Ebert on Evangelization
Well, the conversion of others in general:
Your religion is a matter between you and the god of your definition. The eagerness to convert outsiders strikes me as one of the aspects of a cult. I believe the low emphasis placed on conversion by Jews is admirable. If you want to become a Jew, you go to them. I believe religions should convert by attraction, not promotion. Respect for other beliefs, or the lack of beliefs, should be at the heart of religions.
This sounds nice, but it fails to account for the belief many religious people have that the tenets of their religion are universally true and meant for everybody. Religion is not merely a matter between an individual and the god of his or her definition: many religions don’t even work that way. Religions can also be also about community, shared ritual, and the ultimate destiny of humanity. If you believe your religion speaks to matters of eternal life and death, you’d seem pretty duty-bound to share your religion with outsiders.
Rather than avoid promotion, I say share your religious beliefs in a spirit of hospitality and with an ear open to the possibility that what you share may not be what you believe it to be, namely true. Devotion to the truth should have nothing to fear from criticism, evidence, and argument. I want to hear what the believers of other faiths and religions have to say. I desire the company and counsel of agnostics and atheists. And I want to share what I believe to be true. Let’s dialogue.
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Yes.
Nothing shutters truth like making sure no one is allowed to talk about the things they find important.
I would agree. Some secularists seem to think faith communities should be less engaged in evangelization than the ACLU is in membership development (I says as someone who frequently receives their direct mail appeals and phone calls).
Hospitality and possibility… so well put. Thanks Kyle.
I think that Ebert should keep his opinions about movies to himself. After all, he’s just applying his standards to something without any respect for other people’s standards. In a perfect society, people wouldn’t go around telling other people what to think about movies. Why does Ebert write reviews, anyway? Probably because he thinks his standards are applicable to others’ experiences, and that he can guide people to better enjoyment of the moviegoing experience.
Kyle (and the other commentors as well):
The dialog you’re missing is not with “secularists” or “believers in other faiths.” It is with Alcoholics Anonymous, of which Ebert is a well-known member. AA and the many 12-step fellowships which evolved from it are anything but secularist. If you were to read the 12 steps and 12 traditions from any of these, you’d immediately recognize the Ebert quote as the 11th tradition, which has served the 12-step fellowships very well.
I find this discussion a poignant example of diametrically wrong judgements projected onto an unfamiliar spiritual/religious tradition or practice. Think about this when you hear “Those Catholics believe the craziest things…”
Ebert’s larger message is that our democracy, if not our very freedom, are undermined when politicians bring prayer, or evangelization, into the political arena, and especially into the election process. Amen to that.