I’ve been peripherally involved in a twitter conversation about the theology of Antje Jackeléns, the new archbishop of Uppsala. Being a new archbishop, her life and calling are now obviously open to the scrutiny and criticism of any stranger who happens to have an axe to grind. I want to say two things in response to this.

First, I am deeply uncomfortable with this habit we have of parading new archbishops before the world and judging them on the basis of oversimplified issues. I remember clearly some of the horror which greeted the appointment of ++Rowan: he went overnight from someone we’d never heard of to a well-known hippy-liberal who represented all that was wrong about the Church of England. (At least in the circles where I moved at the time. For all I know other circles heralded him as a well-know hippy liberal who would be the saviour of the CoE or, perhaps, far too conservative, too evangelical, too charismatic, too, well “too”). History has shown him to have been a deep, wise and gentle man under whose archiepiscopate (I think that’s a word but my spell-checker doesn’t – you know what I mean) the CoE weathered many storms. Likewise, when ++Justin was appointed, the world and its dog suddenly knew all about him and had opinions. This time, Justin was not unknown to me and I was in a position to see (at a distance) how unjust this whole process was towards him.

So, firstly, then, yes I have heard some rumours. Yes, they are rumours which cause me some concern. But for now, I think we should all back off and pray for +Antje and the Lutheran church in Sweden.

Second, one of the rumours which has at least the substance of a direct quote (albeit possibly out of context and possibly a misquote) interests me. The quote (translated into English, so caveat emptor) is, “Jesus said I am the truth but he didn’t say I am the only truth” (it’s on this webpage). This quote is in the context of the relationship between Christianity and Islam and whether Muslims (and perhaps those of “other faiths”) can be saved. Whatever +Antje believes, I find I am encountering this kind of idea more and more often and I want to comment on that.

[Edit: From here on, this post is no longer about +Antje, but about the quote “Jesus said I am the truth but he didn’t say I am the only truth”. Whether or not +Antje said or believes this, it is something some people are saying and to which others are reacting. In my opinion the two sides of this particular debate have opposite ends of the wrong stick.]

We have developed a dichotomy between the belief that Christianity (as defined by whatever metric you prefer – creeds being popular) is the only way to salvation and the belief that there may be other paths to salvation (Islam, for example). Increasingly we are being asked to take sides in this debate. But here’s the problem: the entire underlying question is pelagian. That is, it sneaks in a doctrine of justification by works. We must reject this notion wholesale.

In the quote above, the famous John 14:6 verse is called into question. Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth and the life”. Perhaps, the quote above suggests, Jesus is the way/truth/life for those who follow him. For other people, perhaps there is another way/truth/life.

But John 14:6 is emphatically unambiguous, “no one comes to the Father except through me”. So why all this talk about Christianity being the way/truth/life or Islam being the way/truth/life? Neither Christianity nor Islam nor any other religion is the way/truth/life. Only Jesus is the way/truth/life and, according to the scriptures, it is his action that saves – he comes to us!

Do you see what this does to the dichotomy? We are asked whether Christianity is the way or, are there perhaps many ways? We must answer that none of these is the way. The wrong question is being asked, i.e. “How can I get to God?” The correct question is, “How does God come to me?”

So, then, can Muslims be saved without becoming Christians? I don’t know. But what I do know is that if any Muslim is saved, then they are saved through Jesus. What about those who have never heard of Christianity, can they be saved? I don’t know. But if they can, then it is only through Jesus that they are saved. And what about Christians? Again, and this is desperately important given how much we all differ even on what “Christianity” is, any Christian who is saved is saved only through Jesus.

What about truth? Is Christianity true or is Islam true? Again, wrong question. Both contain truths, but any truth, no matter where you find it, is in Jesus who is the truth.

What, then, in the final analysis, does this mean for proselytism? If Jesus can save a Muslim, is it wrong to convert Muslims to Christianity? Why, in the end, is Christianity important? Personally, I think Christianity is important because it is where we can most clearly learn about Jesus and is the best way of responding to Jesus. It is Jesus who saves, but we must respond to him. Anything which improves our knowledge and understanding of Jesus can only help us. Or, put another way, Christianity is the clearest we come to proclaiming the good news. And the world certainly needs good news.