Are Christians Narrow-Minded?

     “All Christians are narrow-minded.” “All liberals are intolerant.” “All Republicans are bigots.” One just might hear statements such as these in day-to-day conversations, on the news, or at political rallies. Those who say that others are intolerant—are they intolerant? What are they intolerant of? Is it others’ views? Whose views are right? Are they both right? Are they both wrong? If there are no absolutes, then nothing is certain. Some people might say that a narrow-minded person is not open to the truth. What is the difference between a born-again Christian and a narrow-minded person? A born-again Christian is not a narrow-minded person. Let us see how the dictionary defines the term “narrow-minded.” 
     According to Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, narrow-minded means “lacking in tolerance or breadth of vision: PETTY.” A narrow-minded person is someone who stubbornly clings to a view, and does not listen to and accept another view, even though they know that their view is wrong. The first criterion for a narrow-minded person is that they are “lacking in tolerance.” The definition of tolerance is “. . . 2a: sympathy or indulgence for beliefs or practices differing from or conflicting with one’s own b: the act of allowing something: TOLERATION.” Therefore, to be intolerant means that a person is “. . . 2a: unwilling to grant equal freedom of expression esp. in religious matters b: unwilling to grant or share social, political, or professional rights: BIGOTED.” The author of the dictionary also helps us to see that a bigot is “a person obstinately or intolerantly devoted to his or her own opinions and prejudices.”
      The second criterion for a narrow-minded person is that they are “lacking in breadth of vision.” Some say that Christians are narrow-minded because they believe that they are right and that anyone who doesn’t agree with them is wrong. In one sense a Christian is a narrow-minded person because they are a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ. He said in Matthew 7:13-14, “Enter by the narrow gate; for the gate is wide, and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and many are those who enter by it. For the gate is small, and the way is narrow that leads to life, and few are those who find it.” Please allow me to illustrate this passage of Scripture. Suppose that two people were given the task of making a map of a valley at the foot of a mountain. The first person went from one side of the valley to the other and drew a map based on their observations from ground-level. The second person decided to drive to the top of the mountain on a perfectly clear day to see the breathtaking view and draw a map. The only ways up the mountain were a long, winding, narrow two-lane road and a narrow trail. If they had wanted to take a helicopter, they would have had to narrow their choices of what they could bring with them. Once they got there, they were able to see perfectly in all directions. They did not have a narrow view at all. The point is that a person has to go through something narrow or a narrowing process to get to a place that is not narrow or restricted at all. The first map-maker was “lacking in breadth of vision” and was not able to accurately map out the valley, and could not enjoy the view that the second map-maker had.
      Some people might object to my definition of a narrow-minded person where I said that they cling to their own view even if they know it is wrong. They would say that they are clinging to their view because they know it is right. This brings up an important question: What is truth? Some say that there is no truth. If these people say that there is no truth, then they have no basis, or anchor, for their claim. If there were no truth, there would be confusion and anarchy. A born-again Christian is not narrow-minded because they are not “. . . lacking in tolerance . . . ”. Christians give others the freedom to do what they want to do, but hold them accountable for their actions, whether good or bad. A Christian can listen to others’ views, but still not agree with the views of that person. This means that we should screen or filter others’ ideas.
      Who is the Standard or Plumb-line to measure ideas by? God the Son, in the body of a human named Jesus of Nazareth said in John 14:6, “. . . ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but through Me.’” He is the “straight-edge” to compare ideas to. He is the Word of God. John 1:1 says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” This means that the Bible, God’s Word, is the original source document. A born-again Christian is not narrow-minded because they are not “. . . lacking in . . . breadth of vision.” 
