There is a piece of church humor that has been around for some time now in the form of a good news ”bad news type joke. The scene is the Vatican in Rome. A cardinal rushes in to see the Pope.

"Your holiness," says the cardinal excitedly, "I have some good news and some bad news."

The Pope replies, "Well, give me the good news first."

The cardinal responds, "I have just received word that Christ has returned to earth."

"That's wonderful," replies the Pope, "but what is the bad news?"

The cardinal answers dejectedly, "The call came from Salt Lake City."

Behind that whimsical bit of humor lies a profound theological question. What if Christ should return today? Would that be good news for the Baptists or the Methodists or the Mormons or the Roman Catholics or the Jews? Would it be good n…