Are Religions Almost All the Same? There's no way…

Christianity is based on the resurrection of Jesus from the dead - a historical fact that cannot be refuted.

All religions are practically the same. Quite right?

They are created by man and are the result of human beings who wonder about the world in which they find themselves and who find answers to the great questions about life, meaning, death and the great mysteries of existence. These man-made religions are practically all the same: they answer some questions in life and teach people to be good and spiritual and to make the world a better place. Quite right?

So the bottom line is that they are essentially all the same, but with cultural and historical variations. Quite right?

Mistaken.

You can classify man-made religions into four basic types: (1) Paganism, (2) Moralism, (3) Spirituality and (4) Progress.

Paganism is the ancient idea that if you make sacrifices to the gods and goddesses and they will guarantee you protection, peace and prosperity.

Moralism teaches another way to please God: "Obey the rules and regulations and God will be happy and will not punish you."

Spirituality is the idea that if you can practice some form of spirituality, you can face life's problems. “Forget the problems of this life. Learn to be more spiritual. Meditate. Think positively and you will rise above it. "

Progressivism teaches: “Life is short. Be good and work hard to improve yourself and make the world a better place. "

All four are attractive in different ways and many people mistakenly believe that Christianity is a happy mixture of all four. Different Christians may emphasize one of the four types more than another, but all four are grouped together in the popular form of Christianity which is: "Live a life of sacrifice, pray, obey the rules, make the world a better place and God will will take care of you. "

This is not Christianity. This is a perversion of Christianity.

Christianity is much more radical. It brings together the four types of artificial religion and explodes them from within. It satisfies them like a waterfall fills a cup to drink.

Instead of paganism, moralism, spirituality and progressivism, Christianity is based on a simple historical fact that cannot be refuted. It is called the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. Christianity is simply the message of Jesus Christ crucified, risen and ascended. We must never take our eyes off the cross and the empty tomb.

Jesus Christ rose from the dead and this changes everything. Jesus Christ is still alive and active in the world through his Church. If you believe and trust in this surprising truth, then you are called to participate in this event through faith and baptism. Through faith and baptism you enter Jesus Christ and he enters you. Enter his Church and become part of his body.

This is the sensational message of my new book Immortal Combat: Confronting the Heart of Darkness. After deepening the perennial problem of humanity's evil, I hammer home the power of the cross and resurrection alive in today's world.

Your main mission is not to try to please God by giving him things. It is not to obey all the rules and regulations to try to please him. It is not to pray more, to be spiritual and therefore to rise above the problems of this world. It's not about being a good boy or girl and trying to make the world a better place.

Christians could do all these things, but this is not the core of their faith. It is the result of their faith. They do these things while the musician plays music or the athlete practices his sport. They do these things because they are talented and give them joy. So the Christian does these good things because he has been filled with the Spirit of the risen Jesus Christ, and he does those things with joy because he wants.

Now the critics will say, "Yes, of course. Not the Christians I know. They are a group of failed hypocrites. "Sure - and the good ones will admit it.

However, whenever I hear cynics complaining about failed Christians, I want to ask, “Why don't you try for once to focus on those who are NOT a failure? I can take you to my parish and introduce you to an entire army of them. They are ordinary people who worship God, feed the poor, support the needy, love their children, are faithful in their marriages, are kind and generous with their neighbors and forgive the people who have damaged them ".

In fact, in my experience, there are more ordinary, hardworking and happy Christians who have at least moderate success than the hypocrites we hear so much about.

The fact is that the resurrection of Jesus Christ has brought humanity into a new dimension of reality. Christians are not essentially a bunch of neurotic benefits that are trying to please their almighty dad.

They are human beings who have been (and are about to be) transformed by the most amazing power of having entered human history.

The power that brought Jesus Christ back from the dead on that dark morning nearly two thousand years ago.