An active tolerance

My friend told us this at the dinner table, making clear her shock even as she related the story. To her, the fact that a group not officially affiliated with any religion would join in a communal prayer pertaining to a specific faith was, at the time, mind-boggling. She did not go so far as to say that such an act was offensive or improper, but perhaps that was on her mind.

Had I heard this story before coming to Princeton, I might have been surprised at my friend’s reaction, having opened every cross country race in my life with communal prayer. Here, however, I find my friend’s thoughts to be the norm. Think of the ridicule “Bible Bob” and his cohorts on the corner of Prospect Avenue and Washington Road have been subjected to, an infamy that lingers months after he has left this campus. As these people entered into what they considered to be a bout for our souls, proselytizing at the same spot every weekend, many an inebriated student stopped by on the way home to throw insults their way. Even if students managed to hold their tongues on the Street, social condemnations of the evangelists would fill dining halls, eating clubs and classrooms.

The Princeton community has been one to boast of acceptance and liberality when it comes to different cultures, traditions and faiths. Those who feel themselves to be outsiders on this campus may occasionally contest this conclusion, but I say with certainty that students here, at the very least, aspire to be open-minded young adults. Unfortunately, we are only moderately successful at aligning our actions with our intentions.

Go up to any student and ask what he or she thinks about Christians. Then ask what he or she think about Jews. Muslims? Hindus? Let’s even try atheists — you’ll probably get more or less the same response for these, because we are, after all, so civilized as to not condemn people based on their beliefs alone. Most will end up saying that all these people are worthy of respect.

But what about when those beliefs cross personal boundaries? Contemporary Christianity essentially believes that those who do not put their belief in Jesus Christ as the son of God will not be saved from the consequences of sin: death (John 3:16). The natural manifestation of this belief is evangelism. But when Christians start charging at students with pamphlets, Bibles and admonitions to repent, they’re suddenly not such great company to have around. In the end, we find it easy to accept abstract beliefs, but when those vague conceptions take on the tangible form of action that encroaches on our lifestyles, it is suddenly much easier to be less accepting.

For the record, I am a Christian. Though guilty of partying every week on the Street, of not attending church as regularly as I would hope to and, yes, of failing to spread the Gospel, my spiritual foundation is no different than the beliefs of those very evangelists on the streets that drive people crazy. As a Christian, I believe that the disciples of Jesus are commanded to spread our faith in order to save eternal souls. This, known as the Great Commission, is a definitive aspect of Christianity, and therefore of me. It is an action that I should be carrying out, though I am the first to concede my lack of courage in not doing so. Some may say that my doctrine of tolerance is at odds with my requirement to evangelize, but I believe that I can inform others of my faith while remaining respectful of individuals’ choices.

I have no fear of others disputing my beliefs. For someone to disagree with my faith is not my ruination. What I do take issue with is the idea that one can claim to be tolerant of all religions, when the active manifestation of the core of some of those religions will be their next topic of gossip.

My challenge to us all, then, is rather simple: to consider the necessary social implications of a faith that we claim to respect. Of course, there is a gray area — some implicated actions cross a line and we cannot condone them. I wouldn’t tolerate the Inquisition. But when I say I accept a religious group like the Mormons, I mean that I accept the missions that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints expects them to embark on. When I say I respect Muslims, I imply that I respect their dogmatic decision not to drink. When I say I am tolerant of Wilson School majors, I am verifying my tolerance of joining consulting firms after pretending to be interested in public service — OK, strike the last one. All I ask of anyone else, in return for these consistencies, from every person who presents themselves as accepting of all beliefs, is a companion acceptance of my and others’ faiths’ stranger requirements. Only in this may we discover true tolerance.