 He did say that to become righteous could be difficult (such as for the rich), and that some would not succeed at it, but not that it is completely out of our hands.
       Undoubtedly, there were already Christians in history, just as there are some considered “liberal” today, who argued for and currently contend for a shift away from the doctrines that came after Jesus, readings of scripture that are stubbornly literal, and interpretations of scripture which ignore historical context.  The future doesn’t hold a removal of faith, devotion, or awe for Christianity.  Critical scrutiny and empiricism won’t replace the Christ of faith for believers.  Religion won’t be taken out of religion.  Rather, the material in the four gospels and the Hebrew scripture to which it may point will be seen as incongruous with long-standing dogma, and will be exclusively utilized to perpetuate the faith, on a widespread and unprecedented scale.  The dissemination of ideas won’t be traceable to anything other than Jesus, a Christ of faith, or texts he would have upheld, and there will be a consistent diligence about the possible need to glean meaning from symbolism.  Some will always believe that God came to us in the form of a human, and others will always believe that a human came to inform us about God, but Christians of the future won’t be interested in dividing over this.  Instead, they will be interested in uniting in the quest to interpret and to embody his words.  Is the great reduction in Christian beliefs coming in future eras too simplistic?  Jesus said, “`Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’  This is the first and greatest commandment.  And the second is like it:  ‘Love your neighbor as yourself’” (Matthew 22:37-39).



     “The bird that would soar above the level plain of tradition and prejudice must have strong wings.  It is a sad spectacle to see the weaklings bruised, exhausted, fluttering back to earth.’”  In Kate Chopin’s The Awakening, Edna’s sad destiny is foretold by these symbolic words (Chopin 106).  Unable to accept the traditional role expected of her, she ultimately commits suicide.  Edna’s awakening is her coming to awareness of the possibilities beyond the illusions of society and culture.  “Above all, there was understanding.  She felt as if a mist had been lifted from her eyes, enabling her to look upon and comprehend the significance of life” (106).  Chopin makes it clear, however, that Edna has been since childhood predisposed for such a conflict, long before her awakening.  But at the time of the story, this conflict reaches maturity.  The people in her life seem to reveal, through the author’s rich symbolic tapestry, societal constructions of identity, pointing both to convention and that which flouts convention.   Mademoiselle Riesz, for example, feels Edna’s back to see if her “wings” are “strong” (106). 