     Maybe another illustration will clarify this issue. God is the author of marriage and He designed it for one man and one woman. Once a couple gets married, they can enjoy all of the safe sex that they want. Some might say that not being able to have sex legally in God’s eyes until they vow to be faithful “. . . until death do us part,” is narrow-minded. Quite the contrary, they are narrow-minded for being unwilling to submit to God’s awesome, liberating, divine plan. They are seeing things from the perspective of the base of the mountain as opposed to the peak. They may have pleasurable pre-marital, extra-marital, or homosexual “sex”, but it will not be “safe” and they will not have God’s blessing. Instead, they will be under His wrath and will have to reap what they have sown.
      Most people would say that being narrow-minded is bad or wrong. The underlying assumption is that if you are narrow-minded, your life will be less than what it could be and that you are missing out on other ideas that are available. Another warrant for this line of thinking is that no one knows for sure which ideas are right, so it is better to be open to, or adopt all of them. They claim that there are no absolutes of right and wrong. They say things such as, “You can’t tell me what to believe! Who gave you that authority? Why should I listen to you? I am the one who is right because I’m not narrow-minded.” The authors of our textbook say that language is a means of communication where every speaker of a given language has to agree on the way it works (Ramage, Bean, and Johnson, 201-202).
      Speakers or writers cannot redefine words to alter the original meaning. If two people are narrow-minded, and don’t agree, the person who lines up with, or agrees with Truth is right, and the other person is wrong. The person who does not agree with Truth is really the one who is narrow-minded. They are missing out because they are intolerant of the views of those who are living in the light of Ultimate Reality. The narrow-minded people are deceived and are living a lie. They are living in a fantasy, a “virtual world” or “virtual reality” that they have created, which is a mirage. This bubble will one day pop and they will be faced with reality. It could be grim if they lived their whole lives and rejected the Truth. In fact, Truth personified says that they will go to Hell. They don’t have to go there if they now accept Jesus (Truth) into their hearts while they are still alive. They can then go to Heaven when they die physically.
      If we reject JESUS, we are calling Him narrow-minded. He is the One to whom we will have to stand before, and give an account. We should want Him to be our Lord, Saviour, and Friend, and not our Judge. People say, “I can pick which path I want, to get to God.” They call Christians narrow-minded for saying that there is only one Way. We didn’t make this up. Jesus said it. A Christian, one who has repented of their sins (agreed with God about their sinfulness and specific sins) and put all of their trust in Jesus to save them and not themselves or anyone else, is “narrow-minded” in one sense, but on the other hand, they have been set free to think and see everything clearly. They are not narrow-minded in the sense that an obstinate person is who, according to Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, is “perversely adhering to an opinion, purpose, or course in spite of reason, arguments, or persuasion.”
      Those who say, “What may be right for you may not be right for me,” are narrow-minded. They are living in denial of reality. They say, “Everything is relative. Truth is what the majority defines it to be.” The authors of our textbook say that “Truth” is what the experts in any given field say it is (15). They are willfully neglecting to consult God for the definition of Truth. He is the majority. He is the one who gives meaning to anyone or anything, including words. He is the one who defines words. If anyone tries to make up their own definition for a word, they will have to deal with Him.
      A born-again Christian is one who has acknowledged and submitted to the truth that has already been revealed in creation and in the Bible; a narrow-minded person is one who sees the evidence revealed, but refuses to acknowledge and submit to the truth. God allows people to experience the consequences or rewards of their beliefs, whether they are wrong or right. A born-again Christian, following His example, is a person who has their own beliefs based on their convictions, and they allow others to have their own beliefs and experience the consequences or rewards of their beliefs, whether they are right or wrong.

Works Cited
Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate® Dictionary, Tenth Edition. Springfield: Merriam-Webster, Incorporated,      1999.
The Thompson Chain-Reference® Bible using the New American Standard Bible. Ed. Frank Charles    Thompson, D. D., Ph. D. Indianapolis: B. B. Kirkbride Bible Company, Incorporated., 1993.
John Ramage, John C. Bean, June Johnson. Writing Arguments: A Rhetoric with Readings, Fifth Edition.  Needham Heights: Allyn and Bacon, 2001.