“Do cultural Christians view Christian faith as important enough to make it a priority when teaching their children what they believe and why they believe it?  Or do they place greater emphasis on their children getting a good education than on learning about the things of God?  Would they be embarrassed if their children did not possess the former while basically being indifferent about the latter?  If their children have any understanding of Christian faith at all, they probably have acquired it on their own.  If the children view themselves as Christians, it is probably not because they have studied the facts and come to a point of intellectual conviction but because their family is Christian, so they believe they must be Christians also.

The problem with this way of thinking is that authentic faith cannot be inherited.  When Christianity is viewed in this way, intelligent and energetic young men and women will undoubtedly reach a point where they question the truth of Christianity and, when challenged, will abandon this “inherited” faith that they cannot defend.  They might begin to associate with peers who are unbelievers.  In this company, they will find themselves unable to intelligently respond to objections to Christianity with which they are confronted.  Had they really known what they believe and why they believe it, these kinds of encounters would not shake their faith one bit.”

William Wilberforce, Real Christianity