. I can fully support the Apostles’ Creed, the Nicene Creed, and the Athanasian Creed. I read Anselm, Athanasius, Ambrose of Milan, Augustine, and many other great theologians of the Church and claim them as my own heritage. I particularly find them compelling on doctrines like the Trinity and the nature of God. So, I do not approach Francis’ words as one who has contempt for his tradition. I have respect, even in disagreement with it. The Pope’s words here, however, are noxious to his tradition. They undermine it.
Say What?
His words here are clear, and just gobsmacking. To read him with the greatest charity, one might say that yes, many religions are attempts to reach out to God. Even with that said, not all of them are even that. Scientology is a religion of sorts. Is it possible that it is a genuine attempt to have a pathway to God? I would rather say no. From aliens landing on Earth and planting DNA to odd exercises and manipulation, it looks nothing like a genuine attempt to find a pathway to God. Ancient emperor worship was not a way of reaching out to God at all. It was a way to protect the nation and its leader.
Christian Post Coverage of Francis’ Remarks
First Things Coverage of the Pope’s Remarks
Even if most religions are attempts at pathways to God, just how far should one be willing to grant their equality? Should one treat Christian Science with the same dignity as orthodox Lutheranism just because they are both religions? The answer is obviously no. Not all religions are pathways to God, and more than a few of them are not even attempts find pathways to God.
A Road to Nowhere
Even if he were right that all religions are attempts at pathways to God, not all of these paths lead to God. Many of them are so twisted as to lead away from God. The ancient Israelites were bedeviled with the religions of the Ancient Near East. The names of these foreign deities litter the Old Testament like candy wrappers after a 1st-grade birthday party. Baal, Asherah, Astarte, Dagon, and others regularly appear in the text. YHWH does not treat any of them as alternative ways to Him. YHWY does not accept them as equals. YHWH treats them as false pretenders whose worship defiled the nation. He tolerated no compromise with these deities and punished Israel for adopting their worship and practices.
Following Baal could lead to human sacrifice, and following Ashtoreth could lead to ritual prostitution—God’s wrath against these and other pagan practices from the backdrop of the Old Testament Prophets. What the Scriptures never do is treat other religions as valid means of pursuing God. They were false paths, even if they were ostensibly ways of reaching out to God.
Dialogue
What Francis is trying to do is foster inter-religious dialogue. Inter-religious dialogue is good and helpful. It sharpens thinking and alerts theologians of their misunderstandings of other religions. It also points theologians to areas in their own traditions that they have not thought through thoroughly, weaknesses in their theological development.
Sometimes one finds great insight in other religions because of inter-religious dialogue. Notre Dame philosopher David Bentley Hart writes about the common understanding of God shared among the great theistic traditions. His language about God emerging from his study is illuminating. What that language cannot do, however, is replace the Christian tradition about God.
When Christians Say “God”
Christianity views God as one who is beyond understanding. God lives in an inapproachable light, the Scriptures teach. As St. Augustine says, if you can understand it is not God. God is beyond human understanding; the finite mind cannot comprehend the infinite God. In a sense then, even if Francis is right he only points to the defective nature of all religions.
If religion is a human interpretation of God, a pathway to God, then it is impossible by its very nature. Left to human devices, humans cannot help but form a “god” out of our own image and likeness. These “gods” are projections of human wants and fears. They must be appeased, and they can be controlled. They are nothing like God.
Seeds of the Word
While it is true that human limitations prevent religions from being able to fully explain the divine, there is a very limited sense in which humans can come to some understanding of God. God gave humanity the gift of reason, and reason can teach important lessons about God. Because human reason is imperfect it cannot get to God fully, but it can have some insight. Christian theologians often call truths gained from this process the “seeds of the Word.” When Christians see something in thought outside our tradition, we can say that even there, God is reaching out trying to save. The earliest Christians, particularly Justin Martyr, saw in Plato and the Greeks “seeds of the Word,” for example. What they would not have done, however, is think of Greek philosophy or religion as an equivalent way to God. To know God, was to know God as God reveals himself.
In Christianity, God reveals himself to humans in the Law and the Prophets, in the Scriptures. Most fully and completely, God reveals himself in Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is the Revelation of God, the Word of God. As one great theologian would put it, Jesus is the Revealer, the Revealed, and the Revelation. Jesus is the God who reveals, Jesus is the one God reveals, and Jesus is the content of God’s revelation. Fully God and fully man, Jesus comes into the world and reveals God. The anonymous writer of the Hebrews states, “The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his [God’s] being, sustaining all things by his powerful word.” If that were not enough, Jesus says that no one comes to God but through Him.
Missing Truth
Francis’ language, whatever his intent, is problematic. It is important for believers to say that Jesus Christ is the truth and religions that do not recognize Jesus as Lord are missing the truth. Christianity is not one of several valid approaches to God. Christianity is the truth because it bears witness to Jesus Christ who is the Truth, God in the flesh.
Also By Layne Wallace:
[1] “The Pope and Other Religions | Charles J. Chaput, O.F.M. Cap.”
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