Weekly Newsletter: Nothing to Lose

     I am a football fan. I love to see my team win, and I hate to see them lose. Sports are like that. Much of life is like that. In sports, for every winner there must be a loser. But, does this winner/loser mentality have to carry over into our spiritual lives?
     If we carry the analogy into the spiritual realm, for every winner, there must be a loser. If winning is going to heaven, then for everyone who goes to heaven must there be someone who goes to hell? Is our religion much like pro football? If winning the Super Bowl is the ultimate goal—the sports equivalent to heaven—then does every team that doesn’t make it become destined to sports hell with little funding and a few fans who cover their faces with paper bags?
     It would seem that religions at times have taken on this win/lose attitude. We’re the best and only true religion, and if you’re not following us you’re going to miss heaven and land in hell. What if there was nothing to lose. Perhaps the truth is that there is no spiritual contest involved. Everyone can win, and no one has to lose. The universe will not be unbalanced if everyone makes it through to the next round.