Messenger and Message: Salvation for Doubters

…and all flesh shall see the salvation of God. – Luke 3: 6 (NRSV)

Quite a few of my friends are non-believers in any kind of god or supernatural power whatsoever. These are very important persons in my life with whom I have many things in common including fundamental political, ethical, and moral views. When I decided to attend seminary a number of years ago, one of those closest to me said in exasperation, “Are you crazy? Think of all the important causes that need your time and effort!”

The two basic provocative questions raised by my non-religious (often anti-religious) friends are: 1) How can you and others like you, who are modern people with scientific understanding, believe in what is totally non-rational and even primitive?; and 2) Isn’t it true that religion in itself has been a destructive force in the world more often than not?

To tell the truth, I don’t like these questions because they hit home. The fact is, I continually ask them of myself. In many ways the issues raised are unanswerable, at least for me. But I ask them anyway because I must. I am among the theological questioners who are drawn to Spong, Borg, Crossen, etc. because they have given me freedom to pursue honest acceptance and confrontation of the doubts I cannot escape. And seminary was important in laying the theological foundation to enable me to do so productively.

With all my struggle, in the end I am a believer (my definition) because of my trust in the salvation promised in the final verse of the Isaiah prophecy that Luke attaches to the mission of John the Baptist. In this passage, the Christian tradition powerfully affirms the most universal of promises, the salvation of all flesh, a promise basic to its Jewish roots and guaranteed anew in the gospel. To have any hope in the future of the world, this message is not only passionately desired but absolutely necessary. This we need in order to face painful reality, and to give us the will to invest in the fulfillment of the prophecy.

This affirmation won’t satisfy my sincerely provocative and highly principled friends but that is not my concern.  I am confident that they will find their own paths in facing the challenging questions of life and purpose. I fear for their well-being only when they decide that there are no answers for a suffering world and no hope, and that, therefore, there is nothing worth doing about it. That, in fact, continues to be the fear for myself—succumbing to futility will always be the monster in my closet.

I have found, however, that the Christian religious tradition that I inherited is my ground for hope. And while I know that other religious traditions provide authentic promise for other people, I experience hope through my own roots, and so believe in actively seeking the time when “all flesh shall see the salvation of God.” Even doubters like me.