Even among fundamentalists, there will be too much division. They can unite when facing a common enemy, but when left in a room by themselves they will never agree. It's in their nature to be divisive.
People often ask me if I lost a lot of my believing friends when I became an atheist. In actuality, the exodus of friends happened WAY before I got to atheism. I went through years of developing a more loving view of God... that was what got me the heave-ho. Just removing Hell from your theology will make you persona non grata in many Christian circles.
For example, one of my friends approached me after church one day. He heard that I had this crazy idea that Jesus saved everyone and wanted to hear it from me. I was very excited about where my theology was heading and was happy to share. A few sentences into my explanation I saw his eyes going wide and a scowl forming on his face. He threw up his hands as if defending himself, took a few quick steps back, turned and walked away. He never talked to me again. I lost count of how many times that kind of scenario played out during those years.
I wrote an article titled "Christian... but tainted" on my blog while I was still very Christian and attending church. In it, I tell the story of a woman in my church who wanted me removed from teaching Sunday school because I held views she did not agree with. I may be wrong, but I just don't think these folks will ever be able to agree on HOW the Bible would be taught in schools.
Although I am a believer, I shuddered a bit when I heard about Oklahoma's new law. I'm a firm believer in separation of Church and State and I think this crosses the line. More importantly, I am a big believer of the "Slippery Slope" and this can open a lot of cans of worms of what religions can be taught in school.
ReplyDeleteI hope you are right this will amount to nothing but in the long run, I'll assume it will end up at the Supreme Count which I will be interested in their ruling.