Believe or not?

My question for Patterico is why do you have a problem with the exclusiveness of Christians? If Christians believe they have the way to Life, and you don’t believe it, so what? How does their faith effect you at all?

Sure, some Christians are stupidly smug that they are going to Heaven and you are not. Their attitude is incredibly off-putting and counter-productive to growing the Kingdom of Heaven. However, the majority of Christians would be happy to have you accompany us home; all you have to do is believe. If you don’t want to believe, that is fine. All we would ask is to be left in peace, and we will leave you in peace.

For my non-believing friends (and for my parents) I take solace in the words of Christ from the Apocalypse of Peter. The book is not canonical, I know, but if you read it, I am sure you would understand why the Church would not want it in the Bible. In that book, Christ reveals Hell to Peter but assures him that for even the souls in there, because of the prayers of the faithful, there is hope: ‘My Father will give unto them all the life, the glory, and the kingdom that passeth not away,’ . . . ‘It is because of them that have believed in me that I am come. It is also because of them that have believed in me, that, at their word, I shall have pity on men.’

Merry Christmas!