3,000 Miles Wide and 3 Inches Deep

Some more information from the Pew Survey on religion indicates that religious teachings of the Bible have become "living" documents, sort of the same way liberal see the U.S. Constitution:

America remains a nation of believers, but a new survey finds most Americans don't feel their religion is the only way to eternal life — even if their faith tradition teaches otherwise.

The findings, revealed Monday in a survey of 35,000 adults, can either be taken as a positive sign of growing religious tolerance, or disturbing evidence that Americans dismiss or don't know fundamental teachings of their own faiths.

Among the more startling numbers in the survey, conducted last year by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life: 57 percent of evangelical church attenders said they believe many religions can lead to eternal life, in conflict with traditional evangelical teaching.

In all, 70 percent of Americans with a religious affiliation shared that view, and 68 percent said there is more than one true way to interpret the teachings of their own religion.

"The survey shows religion in America is, indeed, 3,000 miles wide and only three inches deep," said D. Michael Lindsay, a Rice University sociologist of religion.

Although he wasn't surveyed by Pew, someone else had an opinion on the subject of how to find eternal life:

Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

John 14:6 (KJV)

Even in The Message, the most watered down paraphrase Bible out there the text still seems pretty clear:

Jesus said, "I am the Road, also the Truth, also the Life. No one gets to the Father apart from me.

John 14:6 (The Message)

I think you can probably chalk up the confusion demonstrated in the Pew poll to the wishy-washy feel-good preaching that has taken over many of our evangelical churches. Everyone is trying so hard to be "relevant" and "topical" that their teaching has become pretty useless. Various seminar-tested church models build churches with lots of people, but don't build people with lots of actual spiritual knowledge.

Jesus' words seem pretty straightforward and clear, and yet so many evangelicals don't get it. Amazing.