Christianity: A Too Other Worldly Religion?

From time to time there has been those who say that Christianity is an other worldly religion, a religion that focuses on the life to come (or rather heavenly life, singing on the clouds playing harps! ). Such view of life thus fails to take adequate consideration of the life here on this earth, goes the argument. For example, two centuries back Rousseau levels such a charge against Christianity. Another contemporary philosopher Martha Nussbaum also says something to this effect. Reading Christianity this way may partly be blamed on Christian community itself given that there are also those within the community who have little or poor understanding of what authentic Christianity is. Yet, authentic Christianity is a religion far way from being such an other worldly religion that has nothing to do on this earth!

One of the most popular lines of the Bible is -- love your neighbour as yourself. The line itself acknowledges that one is to love oneself; and just as one loves oneself, one loves the neighbour. Loving oneself is not always easy specially when one has been as an ass or been unwanted. There are those who refuse to love oneself occasionally, and thus inflicts harm on one's own person. However, it is generally the case with everyone that most often we love ourselves. Because I love myself, I eat food that will be good for my health and not cause dysentery or cholera. Because I love myself, I groom myself well. Because I love myself, I value my properties as their being stolen would hurt me. These are various actions one performs because of one's love for oneself. But the biblical line also tells me to do similar things for my neighbour just as I do for myself. And this is hardly a too otherworldly outlook!

Christianity has two aspects to moral injunction as it is so with many other moral teachings. One aspect is to avoid doing bad deeds. This aspect underlines that one must avoid doing this action and that action because so and so actions are bad. To do such action is to be morally wrong. On the flip side, there is also this injunction to do good works. Do this or do that and the Lord will commend you. Failure to perform such good actions is also to be morally wrong. Looking at both of these aspects, one will realise that the injunction to perform certain actions or to avoid doing certain actions are both about social relationships. Whether it is good works or bad works, it is between human beings that our actions are played out. Given this nature of moral outlook, as Christianity presents itself, it is very much a this worldly religion.

But what Christianity teaches is that our actions have bearing not only in this earthly life, but beyond this three dimensional world that we know. Christianity teaches that a person is finally accountable to God and our decisions and actions now or the lack thereof determines the prospect of one's future life. This is like the story of a student who would pass or fail later depending on what she does now. If she works hard now, she will pass later; if she is laid back now, she would fail later. Thinking about the future must propel her to work hard now. In St. Paul's most detailed writing on the future hope as recorded in 1 Corinthian 15, Paul concludes by exhorting the audience to labour now here on this earth. If you have a vision to pass, you will have to necessarily work hard now; in the same vein, if you envision heaven, get to work now. This is hardly a view that teaches us to withdraw from the world.

Throughout history there have been Christians who have laboured for social and political justice because of what their love for their neighbour and the promise they look forward to. Earliest Christians used to pay from their own earning so that slaves would get freedom. Christian monk Telemachus travelled miles to put an end to gladiatorial sport in the Roman empire. William Wilberforce and Martin Luther King Jr. campaigned for social and political rights for the enslaved and the marginalised because of their view of God and humanity. Mother Teresa cared for the poorest of the poor because of her devotion to God. Jesus does indeed call people to him, and to those who come to him, he gives them a new life and a new vision to go out to the broken world and serve the weary and the hungry. Loving Jesus must necessarily lead to loving the people here and now!