I am convinced that there must be grounds for doubt as well as belief, in order to render the choice more truly a choice, and therefore the more deliberate, and laden with personal vulnerability and investment. The option to believe must appear on one's personal horizon like the fruit of paradise, perched precariously between sets of demands held in dynamic tension. One is, it would seem, always provided with sufficent materials out of which to fashion a life of credible conviction or dismissive denial. We are acted upon, in other words, by appeals to our personal values, our yearnings, our fears, our appetites and our ego. What we choose to embrace, to be responsive to, is the purest reflection of who we are and what we love. That is why faith, the choice to believe, is in the final analysis an action that is positively laden with moral significance. The call to faith is a summons to engage the heart, to attune it to resonate in sympathy with principles and values and ideals that we devoutly hope are true, and have reasonable but not certain grounds for believing to be true.
Terryl Givens, "Lightning out of Heaven: Joseph Smith and the Forging of Community," forum address, Brigham Young University, 29 November, 2005
I sense that my worship differs from that of many with whom I share a pew in sacrament meeting. This difference arises, I think, from a difference in the focus of our fundamental human anxiety...[M]y anxiety is focused not upon whether my immortal soul may suffer damnation but upon whether I have an immortal soul. It seems a pity to take one's immortality for granted, to expect it and count on it. It seems a pity to be so sheltered from the terror of death that one's gratitude for the resurrection is merely dutiful and perfunctory. Perhaps truly there are religious advantages to doubt. Perhaps only a doubter can appreciate the miracle of life without end.
Levi Peterson, "A Christian by Yearning: Pillars of My Faith," Sunstone, September, 1988, 20.
(Both quotes were included in the article "Soulcraft 101: Faith, Doubt, and the Process of Education" by Boyd Peterson)
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Very thought provoking statements, Jon. Doubt is a important part of the human experience. I think it helps us dig deeper into more hidden places in our minds/spirits like motivation and why and how we are where we are mentally and spiritually. Doubt can stimulate inquiry, it can promote gratitude and it helps us connect with our humanity.
ReplyDeleteAmen, Chris. I think it also promotes humility.
ReplyDeleteWow! I love this post. Chris and Jon, great insight. Especially this past year, I have wrestled with doubt. It truly has humbled me and required my faith to be a conscious choice. I am finally beginning to see purpose and virtue in doubt. Thank you for posting these thoughts Jon.
ReplyDeleteSteve
Dan and I tried watching the movie Doubt a while back, which I think communicates the same message (but we fell asleep). I did, however, watch it once before. I remember the preacher telling his congregation that doubt is a good thing because it makes us dig deeper. And that it can also be a bad thing when we aren't honest/public about our doubts.
ReplyDeleteJon,
ReplyDeleteI listened to the Given's talk almost every single week on my mission. Having had time to grow up and mature, I view what was one of my favorite excerpts in a different light. He gives a good illustration of the concept of preference, (what we "choose" to embrace) but I disagree that "choice" and preference have moral significance. People believe because their lives have been set up so they are rewarded for belief, not because they choose to believe.
I saw the movie Doubt back when it was in theaters and I remember really liking it. I might need to see it again, because I remember so little about it. Dan, I love that you listened to Givens on your mission. I had no idea who the guy was. I had some of the same thoughts you expressed. I think choice can have moral significance, but often I think it's moral significance that we choose to give it. Obviously going to be different for different people.
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