Why Are Christians Afraid To Doubt?

I was just talking with Jar in chat and we were discussing how i could tell Gods influence from any other....
I told him that I would have to think about it.It then occurred to me that many Christians are afraid to question their faith and belief because it :

Exposes the human doubts and insecurities that most fundamentalists stuff rather than address.

We fear that we are blaspheming the Holy Spirit by questioning what we believe.

We are afraid to say that we don't know God as well as we thought.

​

Topic Question: Discuss why Christians or anyone else should or should not doubt, and whether it is ever appropriate to take a stand rather than remaining ever questioning and uncommitted.
Faith/Belief Please.

Thanks, Schraf! Topic Question: Discuss why Christians or anyone else should or should not doubt, and whether it is ever appropriate to take a stand rather than remaining ever questioning and uncommitted. So what do you think, Nator? Why is it wrong to take the proverbial Leap Of Faith?

I think it all depends whether one has faith in a personal God, be He a construct of the mind and heart or, as I believe, be He a very strong belief that exists outside as well as inside of us.Many people have faith only in what they have been taught.

When I first was saved in 1993, I was at a charismatic church. The Pastor used to tell us that it was demonic to question authority, since all authority originated from God.Now at EvC, some of my more liberal eclectic believing friends tell me to throw God away and not be afraid to question literally everything I have been taught.I guess I am still afraid to venture out on the ice that much.

But might not my faith be greater than my understanding? Why should I reserve the right to be the final arbitrator? Why can't I surrender this right in a Leap Of Faith....be it well founded or no?

Your answer leads me to ask some more questions---1) What type of evidence would you need to accept in order to confirm within your innate awareness (and rationality)an existent God?2) Why does the concept of God lead you to link it with fear?
___________________________________________________________________
Reminds me of the Serenity Prayer that we recite at my Christian 12 step group:
The Serenity PrayerGod grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to change the things I can;
and wisdom to know the difference.Living one day at a time;
Enjoying one moment at a time;
Accepting hardships as the pathway to peace;
Taking, as He did, this sinful world
as it is, not as I would have it;
Trusting that He will make all things right if I surrender to His will;
That I may be reasonably happy in this life and supremely happy with Him forever in the next.Amen.

This entire post is confusing and vague to me, Rob. I don't understand your point at all.

Don't start preaching, Rob. Im gonna get this topic back on course if you all give me a few minutes to break the darn thing down!I'll be back.....

My Topic Question: Discuss why Christians or anyone else should or should not doubt, and whether it is ever appropriate to take a stand rather than remaining ever questioning and uncommitted. Starting this topic, I perhaps should have clarified that I have taken a stand regarding the Biblical philosophies and scriptures used in my 12 step recovery program. I am not saying that the philosophy must work for everybody, but I have allowed it to work for me.Many of you are perhaps knowlegeable concerning the secular 12 step programs. Allow me to share the thought processes as I go step by step through this program.STEP 1) WE ADMITTED THAT WE WERE POWERLESS OVER OUR ADDICTIONS AND COMPULSIVE BEHAVIORS, THAT OUR LIVES HAD BECOME UNMANAGEABLE.

I was aware that my gambling addiction was something that I could no longer (if ever) turn on and off like a switch. I needed some sort of help and counseling were I to recover from this insidious habit that was eating up my finances and triggering my emotional synopsis as it left me quivering and tweaking for more of the same excitement. It was fairly easy to admit that I needed help, and I voluntarily sought such help. I did'nt have to seek a Christian program, but I have always believed that faith is a solid hope and an anchor. Which leads to Step 2:
STEP 2) WE CAME TO BELIEVE THAT A POWER GREATER THAN OURSELVES COULD RESTORE US TO SANITY. This is where secular minds and Christian minds often part company. For me, the communion of the group and the support that a faith-based community offers was part of my healing process.

​

Ironically, as I discussed the addictions, defense mechanisms, denials, and other of my human traits with other members, I was surprised to find out that many of them also visited secular recovery groups such as AA, Gamblers Anonymous, and Narcotics Anonymous.

​

They informed me that they actually preferred the realism and strict accountability of the secular groups and reported that many Christians went to the secular groups instead of to the church/faith based groups due to the fact that they were ashamed to admit their problems in church. What was also mentioned was the fact that the secular accountability partners and sponsers were more demanding and hard core than were the Christian ones.

​

As a Christian, I have never doubted that God exists. I have been challenged to examine my faith and answer the question as to why I do believe He exists. God knows everything about me. He is able to discern my truth from my lies. He is aware of the differences between my willful sin and my intrinsic sin nature.

​

He is able to restore me or to give me the intelligence to understand myself. Some say that He expects me to grow up and not be so childlike with Him. Others believe that God expects us to rely on Him 100%. I am not sure how He feels at this point.

​

STEP 3) WE MADE A DECISION TO TURN OUR LIVES AND OUR WILLS OVER TO THE CARE OF GOD. This is the step that I am on right now. Thinking about this step was one of the reasons that I wrote this topic to begin with. First, allow me to show how the secular version of this step differs in wording:

Alcoholics Anonymous writes:

​

3. Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him.

