Her question was this. “When does ecumenism and tolerance go so far as to become a denial of Jesus Christ as Savior?”

A student who, in this confused world, might be considered a classic case of multicultural confusion prompted her question. The boy had a Jewish parent, a Catholic parent and an atheistic aunt who ridiculed his Catholic faith. He also had as a best friend a Hindu. Both were in Catholic school.

The Hindu boy was in her words “smart, kind and compassionate and, to boot, the best religion student in the class.”

Her letter reverberates with me personally because for over 40 years I have been involved ecumenically with people in all forms of faith communities. However, I must admit that I have been closest to my Jewish friends. I have known and truly loved hundreds of non-Christians.

Pope John Paul II is the most ecumenical figure on the planet. He is a model in every way for us who are Romn Catholics.

There is a veritable parade of religious leaders who come every year to the Vatican. They are greeted warmly as friends. They are embraced as good and holy people. Hindu, Moslem, Buddhist, Jew and all others are greeted with love and respect.

It is our obligation as Catholics to imitate the example of John Paul II. Our relationship with others not of our faith must not be a phony display of courtesy. Our love for those not of our faith community must be real, not feigned. They are all our brothers and sisters descended from the same parents. We are one humanity. However, the essence of ecumenism is dialogue. But in order to meet another person in dialogue we must know and believe totally in our own creed, code and cult. Two people who talk religion but who are ignorant or who do not practice their own faith, can never dialogue fruitfully. They will only swap ignorance or argue uselessly.

The Holy Father wrote a document called “Dominus Jesus.” It outlines clearly our own faith in contradistinction to the faith of other religions. Ordinary Catholics, of course, need not read “Dominus Jesus” (although it is a wonderful document). However, every single Sunday that we attend the Holy Liturgy we recite the Nicene Creed.

In that creed we say of Jesus that He is “the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, God from God, light from light, true God from true God, begotten not made, one in being with the Father, through Him all things were made, for us men and our salvation He came down from heaven.” If we truly believe in Jesus Christ, and if we practice our faith, we need not engage in polemics. We can love all others with a peaceful soul by simply living as true Christians. Our lives will preach the Gospel to all others.

This is not like the first century. There is hardly a grown person on the face of the earth who does not know Jesus or our belief in His divinity. What people need now is visual confirmation of that belief in conduct.

As one non-Christian remarked, “If they are all Christians, why is it that so many of them do not act as Christians?”

So you see, consciously and subconsciously, non-Christians expect more from us. The Lamb of God is our Leader. The world does not expect us to be wolves or lions. The Christian message has been preached. It is our job to live up to it.

God will take care of the rest.

(To find the archive of columns go to www.msgrgilchrist.freeservers.com)

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