While moving through a bustling airport recently, I joked about actually overhearing two people nearby speaking in English. I was in Orlando — or was it Atlanta, Dallas or Washington, D.C.?

 

It could have been just about anywhere in America. Recent reports show that our eyes and ears do not deceive us. The changing face of American culture is continuing at an unprecedented rate.

 

Regardless of where we live in this nation, those around us no longer look, speak, act, think or worship just like us. And growing pluralism brings its share of challenges and even discomfort.

 

There is something appealing about living in Mayberry where values are widely shared and no problem takes more than 30 minutes to overcome. There, everyone shows up for worship at the community church — and even Otis Campbell dries out by Sunday morning.

 

The reality of 21^st century American life is quite different, however.

 

Hindus, Muslims, Buddhists and nonreligious persons are no longer those to whom we send missionaries. They are our neighbors, co-workers and classmates.

 

Facing religious and cultural pluralism is not a choice for American Christians. But the way we choose to face this pluralism is certainly of our choosing.

 

Some see this unstoppable cultural shift as a threat to their comfort and their deeply held faith. They are afraid of losing that which is familiar and cherished.

 

They look for ways to fortify their preferred values and viewpoints with cries of “We were here first” and acts of legislative favoritism.

 

Some couch the challenges of religious pluralism in terms of spiritual warfare — as if evil is the soul property of those outside our churches. Life is described as a conflict between “us” (good orthodox Christians) and “them” (anyone who does not agree with our theological perspectives and political tactics).

 

However, if we allow our fear of losing evangelical Christianity as a dominant religious expression in our community or nation to cause us to prop up our particular brand of faith with government support, then we will be more responsible for the breakdown of religious freedom in this country than those we fear.

 

We must not sacrifice freedom out of fear. If we genuinely believe the claims of Christ, then we must be willing to let the Holy Spirit work along with our free and faithful witness — not with the strong arm of governmental force.

 

Suppose the worst fear of some is realized and our faith expression is no longer such a dominant religious force in this nation. In that case, nothing would be more crucial to our spiritual exercise than a firmly established commitment to religious liberty for all persons.

 

Freedom of religion without governmental interference has served this country well since its formation and has allowed for the vibrant faith of many Americans.

 

We can only demand for ourselves the rights of religious liberty that we are willing to extend to all others regardless of their religious choices. Anything less than freely chosen faith is not faith at all.

 

There is a better alternative than trying to shore up our religious preferences with governmental favoritism and railing against those with differing perspectives and priorities. It is more courageous, considerate and Christ-like to see the challenges before us as opportunities for ministry rather than threats.

 

We have long honored missionaries abroad for crossing difficult barriers to convey the timeless, matchless and unhindered gospel message. It is now time for all of us to seize the new opportunities to cross the many cultural barriers arising in our own communities.

 

Such a bold and risky commitment has its requirements. We will need to live more consistent lives so the Christian message of our daily living more clearly matches the life and teachings of the one we claim to follow.

 

We will have to sort through our familiar expressions of faith and determine what is really biblical and what is cultural. We will need to grant freedom to those with whom we disagree.

 

We are at our Baptist best when we stand tall for the freedom of all Americans to express their religious convictions. In doing so, we retain our cherished rights to express the love of Christ in the clearest, most attractive ways possible.