"Holier Than Thou" or Misunderstood?

I found myself watching CBN, (Christian Broadcasting Network) because... Well, I just was. And at first, I wrinkled my nose at it, but the remote was too far away, so I watched it.

Surprisingly, I was impressed, specifically by the author of "UnChristian."

I've always tried to differentiate between the true Christian and the "true Christian," or rather, those who follow Christ's teachings, and those who claim to follow Christ's teachings. But this guy, this author, says he interviewed my generation and found that most of them-- Christian and non-Christian alike-- had six major negative ideas of Christianity.

Those six ideas are ideas I have said, and heard said, about Christians, everywhere, including this site. And that is that Christians are proselytizers, hypocritical, judgmental, too political, anti-homosexual, and pretentious. They claimed that Christianity is no longer as Jesus intended.

They talked about how Christianity has become "famous for what we're against rather than what we're for." And more interestingly, they took all of the blame, saying that "We've brought this upon ourselves" for putting out the wrong messages.

So it got me thinking, about these people on the TV. At first, I had that view of them when they first came on. They spoke about how my generation was less likely to go to church, despite a growing interest in spirituality in general. They urged a need to reconnect with my generation, and bring them back into Christianity (which came off to me as the proselytizing thing).

At the same time, I understand why Christians want others to share their faith. First of all, I like to explain my views to others, in hopes they'll agree, or at least understand what I stand for. Second of all, Christians get a lot out of their religion, and it's a safe, generally positive place for them and they want to share that with others. Thirdly, there's that whole heaven and hell thing. So I understand that.

What Christians don't always understand is why someone would deny the light of Jesus Christ like they have experienced. What they don't understand is that everyone experiences religion, God, Jesus, Allah in a different way. Maybe they have found God, but a different God than you have found. Inevitably, what they need to realize is that religion is a personal journey. After all, Jesus reveals himself to everyone in time, right? Though I'm not Christian, I think a form of this is true. I believe that good people will find something in life that inspires them. Whether it's Jesus, Allah, Music, or Biology, it doesn't matter.

Secularists and Non-Christians need to understand that Christians don't mean any harm when they share their religion. They don't mean to imply that their beliefs are somehow better than secularist beliefs. What they mean is that Christianity felt right for them, and maybe, if others learned what it was really about, maybe it's right for others. Maybe not.

I recognize that when I meet Christians, I become reserved. But I know that if they're really good people, regardless of how religious they are, they will love me regardless of whether we disagree or not.