Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Faith and Reason, tricky things to come by


While I was floating in Lake Michigan with my mother’s cousin, she relayed to us the ordeal of helping her 80 year old parents send an e-mail. They kept asking, “Did it send?” and “How do you know it sent?” she finally had to tell them, “It just did.” Faith that an e-mail sent, while it may be simple for younger generations to have is difficult for the older generations to grasp.

                The other day I was looking to see if any text compared Jesus to Socrates, since Jesus often used the Socratic Method to help his disciples uncover truth. I stumbled on a blog entry titled Socrates verse Jesus on the blog “Rationally Speaking”, the direct link is http://rationallyspeaking.blogspot.com/2005/08/socrates-vs-jesus.html. It was obvious the author Prof Massimo Pigliucci was not a religious man for he described Jesus’ existence in a very naive and skeptical manner. But we forgive him because he knows not what he does.

In the blog post, one statement, unrelated to Jesus, seemed quite illogical, that Socrates, “encouraged people to use reason, not faith to understand what life is about.” How can that be when faith is not separate from reason? We have to believe reason, have faith in it to accept it.

Think of a little child, they ask questions like, “Why do I have to eat?, ”Why is the sky blue?” “Why?” “Why?” “Why?” and after each explanation, “because your stomach will hurt,” “because the sun hits air and reflects blue?” the child asks, “Why?” In the end parents or others have to say, “because” or “I don’t know”, or my favorite, “ask God”. By answering these questions parents and others are teaching children faith, that if they don’t eat their stomach will hurt and the sky will always be blue. But that faith is supported by their experiences of their stomach hurting when they don’t eat and the sky remaining blue.

God himself does not ask us to separate reason from faith. That is why he gave us the Bible so we could use it as a resource to find reason to have faith in him. (Look below for “Reason to have faith in God” sketched out.)

For the older generations, having faith in e-mail may come difficult but faith in God comes easier to them than young ones who trusted in e-mail the moment they used it. Yet how do you get the younger ones to believe in something they find boring to hear about but we have many reasons to know is essential to having a truly fulfilling life?

 That’s as difficult as getting those in their 80s to use e-mail.

The Old Testament in brief; Reason to have Faith in God, (also posted separately);

1.       God says to an Old Testament Character, “Because I created the world, I know it. I will give you the secret on how to navigate through it; if you do BLANK, things will go well for you but if you don’t things will not go well for you.”

2.       Old Testament Character whines, “But I don’t want to do that because of BLANK and BLANK.” After a miserable time the Old Testament Character returns to God, “God why are things not going well for me (us)? Why have you forsaken me (us)?”

3.       God says, “Okay, I hear you. You didn’t do what I asked so like I told you things aren’t going well but I’ll give you another chance. Do BLANK and things will go well for you but if you don’t do it things will not go well for you.

4.       Old Testament Character bows grateful, “Okay, I’ll do whatever you say.”

5.       The Old Testament Character returns once the task is done, “It was hard but I did it and things are going well, thank you God.”

6.       God say to the Old Testament Character, “I am very pleased with you. Now do BLANK and things will go well for you but if you don’t do it things will not go well for you.”

7.       Old Testament Character whines, “But I don’t want to do that because of BLANK and BLANK.” After a miserable time the Old Testament Character returns to God, “God why are things not going well for me (us)? Why have you forsaken me (us)?”

8.       GO BACK TO 3 AND REPEAT (TILL THE END OF TIME)

So do we have reason to have faith in God, to trust in him? Yep! He’s such a patient parent, don’t you think?

 

Tuesday, September 04, 2012

Prayer...Answered


 
Monday morning I woke up with a crushing dread in my chest, I did not want to get out of bed. It was a work holiday and unlike most I dread them, because I usually spend the day lounging in bed, in front of the TV, and berating myself to get something done on the mental list I make for myself. Sunday night I wrote my list down (this blog entry was on it) but that Monday not wanting to get out of bed I feared my productivity would equal that of a slug.

                Part of my reluctance was my novel writing, which I do every day first thing in the morning, wasn’t going well. I’ve worked on the novel “Misconception: Search for Love” for years and on my 8th draft (or so, I’m not sure how to count them) I was feeling discourage it needed some major redraft. Even though I knew the only way to get through the troubled portion was to sit and write, “I don’t want to get up,” I thought and mentally pounded my fists against my bed. I buried my face in my pillow, “Don’t be like a slug,” I thought and felt that brick on my chest again.

 I prayed to God; “give me the courage, rip this fear from my chest”. Nothing happened. I waited, still nothing happened. So without getting out of bed I slid the Bible from the alcove by my bed and opened it up to Joshua. I was to read Joshua for a middle school group I’m helping with. When I read the text, “Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go. ” (Joshua 1:9) I got my answer to my prayer—God was with me, he would always bring me courage. I had no reason to be discouraged or terrified when he is with me.

                 I got up, after I finished reading, and the rest of Monday I got a good number of things on my list done; went to the gym for the first time in weeks and though I didn’t get this blog out until now I count it a productive day. And my writing; today I found a possible solution to my trouble—it will work itself out as long as I have the courage to fight against my discouragement and sit down and write.
                God is with me!