I was having coffee with a friend of mine recently and I asked him why so many people fall away from Christianity as they make the transition from high school into college. He looked at me and said, “It’s all crap. They played the game for 12 years.” My friend is a person who affirms the Christian faith and probably always will. So, what is the game he is talking about?
In the Christian community, you always hear people try to explain why people turn their back to the faith. The answer usually is, “Oh, they must have never got it.” Got what? Isn’t that a cop out answer? You could apply that to anyone and everyone.
I think people who walk away from religion get a message, they just get the wrong one or a message that emphasizes some things over others that creates an unclear image of what the message really is supposed to be about. I see people try feverishly to attack the scientific world or other religions and then as soon as they walk through the doors of their church they stop thinking critically. Are people followers of Christ or of their pastor? Your pastor will be wrong on something, it is inevitable. It is important to call into question everything that you hear and decide for yourself.
As a Christian, how do you know a religion like Islam is wrong? Is it because you have studied it intensely and have spoken to Muslims to try and identify what they truly believe, or have you read one book on the subject, written by a Christian author that you bought at a Christian bookstore, which was suggested to you by your Christian pastor, who is endorsed by your Christian church?
Everyone has biases. Just because you have biases does not mean what you think is wrong. The Christian message is not about how fun we can make church, or how great the worship band was last week. The Christian message is not about God blessing you financially or God being a giant teddy bear and just loving everyone so much that he could never send people to Hell. The Christian message is that there is no life outside of Christ. It is saying that this message that is considered a “fairy tale” by some, is already better than living in a false reality.
