It shows that the fullness of the Gentiles being brought in is almost complete

I do have to agree that the low level of knowledge of religion is disturbing, especially considering how many many people still claim certain religions as their own. I will admit, of those articles in specific you posted, I did not outright know two of them (I’ve not heard the name Maimonides before, and I my knowledge of the Dalai Lama is embarrassingly lacking), but I also do not know the context in which the questions were asked. However, I can quite proudly say that my schooling in the Roman Catholic church allowed me to confidently say the rest you mentioned I knew – except the last, which I learned in history/government class. At nearly 25 years of age, my religious path has led me away from Christianity. Even so, I find it disturbing how many people call themselves Christian and know almost nothing about the religion they claim. Six years ago, I was still helping to teach the Catholic faith to grade school children. It was highly discouraging to discover that fifth graders did not even know the basic prayers: The Our Father (which I am fairy certain most, if not all, denominations of Christianity know), the Hail Mary, the Glory Be. The Nicene Creed, admittedly, is very long, and in fifth grade, I wouldn’t expect the entire thing to be known, but some children did not know it at all, even if we started it for them. These kids were Sunday School kids, but some of them went to a local Catholic School. If a child doesn’t even know the most basic of prayers, which are simply memorized and repeated, how can they be expected to ever learn anything more complex about their religion? You can’t point fingers entirely at the lack of prayer in public school. I was in public school from sixth grade onward, but my parish had a very strong Sunday School program, and many offerings for deepening the understanding of the faith. My mother encouraged me to go to these things, encouraged me to be involved in the church. I was an altar server, a member of the children’s, teen, and parish choirs, a cantor (song worship leader, for those who are not Catholic), and looked into being an Extraordinary Minister of the Eucharist. (Regulations required that EMs be 21 I believe, due to the serving of wine during Communion. Not sure if that was the parish covering its legality before it became an issue, or if that was related to the laws of serving liquor.) I was a member of the parish youth group, went to many teen gatherings, went to high school level classes offered by our priest. I was willing to ask questions and do some of my own research. I will be the first to admit, there is still much for me to learn. But far and wide, I am ahead of so many others my age – and even older – by leaps and bounds. It seems to me that the Christians should know at least as much as non-Christinas, at least. Ideally, and logically, Christians should know more.

What is the cause of the disparity? Some agnostics, atheists, and others do religious research in order to try and find a niche that suits them, a system of beliefs they can accept, and therefore find a worship community they can join. Others do research so they can disprove religion. There is this laziness that has developed, I think, especially within the Christian communities. We’re not required to show our faith in God, it’s not so frowned down upon to skip church, to let children skip church and Sunday School. There is no encouragement to talk about it at home. Most people nowadays are too cynical to truly believe in Heaven or Hell, in God or the Devil, they way it was taught to our parents, our grandparents, our great-grandparents. There isn’t the same conviction. How can you claim you are of a faith, a certain religion, if you have no conviction to it? Is saying you believe in God and Christ enough to call yourself “Christian”? Some days, it certainly seems like that is what we have come to.

Now, being non-Christina myself, I am also not a fan of the other extreme that I have witnessed – the need to force Christian beliefs upon others. I have had the wonderful experience of meeting two Christians who have very, very deep faith, but were willing to respect that I did not have the same belief, and we discussed religion and faith. They were, truly, encouragement for me. They were what I would consider good examples of evangelists. The topic came up – regularly, actually – and we discussed it, one person to another. We were able to discuss our personal stories, our own proofs for various beliefs, and if I had been looking for a faith, they probably could have converted me, or at the very least could have made me want to look into it more. Having been raised in a Christian environment, I personally have nothing but the utmost respect for Christian faith, and for those who truly live by it. And I am insulted on behalf of Christianity when I hear of those abusing the faith. And I am discouraged on the part of Christianity by the lack of knowledge – and apparent interest – that both extremes seem to have.

It’s learned from somewhere. School, maybe. Media, perhaps. But also at home, and in faith communities. The best to be hoped for is that those of conviction can continue to offer their conviction, in the hope that it will inspire others toward conviction. Conviction is what will drive people to know their religion, to truly know and understand what they claim they believe in.