In a letter to the Irish Times, which went under the heading ‘Science and religion’, a Mr. Michael McGuire from Donegal wrote: ‘Science is based on reason, logic, intellect and proof. Religion is not. There is nothing wrong with this. Religion is not based on proof.’ Similarly the Collins English Dictionary defines faith as ‘strong or unshakable belief in something, especially without proof.’ On the other hand in her book entitled ‘Unnatural enemies—An Introduction to Science and Christianity’ Dr. Kirsten Birkett says, ‘The Bible never encourages people to take “a blind leap in the dark”. On the contrary, it encourages people to use their minds, to think, to find out the truth. The Bible goes into great detail to give sufficient evidence for the claims it makes.’
I suspect that many Christians’ understanding of ‘faith’ is closer to the explanation given by Michael McGuire than that expressed by Kirsten Birkett. As a result they have an unexamined faith that may be susceptible to doubt. They may be vulnerable when difficult questions are asked by sceptical people. They may struggle to give reasons for why they believe Christianity to be true.
In the New Testament the Greek word translated ‘faith’ can also be translated ‘trust’ or ‘believe’. It does not imply something that is done in the absence of evidence. Indeed the early Christians did not encourage detaching belief from reason but rather sought to show people the reasonableness of belief. So Luke begins his Gospel telling Theophilus that he had carefully investigated everything from the beginning and written an orderly account so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught (Luke 1:3-4) and the noble Bereans examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true (Acts 17:12). Of course we don’t ignore the essential witness of the Holy Spirit in bringing people to faith and keeping them in the faith (1 John 5:6-10).
To suggest that Christianity is reasonable is not to say that we will have answers to every question that is raised. Sometimes we will struggle to give answers through our own deficiencies. It is not that answers don’t exist it is just that we are not informed of them. It is important not to depend too much upon ourselves in this situation. We should realise that the sceptic’s questions are rarely new and that thoughtful Christians who may be more informed that us have dealt with them with confidence. If the person asking the question is a genuine seeker or a troubled believer we should seek to get the help of a person or book that may be able to provide some answers. It is wise for the pastor to build up a library that includes books dealing with the common questions people face.
Some questions don’t have easy answers because God left the issue in the realm of mystery. The Bible is not embarrassed about the fact that we don’t know everything. For the moment we see but a poor reflection (1 Cor. 13:12, see also Deut. 29:29). Sometimes we have to say ‘only God knows’ but that is not the same as declaring ‘it makes no sense.’ Regarding mysteries Os Guinness writes:
… rationality is the alternative to absurdity, but it has no quarrel with mystery. Mystery is beyond human reason, but is not against reason. It is a mystery only to man and not to God. Where God has spoken and spoken clearly, rationality comes into its own; where God has not spoken, or for his own reasons not spoken clearly, there is the area of mystery. An area of mystery is rational to God, but faith must suspend judgement and not press human reason to answer questions when it has insufficient information.’
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