| I’ve had presumably well-meaning folk look me in the eye and warn me about Chrislam. Have you? If you let people know you like Muslims, it might happen. The idea is that some powerful Christians, like the Pope and Rick Warren, are conspiring to start a new religion that combines Christianity and Islam.
The name is catchy but has already been taken by a small Nigerian sect in Lagos who seemed to have actually combined the two. My friends at Peace Catalyst International admit, “we are often accused of compromising our faith. Some people even claim we are teaching “Chrislam,” a syncretistic blending of Christianity and Islam.” (The FAQ I’m quoting from is brilliant. I encourage you to read the entire piece.) Truth and Love “Jesus also hung out with the ‘wrong’ crowd. He loved the marginalized and was even called the friend of sinners (Matthew 11:19). Moreover, he commanded us to love our neighbors and our enemies (Matthew 22:9; Matthew 5:44). Thus Jesus also taught and modeled inclusive love aims.” They conclude, “One reason we are accused of teaching Chrislam is that people see us living out Jesus’ inclusive love aims and assume we have denied his exclusive truth claims. But the fact is that true followers of Jesus must both declare truth and model love. To deny either truth or love is to deny Jesus.” As you might guess, if I’m out of balance it’s going to be leaning toward the “inclusive love claims.” How about you? For the record, if the Pope and Rick Warren are trying to start “Chrislam” (which I don’t think they are), they’re doing a lousy job of it! |