Is Jesus the Only Way? (Part 1)

There is a growing belief among many that perhaps there are numerous ways to get to heaven outside of the Christian gospel. I have called it "The Rising Tide of Universalism," and I think we need to be talking about it. Recently, I published an article in Relevant Magazine exploring this phenomenon and I am bringing the conversation to you in a three part post entitled, "Is Jesus the Only Way?"

In 2002, Bishop Carlton Pearson was the epitome of success in the Christian world. His South Tulsa megachurch, Higher Dimensions Family Church, boasted more than 6,000 members, he served on the board of trustees at Oral Roberts University, he was a guest host on the Trinity Broadcast Network and he was one of a few black religious leaders advising President Bush. That was before he discovered “the Gospel of Inclusion.”

Pearson began preaching that Christ’s death provided salvation for everyone and that no one will spend eternity tormented in hell. While this message may sound sweet to some, his church family was not so accepting. Over the last few years, his congregation has diminished to a few hundred faithful, his church buses have been banned from the ORU campus and his church property has been lost to foreclosure.

Bishop Pearson is not alone. A recent Pew Study, for example, found that “70 percent of Americans with a religious affiliation say that many religions—not just their own—can lead to eternal life.” And in a more specific study, LifeWay Research asked a niche of Protestant churchgoers whether they believed a person could obtain eternal life through “religions other than Christianity.” Shockingly, 31 percent of respondents still agreed.

Universalism, or the belief that everyone will eventually be reconciled to God, is neither new nor novel. Early church fathers like Origen and Clement of Alexandria held to universal salvation, although it was later deemed heresy at the fifth ecumenical council in 553 AD. In America, founding fathers like Benjamin Rush also held to this view, and did so without apology. Rush once said, “A belief in God’s universal love to all his creatures, and that he will finally restore all of them that are miserable to happiness, is a polar truth.” Today, you might find the theological descendants of Origen and Rush in a Universalist Church.

“True Christianity is not so much about doctrines that we believe in. It is about following the way of Jesus,” says Eric Stetson, Executive Director of the Christian Universalist Association (CUA) and author of Christian Universalism: God’s Good News for All People. “A Buddhist, Hindu or Muslim may not see Christ the same way, but if they live in a way that reflects Christ—even if they don’t know Him—it will affect their eternal fate.” These people may be called 'anonymous Christians.'”

Hell is, surprisingly, a real place in Stetson’s view, although he nervously avoids using that word. “We believe there is an afterlife, and we do believe there is a reality of judgment of punishment for sin because we reap what we sow. But ultimately, every person will come into harmony with God at some point,” he says. “God’s anger doesn’t last forever. It is His mercy that endures forever.”

Stetson is an ordained Charismatic minister, and on his board of directors sit people from various denominations, including the United Church of Christ, Southern Baptist Convention and several charismatic traditions. More than a third of the members of his association are ordained ministers and local church leaders. They have come together to unite around one thing: “the universal salvation of all people and the all-inclusive love of God.”

Do you know anyone who holds to universal salvation? Do you believe everyone will eventually make it? What about devout Hindus/Buddhists/Muslims who are "good people" but aren't "Christians?