“LIFE QUESTIONS
We humans are (as far as we know) the only creatures on this planet who wonder about themselves. The rabbit doesn’t ask, “Why am I here?” nor does the sycamore tree say, “Am I fulfilling my purpose?” Only we humans stand at a distance from ourselves, in a figurative sense, and ask questions about our existence.
Do we ask these questions because we matter so much? If we do, how did it happen to be so? If not, how did we get such an exalted view of ourselves? How is it that we combine in our nature both baseness and magnificence? What manner of creatures are we? Why are we made as we are?”
Excerpt From: “Christian Believer – Session 8.” iBooks.
I’m so excited that the authors of I Don’t Have Enough Faith To Be An Atheist quoted Søren Kierkegaard. Kierkegaard, really the first existentialist philosopher, is complex and intellectually stimulating. Reading Kierkegaard helped me understand the paradox—which is not contradiction—of faith. How we have to get to the point of taking a leap of faith—what Dr. J. Ellsworth Kalas called in a lecture I attended, a leap into faith. Here’s the reference from the above mentioned book:
You can reject Christ because he has left your free will truly free. Author Philip Yancey adapts a parable by Christian philosopher Søren Kierkegaard that helps us understand how God attempts to save us while respecting our freedom. It’s a parable of a king who loves a humble maiden:
The king was like no other king. Statesmen trembled before his power. No one dared breathe a word against him, for he had the strength to crush all opponents. And yet this mighty king was melted by love for a humble maiden.
How could he declare his love for her? In an odd sort of way, his very kingliness tied his hands. If he brought her to the palace and crowned her head with jewels and clothed her body in royal robes, she would surely not resist—no one dared resist him. But would she love him?
She would say she loved him, of course, but would she truly? Or would she live with him in fear, nursing a private grief for the life she had left behind. Would she be happy at his side? How could he know?
If he rode up to her forest cottage in his royal carriage, with an armed escort waving bright banners, that too would overwhelm her. He did not want a cringing subject. He wanted a lover, an equal. He wanted her to forget that he was a king and she a humble maiden and to let shared love cross over the gulf between them. “For it is only in love that the unequal can be made equal,” concluded Kierkegaard.
I Don’t Have Enough Faith to Be an Atheist
This is going on my list of “Books Every Young Man Should Read” along side other great books like C. S. Lewis’ Mere Christianity. I love to read books that have one “Aha!” moment after another. This one does.
When I read a book which causes me to have epiphanic moments I know I’m mentally closing the gaps in my knowledge. Great authors have the ability to take complex ideas and percolate them down into language mere readers can understand and use. I’ve often had those moments reading C. S. Lewis but the moments are hard won in his writings. I Don’t Have Enough Faith To Be An Atheist is a book that delivers those moments straightforward.
Below is a quote from the book I found fun:
“If there is no God, why is there something rather than nothing?” is a question that we all have to answer. And in light of the evidence, we are left with only two options: either no one created something out of nothing, or else someone created something out of nothing. Which view is more reasonable?
…if you can’t believe that nothing caused something, then you don’t have enough faith to be an atheist!
The most reasonable view is God. Robert Jastrow suggested this when he ended his book God and the Astronomers with this classic line: “For the scientist who has lived by his faith in the power of reason, the story ends like a bad dream. He has scaled the mountains of ignorance; he is about to conquer the highest peak; as he pulls himself over the final rock, he is greeted by a band of theologians who have been sitting there for centuries.
Here’s a new quote from I Don’t Have Enough Faith To Be An Atheist:
…the Big Bang was the beginning point for the entire physical universe. Time, space, and matter came into existence at that point. There was no natural world or natural law prior to the Big Bang. Since a cause cannot come after its effect, natural forces cannot account for the Big Bang. Therefore, there must be something outside of nature to do the job. That’s exactly what the word supernatural means.
This style of point takes me back to Miracles by C. S. Lewis. It takes a lot of brute force effort to remain atheist in the face of this sort of reasoning. It’s actually easier to be a believer; something other than reason is preventing it. Reasoning like in the quote above makes me also wonder why so many Christians don’t accept the Big Bang. Faith, reason and science a completely compatible without sacrificing any aspect of faith. Science is the observation & study of God’s creation.
It’s moments like this that make me realize my mental limits. Someday, perhaps, I’ll be able to absorb these complex strings of words with ease—but not yet. Here’s what I’m talking about:
All purposive action of men rests upon and presupposes the constant operation of natural forces. I plan for tomorrow and for next year on the supposition that the revolution of the earth upon its axis and about the sun will continue. If in following up my plan I walk along a street at the precise moment when a chimney is blown down so that it nearly or quite kills me, that is an “accident”; the fall of rocks from a mountain into an empty valley is not called an accident unless there is a person, or a building representing the purpose of a person, near where the rocks fall. It appears then that while the constancy of natural processes is the necessary prerequisite for intelligent, purposive and moral action, that same constancy may sometimes cut across the sequence of purposive actions and hinder the fulfillment of purpose.
—William Temple
Ouch. Free will? Problem of Pain? My brain is hurting.
The following quote is from the book, I Don’t Have Enough Faith To Be An Atheist:
Socrates once said that the unexamined life is not worth living. We believe that the unexamined faith is not worth believing. Furthermore, contrary to popular opinion, Christians are not supposed to “just have faith.” Christians are commanded to know what they believe and why they believe it. They are commanded to give answers to those who ask (1 Pet. 3:15), and to demolish arguments against the Christian faith (2 Cor. 10:4-5). Since God is reasonable (Isa. 1:18) and wants us to use our reason, Christians don’t get brownie points for being stupid. In fact, using reason is part of the greatest commandment which, according to Jesus, is to “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” (Matt. 22:37).
Much—perhaps most—of my life I’ve been apathetic in professing the truth of the Christian faith. My education concerning my faith was faulty, downright wrong in many areas.
I can’t hold a position and argue it if I don’t believe it. The problem wasn’t in Christianity itself, rather it was the erroneous data I had concerning Christianity. Also, it wasn’t honest to blame those who taught me the errors as truth.
It was and is my responsibility to know all I can know of the truth and to be able—in a loving spirit—to profess that truth.
That’s why the quote hit home with me. I’m excited to read more of the book, it’s empowering.
What is evil? Could it have a purpose? Here is a view of evil from an adult rather than a childish perspective.
An ambassador is…
§ Ready. An Ambassador is alert for chances to represent Christ and will not back away from a challenge or an opportunity.
§ Patient. An Ambassador won’t quarrel, but will listen in order to understand, then with gentleness seek to respectfully engage those who disagree.
§ Reasonable. An Ambassador has informed convictions (not just feelings), gives reasons, asks questions, aggressively seeks answers, and will not be stumped by the same challenge twice.
§ Tactical. An Ambassador adapts to each unique person and situation, maneuvering with wisdom to challenge bad thinking, presenting the truth in an understandable and compelling way.
§ Clear. An Ambassador is careful with language and will not rely on Christian lingo nor gain unfair advantage by resorting to empty rhetoric.
§ Fair. An Ambassador is sympathetic and understanding towards others and will acknowledge the merits of contrary views.
§ Honest. An Ambassador is careful with the facts and will not misrepresent another’s view, overstate his own case, or understate the demands of the Gospel.
§ Humble. An Ambassador is provisional in his claims, knowing that his understanding of truth is fallible. He will not press a point beyond what his evidence allows.
§ Attractive. An Ambassador will act with grace, kindness, and good manners. He will not dishonor Christ in his conduct.
§ Dependent. An Ambassador knows that effectiveness requires joining his best efforts with God’s power.
Source: Stand To Reason
