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Dear friends:
I’m regularly tempted to remind the overflowing Easter crowds that we’re open every week, that, in fact, we host worship four times a week, every week. Which we’ll do again this week, I’m glad to say, by exploring this wonderful story of so-called “Doubting Thomas.” I encourage you to read it here in preparation.
Educationally, doubt and skepticism are part of the process of new discovery. The history of science and medicine is the story of men and women strong enough to doubt conventional wisdom, often times in the face of fierce opposition from religious authorities. Transfusions, antibiotics, vaccinations, surgery – all of it grew out of the courage of a few individuals to challenge conventional wisdom, i.e., what the world was absolutely sure it knew. The same is true for astronomy. Galileo Galilei was excommunicated for allowing science to challenge commonly held religious beliefs.
It’s all a good reminder that something happens to religion that has no room for doubt/mystery — something not very pleasant, nor, in my opinion, faithful. It becomes exclusive. It begins to focus on keeping out those who don’t measure up, disagree or dare to think differently. Presbyterian theologian William Placher reminds us that an important part of our Reformed theological tradition is that God, even in revelation, remains hidden, mysterious. As St. Augustine noted centuries ago, “If you understand, it is not God.”
Most of us come to terms with this when life doesn’t meet our expectations or fit our pre-determined categories. Life is full of surprises - irrational happenings, wonderful and sometimes not-so-wonderful accidents, unexpected, unplanned-for love, ecstasy, beauty, sickness, death. Sometimes it doesn’t fit together, and a religion that aims for the bliss of no doubts, no questions, no unresolved dilemmas is not going to be very honest, nor very adequate.
We’ll explore this in depth this weekend. Come, and bring a friend.
Warmly,
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