Thunder clapped

I have a friend who thinks that doctrine and theology will save his soul. He thinks that when he dies and appears before 'the judgment throne', God will crack open his skull and examine his brain to see whether or not his beliefs were correct. My friend thinks every word in the Bible is literally true, literally history, and that anyone who thinks differently isn’t really 'saved', isn’t really Christian. Doctrine is his salvation.

My friend and I differ on a lot of things. Theologically, we couldn't be further apart. He has been a fundamentalist, conservative Christian his entire adult life; I've embarked on a confusing and sometimes depressing spiritual journey over the past few years. I wish I could be as stubbornly certain about God as my friend is, but for whatever reason, I am not.

One of my favorite Bible stories is the parable of the sheep and the goats, as told by Jesus in the Gospel according to St. Matthew. Here, Jesus judges the nations not by their belief system, their church attendance, or whether or not they once said a prayer asking him into their hearts. Here, Jesus judges the nations based upon how they have lived; more specifically, how they have cared for, looked after, and loved "the least of these". Not how they have loved themselves, or their families, or their friends, but how they have loved the poor, the outcast, and the homeless.

I honestly don't know how a person achieves salvation. I don't even know what 'salvation' means. But there's something about this parable that just makes sense: Actions speak louder than words. Love and compassion trump doctrine and theology. Believing certain concepts is fine and wonderful, but it doesn't make a person religious, or right, or 'saved'. Talking about God and theorizing about God and singing songs about God is a great way to pass time, but at the end of the day, who cares? At this very moment, there's a man twenty feet from my office begging for his next meal -- and I'm supposed to worry about whether or not Adam and Eve actually existed? Does anybody really think God is that petty?

"I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me."