Damn Tracts

I picked up a tract the other day. For those of you who are unfamiliar, a tract is sort of a little booklet or summary of the 'Christian message' that normally gets handed out. I don't know if that's the correct definition, if it was some other religious message I'm sure that would be a tract too. Now I must say I'm not dead against tracts, in fact I've been known to defend them as well as the guy who stands on his soap box and preaches to the weekend shoppers or nighttime revelers. But I think my stance is changing. This tract was basically a cartoon storyboard of a mans life from start to finish, and to be honest it was going quite well until he got into his mid-50s. The cartoon showed this man and his family on this very large road, crammed with people all going in the same direction. The metaphor I presume was this is what life is like, everyone all going down the same road, zombie like in appearance. The 'hero' in our story is a gentleman who offers an escape. There is a small offshoot on this large road and it appears to lead up a thin rocky mountainside. I would even concede that we are OK up until this point. However it is the gentleman's sell which is disturbing. His sell is a classic one, and one we have heard many times before regarding the 'road to destruction' and the 'road to heaven'. But is that what Christianity is? Is it a trap door into another portal? Is it a revolving bookcase to another dimension? Is it as simple as choosing the red pill? I'm going to hold my hands up here, if it is then great, show me what I have to do!

The Christians I have been speaking to would suggest that that is not real. If I just flick the switch and I'm guaranteed a spot in heaven......then great......for me. But how does 'me getting into heaven' help anyone else? Well in its rawest form, it doesn't, which would make Christianity a very selfish religion. Would the tract dispensers be happy with that definition? probably not, but I believe it is exactly what their tracts tell the rest of us.