Still no good answers about open-mindedness?

Question

I've written two questions on here that have asked about people being open-minded to other faiths. Granted, they were posted bulletins with multi-questions, but I didn't quite get what I wanted. So this is my one and only question for this post: Why or why shouldn't one be open-minded to other forms of faith or religion? Once again, I do this for insight.

And once again, please explain yourself. No two word answers.

If you say that people should not be open-minded, why do you tell others to open their mind to Christianity?

When I say "open-minded," I mean would you take other faiths into consideration as truth?

Answer 1

You should be open minded... I know what my religion is, but I still respect people of others.

First off, the first person that answered said something to the effect of "Jesus didn't tolerate other religions" but he DID. If he didn't, he would have just killed nonbelievers off or something. Jesus is loving, not hating.

Second (aka the answer I intended to give before I read that one "answer"), there is no reason to hate an entire group of people. A lot of people are angry with people of the Islamic Faith since 9/11 and such... However, they don't seem to understand the fact that just because SOME people of the faith are bad, not all are. NOT ALL MUSLIMS ARE ANTI AMERICA! It's really sad how people are now anti-Islam. Sickening...

Also, how are we to judge other people because they believe in something different? What if the end came and theirs was the "true" way? Well, I am pretty sure that if you didn't even respect the religion, it would be VERY hard to reach a happy afterlife.
Hate based on such deep beliefs is horrible.
That is why you have to be open-minded and respectful towards other religions.

---EDIT---
Sorry, I just saw your latest details!!! :\

I would be open to ideas from other religions because many of the ideas are generally the same...

Answer 2

I agree that people should be open-minded about other faiths. However, most adults, if they believe in religion, have already decided which faith is best for them. Those that don't, often are solicited by cults or if they do want religion, they do extensive research into many religions to find out what suits them. I personally am open-minded about religion because let's face it, nobody knows the answers to most religious problems such as "is there a heaven and hell?", and "are all the religions based on fact or fantasy?" And "what about creation?" Those are just some examples of questions we don't really know the answers to. So I believe people should select the religion that best suits their conscience. And I respect all faiths that are based on goodness, respect for others, and do not promote violence or anything that's against the law or hurtful to human beings or animals.

Answer 3

There are essentially two ways one can be open-minded towards other faiths. First, a person can be open-minded in the sense that they will listen to what other faiths have to say without automatically assuming the other faith is wrong. After hearing the other faith's claims, one can enter into a dialogue with that faith and discuss the claims of that faith without making hasty generalizations. This can do one of three things.It can strengthen one's own faith because it challenges one's beliefs. Second it can convince onceself or another that perhaps his or faith is not true. Third, it can encourage learning and bolster interfaith relationships.

One cannot however assume that all faiths are equally valid. If this is what is implied by open-mindedness, then it presents several problems. If two faiths make contradictory claims, then the two faiths cannot both be true at the same time. For example, Christians claim that Jesus is God's Son. Muslims believe that Jesus was just a prophet. If Jesus is not the son of God then the Christian faith is false, and Islam may be true. Also, if I change a major tenet of a given faith, then I charge that faith, and it becomes something else. If I say Jesus is not the son of God then it is no longer Christianity by definition. One must adhere to all the tenets of his or her faith in order to maintain the cohesion of that faith. If one picks just certain elements of a faith or chooses elements from one faith and combines them with all or some elements of another faith, he or she is creating a new faith. This new faith may be similar but it is not the same by definition. For these reasons one cannot be syncretistic or "open-minded" in the , end he or she will adopt elements from different faiths.

Answer 4

i am the middle child of 5 with 2 older sisters and 2 younger brothers. i believe my birth order has given me the ability to see other points of views
one should be opened minded.
most people believe in the religion that they where born into. too many never bother asking why something is the way it is.

i will take this out of the religious world to give an example. ask people in the USA if communism is bad/evil and most will answer yes. ask people in china if communism is bad/evil and most will answer no.

i dont truly know if the path i walk is the right one. but i have looked at several other paths and so far this is the best for me.

ask, seek, knock.

