withallyourmind.net

I can see why one might want to hold such a position. After all, there seem to be many good, moral people in many religions in the world. To think that a Christian, for example, possesses the only true way of salvation, seems intolerant and unacceptable to modern minds. However there is a real problem with holding a view that all major religions are equally valid or that they are equally true. Reason and common sense demand that we reject such a statement.

It is an accepted law of thinking that two contradictory propositions cannot both be true. If two religions make contradictory claims about reality, there are three possibilities. First, they could both be wrong in their claims about reality. Second, religion A could be right while religion B is wrong. Third, religion B’s beliefs could match up with reality while religion A’s could be in error.

One assessment of these religious claims that is not possible is that both are equally valid and true. This contradicts one of the basic laws of thinking called the law of non-contradiction. For example, if I claim that I have a Mazda MX5 in my garage and you claim that there is no Mazda MX5 in my garage, we cannot both be right. In order to evaluate and determine which claim accurately reflects reality we would have to compare the two claims with reality by opening the garage door and seeing what is the case concerning an MX5 in my garage.

Religions make such contradictory claims. Christianity states that the problem with man is his sinful nature and the only cure for the problem, the only way to receive salvation, is to accept the free gift of salvation from God made possible by the death of God’s Son on the cross. No other way will lead to salvation. A Buddhist might say that this is not true at all. The real problem is that we are unaware that all is an illusion and to achieve “salvation” (nirvana) we need to realize this and escape the cycle of death and rebirth. They deny that one must accept the Christian doctrine of salvation in order to achieve nirvana. Many more examples could be produced, but the point is that all religions cannot be right because they make contradictory claims.

Now, some may feel that we are unable to determine whether or not one religion more accurately understands reality than the other, but that is a different claim than the claim that all religions are equally true or valid. If we could not have access to my garage, the question of whether an MX5 is in the garage may be difficult to answer. However, the reality is that either there is an MX5 in the garage or there is not. My inability to confirm this does not make both beliefs true or equally valid.

So, should we throw up our hands and give up on all religious claims? Some choose to do this, but I do not think this is the right response. After all, religious claims deal with extremely important issues. There is nothing any different in religious claims about reality and other claims about reality (such as the MX5 in the garage). Either they accurately reflect reality or they do not. If certain claims are true and we choose to ignore them, we do so to our own potential harm. It is possible to investigate the claims which different religions make and see how they match up with reality, much like opening the garage door to see if there is an MX5 in the garage. I have a number of good reasons I believe that the truth claims of Christianity are superior to those of other religions. That is why I am a Christian.