​

I suppose that a fair assessment of this step would be to ask ourselves some questions:

Why is it necessary to turn our wills and our lives over to anything?

​

What if we choose not to believe in a Higher Power? Would the logical step then become to share our thoughts and our wills with a group of people in the hopes that we could gain insight into our addiction or our thought process?

Topic Synopsis: And I contend that faith in God can be a rational option, as long as a fundamentalist apocalyptic mindset does not interfere with good old secular based critical analysis and rationality. I have learned so much by examining points of view that are different from my own. This topic started, in fact, when Jar and I were discussing whether or not God is knowable in chat.Former Episcopal Bishop John Shelby Spong addressed his world view in response to a letter from a parishioner: Spong goes on to say that

quote:

---

While I am certain that the word "God" is a human attempt, in admittedly human language, to describe a human experience, I affirm that the experience is real. We call the God experience "otherness," "transcendence," or even "the holy." We recognize that this reality is not capable of being defined, but that inability does not make this experience unreal. ...So I stand before this undefined presence that I call God, in awe and wonder. God is real to me. I create my definitions of God, but I do not create the God experience. So I am theologically a "Realist" not a "non-Realist."

---

Spongs view can also be summed up in his thesis, A Call for a New ReformationI wrote earlier that ...Now at EvC, some of my more liberal eclectic believing friends tell me to throw God away and not be afraid to question literally everything I have been taught. Of course I agree. I think that it is rather laughable to dump a concept that is bigger than my rationality and sense of self anyway. It seems laughable to throw God away. That would be --to me--like getting rid of all the mosquitoes in a swamp or all the air molecules from the planet. My concept of God is bigger than I am. I have, of course, chosen the belief unless mysteriously He chose me! And that is human. It could be argued that my concepts are in the box known as my mind and that in a sense, everyone puts any concept ever invented (or believed) in a box. Fair enough! Well, its easier to believe in God if I can understand God. For me, I honestly believe that God found me. I never found Him. I agree, but I think there comes certain times when you can't forever allow your critical thinking process to keep you out of the loop. As an example, take my 12 step program. As I said earlier, I am currently on Step 3. Were I a true critical thinker, I would never believe that a power greater than myself could even exist were I awaiting some visual, replicable, or testable confirmation. I suppose that I have felt a few of what Schraff calls woo-woo moments to leap to a conclusion, but some would say that I want God to exist only as a comfort zone or fall back position. (or as Jar would say, a classic cop out)I have seen changes in myself and others that I choose to attribute to God. I have taken a primary question and taken a stand on an answer. I am not sure whether I would use such a term as brainwashed. I contend that IF God is real, there is no way that my belief would ever come crashing down. I agree with you on the concept of boundaries, however. If a Man Does Not Stand For Something, He Will Fall For Anything! The question is what should I stand for? I believe that there is a power greater than myself. If I took away all of my woo-woo moments, I could allow myself to question His existence, but there again is a boundary that I hesitate to cross. I don't know why. (BTW folks, my woo woo moments were quite serious. I don't use the term lightly!

Edited by Phat, : No reason given.

I have a question for you, Rob. Why is it that you are always comfortable in the rescue mode? Can't you participate in the topic by discussing some of your hangups and addictions as well? It is ok to become vulnerable and honest.I get mad at you when you preach, because it turns many people off and they no longer wish to participate in the topic or discuss the issues that we are addressing.Add By Edit:One of the primary guidelines in the small groups I participate in is that We are here to support one another. We will not attempt to "fix" one another.Edited by Phat, : add by edit

---

Convictions are very different from intentions. Convictions are something God gives us that we have to do. Intentions are things that we ought to do, but we never follow through with them.
* * * * * * * * * *
“The world has achieved brilliance without wisdom, power without conscience. Ours is a world of nuclear giants and ethical infants.”
--General Omar Bradley

One of the acrostics that was taught to me at church was that faith stood for this:
Forsaking
All
I
Trust
Him.Evidently you find much more confidence in trusting yourself. And thats what makes you uniques and special! I think it would bother me more if you ran over to me (in the virtual world) hugged me and said that you now believed the same way that I do. We were foreknown and mean't to disagree. It spices up our conversations!

I trust my Christian counselor not because of his degrees or position but, rather, because I have observed that he is good with people in a social setting. After my first couple of visits, I became a bit more comfortable with him. I am still observing the demonstration of his effectiveness as he and I interact.

Thats a great letter to your brother-in law! I am sure that it helps him. The point that I am trying to make, however, is sensitivity when speaking to others of different faith persuasions.In the case of Schraf, for example, you are getting her no closer to God by the way that you attempt to rescue and correct her thinking.I will say that I like the poem. And I understand that it is important to share your faith.If it were me, I would respect other people beliefs more, however. It is OK to step out of rescuer mode once in awhile. (IMHO, anyway )