Well, as I said above, I am not as stuffy as my writing style makes me seem at times. And I take no offense, as stated earlier, I do respect the rights of others to hold their own views.
I do speak rather candidly, and perhaps am too direct at times, which I find many are not used to. I am also greatly appreciating the respectful tone of the replies I have read, and am enjoying the exchange.
However, I can only reply from my own point of view. For me, it *is* quite simple, there is nothing overly complicated about the gospel.
Christianity is "exclusionist" Christ himself said "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the father except through me" John 14:6 [NKJV]
We also have "Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leads to life, and few there be that find it." Matthew 7:14 [ASV]
We are the ones in need of salvation for our sins. God provided it, but it is still on his terms, not ours. This is demonstrated by Christ himself, that there is no other path: "And he went forward a little, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass away from me: nevertheless, not as I will, but as thou wilt." Matthew 26:39
If there was any other way, Christ would not have had to have been crucified. So I would say that this is about as exclusive as it gets.
In addition to this, there is right, and there is wrong. God calls doing wrong "sin". There is no middle ground, and we all have sinned. The penalty for sin is clear, and Christ took that penalty unto himself for our sake. No other religion makes that claim, or can. We, in our sinful nature like to think in shades of grey, and try to justify our actions and rationalize our sin. This is not how God sees things. He is just, and being just, cannot look the other way, or join us in our rationalization. But he is merciful, and through the sacrifice of his son on the cross, provided a way for us, we need only accept it.
If this limits my world view, in this aspect I take it as a compliment. I hope that some day my vision would be limited to that of Christ's. It is a worthy goal, one that I cannot do on my own, and likely will not achieve in this mortal life.
So far as "most" christian churches embracing the study of other faiths, I am not aware of it. I am aware of some "churches" doing such, often the same ones denying the authority of scripture, denying the diety of Christ and adopting a Gnostic pantheism, among other things I find too offensive to go into detail. That would remove them from truly being a Christian church in my view, as they refuse the authority of the very God they claim to serve.
I disagree with equating the study of the faith and culture of the people a missionary is planning to serve in the field with the theology those type of churches. It is a good thing to know the people one is to witness to. To then state however, that most or all christians should study other faiths and incorporate their beliefs (as implied by your statement regarding exlusionist viewpoint) is an error. The intents and goals are very different.
I apologize if I may have misunderstood what you are saying though.
