In praise of uncertainty
You really do need to dismiss issues of certainty when talking about knowledge for you can be certain and wrong and uncertain and right! Certainty is not a good guide to knowledge or faith but we have emphasised certainty and we have in our generation of Christianity have said that we are saved by faith and if you have doubts you don’t have faith, so you’d better not have any doubts, now that is an unfortunate confusion. We must teach people what to do with their doubts. At the moment some people repress them, but we need people to be honest for God knows anyway! When people have doubts, welcome them. Jesus is the master of truth and doubt, take it to him and test the doubts. We have a culture that encourages to doubt our beliefs and believe our doubts. But I say we need to doubt our doubts and believe our beliefs. The way to face doubts is to confront them, and act on the faith that we have and that will increase our understanding and knowledge. The bible records that the eleven disciples went to worship Jesus, some of them had doubts… what follows is the great commission. Invite someone to take a closer look at Christ who commissioned doubting people and his church.
