CULTURAL CHRISTIANITY

CULTURAL CHRISTIANITY

I have always joked about the fact that the Philippines could not be a Christian country, because countries do not go to heaven, only the souls of people do. But seriously speaking, I could not agree that the Philippines is a Christian country, because many of the people here who identify themselves as Christians are not really practicing their faith, as they are supposed to. In other words, they would fall into the category of “cultural Christians” only.

In a manner of speaking, the process of living out the Christian life is like planting a fruit tree. After planting the tree, it must be nourished so that it will grow and eventually bear fruit. Even if it grows tall but it does not bear fruit, it is no good as a tree, and it should even be cut down for being useless. We could also liken this analogy to the “gifts of the spirit” that are given to us, but these gifts would be useless if they do not bear fruit, meaning the “fruits of the spirit”.

 Since I live near a Catholic church, I often hear about the loud voices of parishioners who argue and fight for parking spaces right after they go out of the church. I even suspect that they might have just gone to confession or might have taken communion, but their rowdy behavior and bouts of anger. If I did not know any better, I would have suspected that they are either atheists or primitives.

Same thing with road rage and driving behavior. Since about ninety percent of our population are supposedly Christians, it would not be too far fetched that those who engage in road rage could probably be Christians, even if in name only. Same thing with traffic rules. I would say that slow traffic is partly caused by those who do not obey the traffic rules, and again these could be the people who identify themselves as Christians.

According to Galatians 5: 22-23, the fruits of the spirit are love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. If you come across someone who is exhibiting these behavioral traits, it would be safe to assume that he or she is a Christian. On the other hand, if he or she is exhibiting the opposite of these traits, then he or she is probably not a Christian, even if he or she identifies himself to be such.

The essence of Christianity is to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Anybody who does not believe that is not a Christian. As part of that personal relationship, all Christians are supposed to pray to Jesus Christ and are supposed to obey His words. Anyone who does not do that is also not a Christian. Therefore, it is not enough for us to identify ourselves as Christians. The word of God must bear fruit in us, and we must show that in the way that we have changed our lives. IKE SENERES/09-14-2024

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