PS i wounder what the world would be like if everybody was given an over view of all religions. we are dealing with a multipul choice question on how to end up in the best place. we need to look at all the answers and know what answers is not right for us. (solve by elimination) we need to know why we believe in this but not in that

added detail: it was once believe true that the earth was flat. during the time this theroy was being qustioned did people look at the 2 theriories and decide the correct one. or continue being "opened minded" saying you believe what you want i'll believe what i want.

to be open minded one must first admit the posibleity of being wrong.
example: to say i believe because the bible says so/it is the only way does not prove so.
if i and 10 other guys (one of us is guilty)say i did not kill some one and then say it is the truth because i said so would you believe me or them. no you would look for evidents to rule people out one by one.

Answer 5

My parents let me choose my own way after being raised a Methodist from birth. They encouraged me to examine my faith and others if I felt the need. I investigated different faiths, often visiting different churches, synagogues, even a couple of holy roller snake handling churches, until I found something that rang true for me (Deism). I have done the same with my children and they both chose the same faith, but one different than mine.

I think it's a must for any thinking person to be informed about different religious beliefs. It promotes tolerance and understanding. We are a tight knit family and our differences in faith do not ever affect that. Sometimes I think it contributes, such as when we have open conversations about our separate beliefs. It pops up every so often and no one degrades anyone else or makes claims that their religion is the end all and be all.

Answer 6

The bible teaches to be respectful of others beliefs. You can't force religion onto someone.

If someone's religion says 'this is the only way' they may think "all others must be bad" and if they truely believe in this... they will not be open to what their religion is against.

there can be danger to being open to any idea. If you don't pick something to believe in, you will be open minded to everything but couldn't be fully content or have any values of your own. Some 'open-minded people' are really just confused. There is truth out there and you should be open minded..but you have to start saying 'this is not for me, this goes against that feeling deep inside'.

And yeah, I'm very open-minded. If you open your mind too much everything starts spilling out unless you can really get those values use to the open air and locked in there good ;)

Mavis knows

Answer 7

People should be open-minded about other faiths because we can learn from one another. My husband was born a Catholic, but when he was adopted at 13, he was taught the Jewish religion, and felt that the "story" was more plausible. Imagine that. Being approached with different beliefs and being able to make a decision based on fact, rather then being forced to be born into a religion. When I was born, my parents chose to NOT bring me up into a religion, but rather encourage me to look into as many religions as possible, and choose the best one for me. We'll never know what's out there, if we don't search. We'll never search with a closed mind.

Answer 8

It seems to me that people close their minds regarding religions because of their personal involvement with a particular faith. Specifically, when marriage vows are secured by a particular religion or when a loved one dies and the afterlife fate of that person is understood to the survivors in terms of their religion, then the personal stake in that religion becomes very high. Then one and only one faith can be real to those persons.
A few people can escape that by understanding that their relationship is with God and that the rest is just ritual which could come in different forms and still be valid.
It is also partly a function of language. People will feel a strong connection to rituals and scriptures in their own language or in a language they consider "classical".
And again, some people just can't spare the brain cells to be open minded. Good luck with your search.

Answer 9

For me, being open minded to other faiths means invalidating my own. I believe that there is only one way to heaven and fellowship with Almighty God, and that is through His Son Jesus Christ. If I open mindedly accept other religions, that invalidates my belief that there is only one way.

On the other hand, I do think people should consider what other religions are saying. This is not contradictory to Christian thought. We are to test everything, to question all things and compare what we hear to what the Bible says. We will, of course, according to our faith find those other religions to be misguided. However, the more we know what others think the better equipped we will be able to engage those of different beliefs in intelligent, productive conversation. We must be able to do this if we are to fulfill our Great Commission, which is to teach the truth and bring others to the truth. The more we understand about how others have been led away from God, the more we can do to bring them back.

Answer 10

We all SHOULD be open minded when it comes to faith and religion because we have to live in this world together. In living amongst each other, we have to have tolerance, respect and consideration of other's point of view. We can't necessarily do that if we walk around with our minds closed now can we? And today's world is a prime example. We are all stuck on who's religion is better, who's going to heaven, who's going to hell, etc. With that being the case, I have to ask...who gave us the right to judge? Why not open our ears and our hearts, listen and learn from one another rather than cast stones? That is as far as my insight will go without diving into the various religions and the acts of violence that come to those who don't believe.