{"id":2840,"date":"2023-12-12T23:31:16","date_gmt":"2023-12-13T05:31:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/scatteringsunshine\/?p=2840"},"modified":"2023-12-12T23:53:13","modified_gmt":"2023-12-13T05:53:13","slug":"how-ive-come-to-appreciate-other-religions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/scatteringsunshine\/2023\/12\/how-ive-come-to-appreciate-other-religions\/","title":{"rendered":"How I\u2019ve Come To Appreciate Other Religions"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>
Until I was twelve, we lived in the Bible Belt<\/a>, in southern Illinois along the border of Kentucky. There were so many different religions that all felt like they were the only ones who were right. But kids don\u2019t see barriers like that. We loved playing with some friends down the block. Their Dad was a Pastor and their church was literally in their backyard. It was well-manicured, and a beautiful place to play. <\/span><\/p>\n
One day, when I was 8, this Pastor learned I was about to be baptized. He and his wife sat my brothers and me down and told us that if we weren\u2019t part of their religion we were going to Hell. And that if I got baptized I was sealing my fate. It was a rude awakening and a cold baptism into the \u201cwhich religion is right\u201d argument.<\/span><\/p>\n
Stained glass windows in the church sanctuary<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
I already had a testimony of the truthfulness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. So there was no talking me out of being baptized. But this Pastor\u2019s bold statements shocked me. And it wasn\u2019t the last time I heard bitter and angry words declaring someone was going to Hell. <\/span><\/p>\n
My Dad and other men in the community would often gather with their Bibles and \u201cBible Bash\u201d- trying to prove each other wrong with scripture. It was hardly a Christlike environment. I remember my Dad always coming home frustrated and angry.<\/span><\/p>\n
So many religions seem to spend more time fighting about their differences than they do appreciating that we all worship the same God. It has always bothered me.<\/span><\/p>\n