Part of my own theological training included working with other faith leaders; which meant that I had to engage with the beliefs, practices and spirituality of other faiths. I spent considerable time at a mosque, a Hindu temple and debating in a Jewish synagogue. Of course, we live in a multi-faith, multi-cultural society and it is absolutely right that we should be tolerant and accepting of others, regardless of their beliefs. Again, the fact is, all religions do contain some truth but, that does not mean all religions lead to God, regardless of how genuine or sincere people of different faiths might be. As C.S. Lewis wrote:

“If you are a Christian you do not have to believe that all other religions are simply wrong all through. If you are an atheist you do have to believe that the main points in all the religions of the world is simply one huge mistake. If you are a Christian, you are free to think that all those religions, even the queerest ones, contain at least some hint of the truth. When I was an atheist I had to try and persuade myself that most of the human race has always been wrong about the question that mattered to them most; when I became a Christian I was able to take a more liberal view. But, of course, being a Christian does mean thinking that where Christianity differs from other religions, Christianity is right and they are wrong. As in arithmetic – there is only one right answer to a sum, and all other answers are wrong, but some of the wrong answers are much nearer being right than others.”

[Note: C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity, Fount 1952, p.39]

R. Ian Seymour