If you have been reading my blog, you'll know that my previous
post was about doubting my faith, the very thing I have founded my identity on.
I am still uncomfortably doubting and unraveling one question just to find more
questions attached, like a chain of question marks hooked together. I have, however, come along way since that post and feel as though I have gathered enough thoughts to share. This post is definitely more sporadic than all my other posts, so sorry for the terrible transitions (I've been out of school too long).
**I know my blog ends up
being long despite my efforts to shorten it, so at the bottom are quotes I
think sum up my recent discoveries, and the sources with them, if you want to
skip the details. but I think the whole read is worth it**
Such a broad conversation is
difficult to narrow and concise on a blog, but the topic of this post is why I
have concluded that faith can be reasonable, it is not an absence of
intelligence, and the likelihood that there is an absolute truth. Let's dive right in!
Tim Keller's "The
Reason for God: Belief in an Age of Skepticism" was gifted to me earlier
this semester. Who knew it would come in handy for my own personal beliefs just
a few months later. I have been finding his arguments in this book quite
impressive. A quote worth sharing:
"All doubts, however
skeptical and cynical they may seem, are really a set of alternative beliefs.
You cannot doubt Belief A except from a position of faith in Belief B." --
Even if you don't support a
belief in god, you do support a nonbelief in god, or the belief that there is no
god. Because you don't believe in god you argue that religion is exclusive, but
would you include a
theist (believer in god) in your atheist community and practices? Of course not, because they
don't believe what you believe. All communities by nature are exclusive, religious or not, because by definition they gather for specific ideas or purposes they agree with.We all stand by truth claims, just some of them
aren't true.
I cannot say with certainty
what I know is true, but I can say there is truth, and I believe our perception
often clouds our understanding of it. The best way I can explain it is this; You could perceive that the sun didn't rise today because there are clouds blocking it. The truth is that the sun did rise, but you could not see it from your perspective. Just because you don't believe the sun rose, does not mean it didn't. In order to know the sun rose, you would have to know from a different perspective than your own. We all often perceive incorrectly as well as have ill understandings of truth. That
doesn't mean truth itself doesn't exist. And if it does, I think its worth seeking
out. Because whether you acknowledge your beliefs or not, you do hold some kind
of view of the world by which you operate in the world by. Since you operate by
said beliefs, I believe it is important to know what they
are, don't you?
Many arguments, I have
found, negate themselves. My favorite example is, "there is no absolute
truth." in which one could (and should) reply: "Is that absolutely
true?" -- oftentimes finding answers is a matter of listening a little
more closely and carefully to hear things we trust may not even support
themselves. Arguments about relative truth have the same backfire approach on themselves - I can go into detail another time about this.
I previously viewed
skepticism as ignorance, but from finding myself quite skeptical, I can say it
can be positive, if it is
pursued. In fact, religious communities need skeptics, someone who is
willing to halt blind following and challenge the crowd. Skepticism can be a
gift. Sometimes you need to walk in shoes you never thought you'd find yourself
in to have a humility you didn't think you needed. And boy, do I need it.
Doubts are 100% reasonable and understandable, but I believe the same could be
said about faith. We practice faith every day. We have faith there will be more
time for us on earth when we say, "see you later," or when we sit in
a chair we expect to support our weight.
As skeptical, as scientific,
and as proof driven as we are, we live very differently from day to day. We are
controlled by things that cannot be seen, like air and oxygen, feelings like
anger or happiness or love, and yet the biggest argument against God is that we
cannot know because we haven't seen. "Seeing is believing," but how
many things do you put your trust in that you have never seen? I mentioned that
questions keep coming up, but in some ways, they become the answers in
themselves.
As the
average kid just wanting answers to those questions, how do I search such a big topic? Well,
Google of course. I typed "Proof
of god" into
the search bar. The first link was to everystudent.com in an article "Does
God Exist." Thanks Google, for reading my mind.
a few quotes from this formally atheist author really grabbed my attention:
"I have come to find out that God wants to be known."
"he keeps the question of his existence squarely before us."
-- I can attest to that. In fact, I was writing a paper for school a few weeks
ago and in the middle of it I typed "I wish this god idea would
leave my head and never come back"
Don't worry, I erased it before submitting the paper. I don't want
my teacher to know I'm crazy! But the point being, as much as I want to be
apathetic or not think about god, it
will not go away. An atheist friend of mine recently told me, much to my
surprise, "There is no
way to deny design, but I don't think we should worry about it."
If we shouldn't worry about it, why do we try to deny it in the
first place? Why should we want to deny (intellectual) design? Because it would
complicate things? His sentence reminded me of bible verses I used to recite in
Romans 1 that say,
"for what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has
shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and
divine nature, have been clearly
perceived ever since the
beginning of the world in the things that have been made so that they are
without excuse." Even in my resistance, this is just so true. It's
frankly impossible not to ask or think of a god because of what we see around
us. This viewpoint is actually supported by science.
I recently became aware of a whole field called "neurotheology" which studies the link between brain activity and spirituality. Long story short, research supports that believing in God and having a deep spiritual need is rooted in our biology and genetics. There are so many physical, mental, and emotional benefits that occur with spirituality. It's really amazing! I attached the article link at the bottom as well.
Which brings me to my next realization. I watched a movie on
Netflix, "A Matter of Faith" where this great line comes up; "if
man had it his way, there would be no god."
Which I completely agree
with. No one wants to be morally responsible or deny what he wants for a God,
even if it is a loving God. That is the battle between gods plan vs your own.
By nature, we want to be in control and have power, that is what survival
teaches, doesn't it? No one naturally wants to submit to a higher power, they
themselves want to be the highest power. So I have a hard time accepting that a
god is a made up concept because since the beginning of time people have
incorporated worship into their culture, which seems contrary to the desire to
be our own boss.
Finding answers isn't hard. It takes patience,
willingness, and openness. Facing the convictions and answers you weren't ready
for is the hard part. As objective as you want to be, the "issue" of
god is quite personal, and I find that aspect of my research the area I am most
willing to avoid!
** Quotes **
From the everystudent.com article (emphasis
added), "God does not force us to believe in him, though he could.
Instead, he has provided sufficient proof of his existence for us to willingly respond to him. The earth's perfect
distance from the sun, the unique chemical properties of water, the human
brain, DNA, the number of people who attest to knowing God, the gnawing in our hearts and minds
to determine if God is there"
"It is impossible for us to know conclusively whether
God exists and what he is like unless he takes the initiative and reveals
himself."
"children left to their own devices would have some conception of God"
“The heart will not accept what the mind
rejects.” - Jonathon Edwards
"Think about it. If you approach your
studies simply seeking to confirm what you already believe, you are not
studying at all."
"ultimately my faith is dependent on God’s faithfulness rather
than my cleverness."
"The shame is not that people have doubts,
but that they are ashamed of them."
"One who has never doubted has never fully
believed."
