Dialogues

"Sorry?" I blinked.

"Jesus, ma'am. Do you know him?" the young man's honest face looked down into mine. "It's all right if you're not interested," he added quickly.

He was fidgeting a bit with the stack of pamphlets in his hand. Probably hadn't been doing this long.

Right. I wasn't wearing my clerical collar. With my shopping bags and (decently stylish, though my wife disagreed) sunglasses, I looked like anyone else enjoying her day off. I opened my mouth to tell him I did know Jesus - pretty well, actually - but...

I looked up and down the street. People absorbed in their little routines, their destinations - just like I had been a minute ago. Most wouldn't even give him that much. Maybe it was wrong not to be up front about what I did for a living, but... I had some time. Why not humor him? If nothing else, we could have an interesting chat about religion. Probably.

"I think so," I nodded, smiling up at the evangelical. "But why don't you tell me about him?"

He looked relieved to have found a willing listener. "Well. You probably already know the basics, but... Tell me, do you think you're going to Heaven?"

Oh, I saw what he was doing. The whole salvation by works thing. He was expecting me to make some comment about morals, then he'd tell me how Jesus' sacrifice made sure we didn't have to worry about that.

"Isn't everyone?" I asked innocently.

"Sorry?" he said, frowning slightly, as if he thought he'd misheard.

"Isn't everyone going to Heaven," I said. "I mean, surely a loving God wouldn't consign their children to eternal torment."

"Well, he doesn't *want* us to," he replied. "That's why he gave himself, to save us."

He didn't miss a beat. I was sure my universalist theology would have had more of an effect - but then, this was California. He'd probably heard his fair share of progressive religious ideas before.

I probably shouldn't have continued pressing things. Collar or no, being a priest was a full time vocation. But it felt strangely liberating, being able to turn his conservative idea of "Christianity" on its head without announcing myself.

"What about the LGBT?" I queried.