*By Jonathan Merritt In 2010, Barna Group released a poll indicating that 4 out of 10 non-church Americans claim they do not attend due to negative experiences with churches or congregants. Seven years later, I doubt the numbers have improved. Countless Americans have been hurt by a church’s negative teachings, oppressive policies, immoral leaders, rigid expectations and misbehaving … Continue reading Hurt by the Church? It’s Time to Talk About It.
Advent, which is the beginning of the church calendar, begins in stillness and the dark, with us facing our deepest fears, cultivating our hope for the light. In the silence and the darkness, we hear our own heart’s cry, our own flame of desire, our own longing for God.
I know first-hand how difficult times of doubt are and how complex the questions can be. Just like the father in Mark 9:24 , I've stood at the intersection of faith and doubt and cried out, "Help my unbelief!" Reading his story, I can understand his pain. You see, I wanted to experience the power of Jesus, but all I could see was my doubts.
After walking the road of doubt, leaving my faith, and returning I've learned a few things along the way. One of the most significant was discovering that a lot of the "heroes of the faith" struggled with faith and doubt. Over the next few posts, I'll share their stories with you. So let's dive in with none other than...(drum roll please) John the Baptist.
I don't believe as I did in childhood or as a fundamentalist, but I do believe that there is something more, something spiritual. I'm ok with not being able to define everything, not in a blind faith manner, but with an honest belief where questions are a part of the experience. For most of my life I believed that doubt was the opposite of faith, but that's not true. I agree with what philosopher and theologian Paul Tillich said about faith and doubt,
"Doubt is not the opposite of faith: it is one element of it."
