On
Religious Liberty
Clifford Goldstein Comments:
Niebuher, "frequently
means an irresponsible attitude toward the ultimate problem of
truth."
There is, however, one
way around intolerance as an analytic predicate of religious
faith -- and that is if (and only if) inherent in that faith is
the fundamental acceptance of those who hold contrary religious
beliefs.
Though Christian history
mocks the notion, the Christian faith does have that teaching
built into its very fabric. Jesus said that "Thou shalt love
they neighbor as theyself" (Mark 12:31) was the second of the
two greatest commandments. With the exception of the first
(loving God with all your heart), one can't get more basic than
second. Thus, loving even those whose views oppose your is about
as fundamental as fundamental Christianity can get. Indeed,
Christ's command didn't say, "Love your neighbor as yourself,
just as long as your neighbor doesn't hold teachings that
contradict yours." On the contrary, Christ's cryptic statement,
without any qualifications, means, "You shall love your neighbor
as yourself, even if that neighbor hold beliefs that can't be
true without your beliefs -- including the one to love yourself
- being false."
Jesus never said to love
your neighbor's beliefs, only your neighbor -- a big difference,
one that would have changed the course of Christian history had
those who thought they were following the first great
commandment by violating the second understood that only by
keeping the second were they keeping the first.
Until that truth, that of
loving even those whose fundamental views conflict with your
own, becomes a practical reality in the lives of the faithful,
religious intolerance will follow religious beliefs.
Anything else would be, well, illogical.
Comment by: Clifford
Goldstien
Appeared in Liberty
Magazine in April 1999, p. 31
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