Have you ever heard of moralistic therapeutic deism? Although it's a form of bad theology, or heresy that has been around for some time, it wasn't named until 2005 when Christian Smith (a sociologist at Notre Dame) who was researching the religious beliefs of young people coined the phrase. He described it as "the de facto dominant religion among contemporary U.S. teenagers." Here's the way he summarized the core beliefs:
- There is a God who created the world and who oversees human life on earth
- God wants people to be good, nice and fair to each other
- The goal of life is to be happy and feel good about oneself
- God is involved in our lives only to the degree needed to fix problems
- When they die, all good people go to heaven
You will find people who accept these beliefs in every denomination, even if they still say the creeds, and think of themselves as orthodox Christians. That's because, on the surface these ideas don't sound so bad. But think again. The first two statements are right as far as they go. A sovereign God did create the universe and He does want people to live moral lives. (This is the "moralistic" part of the teaching). However, with the third statement, things start to fall apart. (this is the therapeutic portion). Because our culture tells us to pursue personal happiness, we become willing to justify and accept all sorts of ungodly behaviors. Sacrificing for others or even enduring some discomforts are discouraged. This is opposed to Biblical truths that call us to put God first and love our neighbors as ourselves. It also leads to the fourth statement -- if our goal (and presumably God's goal for us) is simply happiness we only need to call on God when we're having problems. The final statement about heaven is the most obviously at odds with Christian teaching. None of us are good enough to be saved through our own works. Salvation is a gift from God. Faith in Christ is what counts. Many Christians genuinely believe that those who lead "good" lives will be saved even if they are Jewish, Muslin or atheists.
Unfortunately, this bad theology appeals to us because it makes sense in terms of our culture and human logic. It's an insidious threat that worms its way into our belief system and gradually takes over.
What's the antidote? Sound teaching and Biblical literacy. Don't neglect it.
"See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ." Colossians 2:8
For more about false teaching see these posts:
Dietrich Bonhoeffer on False Teaching
Two Types of False Teaching
A Field Guide on False Teaching — Book Review
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