| Why Theism? |
| Before I enter into deep discussion, let’s look at a quick analogy. A man named Bob has heard of a city called Polis. In this town there are 5 streets that supposedly lead to Polis, only one of which does. However, in fear of making a bad decision, Bob decides to just stay at home. What are Bob’s chances of arriving at Polis? (Zero, of course, as opposed to 1/5 if he randomly chose a path.) Which is the better choice? To depart for Polis, or stay at home? Now that I’ve shared that, I’m sure many of you know how it ties in. However, this analogy is incomplete. There should also be a firestorm coming toward Bob, and he will only be safe in Polis. The importance of this decision cannot be expressed, it is one which must be considered and thought about before any decision is made. I have chosen Protestant Christianity as my path, primarily because I find it to be the least contradictory (and most likely) religion available. By my logic, there are only 3 valid religions: 1. Judaism, 2. Christianity, and 3. Islam. I chose these 3 because they are the only 3 to claim divine truth. All others claim human-based truth, or don’t claim exclusive truth at all. The problem with Judaism is that it denies the divinity of Christ (along with his Messiahship). While this could be true, we can’t deny that Judaism awaits a nearly unidentifiable Messiah. Also, we must remember that all the prophecies of the Messiah (that were obvious) were met in Christ (those open to a large degree of interpretation are still so). He is a descendent of David and born in Bethlehem, and all other prophecies were fulfilled. Now concerning the identifiability of the Messiah the Jews are awaiting: One of the major clues to the Messiah was his lineage, which can no longer be traced! During the time of Christ, the lineage of all Jews was contained in the temple, which was destroyed shortly after Christ’s death. Thus, the next (supposed) Messiah’s lineage CANNOT be confirmed. The problem with Islam is the same as that of Judaism, a denial of Christ’s divinity (though not of his Messiahship). Islam calls Christ a prophet, but explicitly denies Christ’s divine nature. While they claim to accept his teaching (and even his resurrection) they DENY his statement that "Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father" (John 14:9). Thus, we see an inherent contradiction in Islam. Therefore, we are left with Christianity. One note, I find it odd that so many religions lay claim to Christ. Many prominent followers of Wiccan claim that Jesus was a witch. Followers of New Age and other pantheistic religions that he was a man who realized his God-nature which is in all of us. He is also considered a Prophet of Islam and the Messiah of Christianity. Why is it that Christianity is the only religion that considers Christ as more than a successful follower of the religion (such as Wiccan or pantheism) or a mere one of many religious leaders (as in Islam)? |
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