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I agree with you, Sage, that it's subjective, and for that reason I see tecoyah's approach to spiritual growth to be equally valid to mine. If heaven/enlightenment can be said to be a destination, there are different roads to it having different names, in my view. We also share the view that to be a Christian means to follow Jesus, if by that you refer to his actions rather than everything he is reported to have said.
Semantics admittedly gets to be a problem, even for fundamentalists, who argue over the accuracy of translations and the nuances of languages spoken 2000 years ago. At a minimum, however, I think (based upon my fundamentalist brother's statements to me) a fundamentalist would say that to be a Christian means one must accept that Jesus died as a payment for our sins, original and otherwise, and then physically rose from the dead, and that only by accepting him as personal savior may one come to know heaven rather than being condemned to hell. I can't accept that a kind, loving, humble, compassionate, selfless person able to withhold judgment goes to hell if he or she can't swallow all of this. Incidentally, according to scripture, Jesus affirmed the truth of the Old Testament, which I guess is why it is so often cited in sermons, notwithstanding the new all inclusive covenant with God (which means the Jews, all others initially being left out, couldn't hack the terms of the original covenant...but I digress also).
It would be nice to hear from those who characterize themselves as fundamentalists. Are there any of you out there?
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