Tuesday, November 12, 2013

Pluralism or Polytheism?

The exclusive claims of Christ—“I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6)—are being rejected by an alarming number of millennial evangelicals who favor pluralism—the belief that diverse religious belief systems can co-exist in society. But such multiplicity is only a short step to polytheism—the belief that ‘god’ is many rather than one.

Is it so far-fetched to suggest that the modern movement of young evangelicals toward pluralism mirrors that of the Hebrews' recurrent relapses into polytheism? God hated their idolatry: “For I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God who will not tolerate your affection for any other gods” (Ex. 20:5 NLT). The first 2 of the 10 Commandments (which are no longer tolerated in the public square) require absolute devotion to and worship of God alone.

Fifty years ago, no one would have imagined that a nation rooted in a Judeo Christian worldview could become polytheistic! We pride ourselves on having becomes a society of diverse beliefs.  But anyone who believes one god is as good as another is not a pluralist; he or she is a polytheist.

2 comments:

  1. What do you think of the idea that although there are many names for God, there is only one God?

    ReplyDelete
  2. God's many names in the Bible (I assume that' what you refer to) are necessary to describe the fullness of His Person. He is Yahweh (Jehovah) first and then the compound names describe Who He is. "For You are great, and do wondrous things; You alone are God" (Ps. 86:10)

    ReplyDelete