I grew up west Texas, surrounded by fields of cotton and oil.  In my little hometown, I can’t remember encountering anyone who would claim an alternative religion to Christianity.  Some were good, some were bad, some were barely, but just about everyone I knew claimed Christianity as their religion.

Now, things couldn’t be more different.  I spent six years in the Northwest, surrounded by every kind of faith imaginable and a few that are beyond imagination.  Things are not all that different in Tulsa.  Peel away the Christian veneer of this city and you’ll see a great deal of religious pluralism.

I want to keep this post short so I’ll cut to the chase.  How do we as Christians cope with the growing pluralism in our culture?  By pluralism I mean the diversity of cultures and religious beliefs that are now bumping up against one another.

Here’s my strategy for coping:

1.  I try to celebrate good faith that produces good fruit where ever I find it.
2.  I try to honor the truth wherever I find it.  (Another post is needed to explain how I’m defining truth in this sentence, but that’ll have to wait. I also believe that other religions can teach us something about Christianity if we’re willing to listen and learn.)
3.  I try to emphasize the common ground I share with people of other faiths while not ignoring the substantial differences.  Better to start with what you have in common than with where you disagree.
4.  I try to proclaim the Truth about Jesus with humility and courage.
5.  I try to leave matters of judgment up to God.

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