By Mike
My university in Indonesia recently constructed worship spaces for five of the nation’s minority religious groups, which include Christians. Our congregation is blessed to meet in this space on Sunday evenings. A colleague from the local Islamic university informed me that she wanted to bring a group of her philosophy students to visit and asked if I had a contact for someone overseeing the worship center. I did.
Trying to be a hospitable host, I arrived early to the worship facilities to welcome our guests and to head off any issues with guards or staff who may have been confused by the presence of these students. I had planned to simply greet the students on arrival and make a quick retreat after they were settled in.
My professor friend was late to arrive, and the students immediately started asking me questions. Continuing in the spirit of hospitality, I adapted. We made quick visits to the Hindu, Buddhist and Confucian temples. Most of our time, however, was spent in the Catholic and Protestant “churches.”
What was meant to be a quick greeting turned into a couple of hours of deep theological discussion—explaining Christian history, the divergences of different denominations and comparing conceptions of heaven, hell, and salvation in Christianity and Islam … with philosophy students, no less.
Someone once said we should “always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks for the reason for the hope that we have (1 Peter 3:15).” Thankfully, I was prepared.