(that is, religions that view everyone else as a spectrum from “good but deeply flawed” to “hellbound”
That isn’t exactly a spectrum. There are serious and sincere believers who I have met who are forthright with the ‘hellbound’ prediction while also being far less judgemental than others who say ‘good but deeply flawed’. “Hellbound” is a prediction about future consequences not a personal criticism.
Indeed, I had two close friends in high school who predicted I was definitely going to hell. One academic liberal, one fundamentalist conservative. (It didn’t come up much.)
I meant ‘religions with claims to exclusivity’, basically. I don’t think anyone today worries that they’ll lose their social world if they leave their Unitarian church.
But yes, the relationship between theology and arrogance isn’t quite as simple as some might think.
That isn’t exactly a spectrum. There are serious and sincere believers who I have met who are forthright with the ‘hellbound’ prediction while also being far less judgemental than others who say ‘good but deeply flawed’. “Hellbound” is a prediction about future consequences not a personal criticism.
Indeed, I had two close friends in high school who predicted I was definitely going to hell. One academic liberal, one fundamentalist conservative. (It didn’t come up much.)
I meant ‘religions with claims to exclusivity’, basically. I don’t think anyone today worries that they’ll lose their social world if they leave their Unitarian church.
But yes, the relationship between theology and arrogance isn’t quite as simple as some might think.