Comments on: On Doubt… http://www.collegeparkchurchplant.com/ethansfeet/2009/07/on-doubt/ Fatherhood, Faith, Leadership(?!?) and whatever else is on my mind Thu, 04 Nov 2010 14:50:46 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.1 By: jason http://www.collegeparkchurchplant.com/ethansfeet/2009/07/on-doubt/comment-page-1/#comment-125 jason Tue, 28 Jul 2009 18:32:34 +0000 http://www.collegeparkchurchplant.com/ethansfeet/?p=131#comment-125 Absolutely. I think a marriage relationship is a very good analogy. In fact I would say, and here's where i feel a bit like a heretic, that our marriage is a matter of <strong>more </strong>personal commitment than our faith. What I mean is that once someone is married, except for in very rare and serious circumstances, i don't advise wrestling with the question, "should i have made this choice" very often. Your married, that's it, move on and make the best life you can in that reality (again, there are certain circumstances where I can imagine advising something else but they are by far the exception -- e.g. abuse). On the other hand with faith, i think we have to wrestle with it almost unceasingly. We have to hold what we think and believe lightly. I mean we cherish it, and embrace it, and dedicate our lives to it, but at the same time we need be always ready to question it, critique it, and change how we understand it (or admit we don't). Another way of saying this is maybe that I think that doubt makes our faith in God stronger, where as loyalty makes our relationships with human beings stronger. That's not quite right either, but its getting closer. Absolutely. I think a marriage relationship is a very good analogy. In fact I would say, and here’s where i feel a bit like a heretic, that our marriage is a matter of more personal commitment than our faith. What I mean is that once someone is married, except for in very rare and serious circumstances, i don’t advise wrestling with the question, “should i have made this choice” very often. Your married, that’s it, move on and make the best life you can in that reality (again, there are certain circumstances where I can imagine advising something else but they are by far the exception — e.g. abuse).

On the other hand with faith, i think we have to wrestle with it almost unceasingly. We have to hold what we think and believe lightly. I mean we cherish it, and embrace it, and dedicate our lives to it, but at the same time we need be always ready to question it, critique it, and change how we understand it (or admit we don’t).

Another way of saying this is maybe that I think that doubt makes our faith in God stronger, where as loyalty makes our relationships with human beings stronger.

That’s not quite right either, but its getting closer.

]]> By: Angie http://www.collegeparkchurchplant.com/ethansfeet/2009/07/on-doubt/comment-page-1/#comment-118 Angie Tue, 28 Jul 2009 08:35:23 +0000 http://www.collegeparkchurchplant.com/ethansfeet/?p=131#comment-118 This is a really good post, Jason. I like your line, " . . . the life of faith looks like having a relationship w/ God, even when we don't believe in him." That is an honest relationship. It's like a marriage, right? You might wake up one day & it isn't fairy-tale rainbows kinda' love anymore, you might not feel much love at all, but you make a choice to love & keep doing the actions of love. Except maybe your relationship w/ God has to be even deeper, 'cause the big step is telling God you doubt, whereas saying to your partner, "I'm not really feeling much love for you today" could bring on way too much hurt for human beings in such a close relationship. I don't know? Do you feel like those two things are connected? This is a really good post, Jason. I like your line, ” . . . the life of faith looks like having a relationship w/ God, even when we don’t believe in him.” That is an honest relationship. It’s like a marriage, right? You might wake up one day & it isn’t fairy-tale rainbows kinda’ love anymore, you might not feel much love at all, but you make a choice to love & keep doing the actions of love.

Except maybe your relationship w/ God has to be even deeper, ’cause the big step is telling God you doubt, whereas saying to your partner, “I’m not really feeling much love for you today” could bring on way too much hurt for human beings in such a close relationship.

I don’t know? Do you feel like those two things are connected?

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