蜜芽传媒

I鈥檒l remember Pope Francis as the pope who wasn鈥檛 afraid of doubt. 鈥淐rises of faith are not failures against faith鈥�, he said, 鈥渁 faith without doubts cannot advance鈥�,

This week, the Church hears again the story of the disciple Thomas and his encounter with the risen Jesus. This very human moment 鈥� in which an angry Thomas says he needs some firm and hard evidence to believe in the resurrection - has even attached the word doubt to his name.

But I think we鈥檙e all doubting Thomases, really.

I鈥檝e been a Christian my whole life, devoted much of my career to writing and thinking and speaking about God. But there are moments when I鈥檓 not sure God exists.

Yes I feel a sense of devotion to God, observe rituals, praise and worship God; feel a sense of wonder and beauty and transcendence, just like other believers. But it鈥檚 funny how we鈥檙e called that, believers. When belief is just one element in the experience of faith. Sometimes we might wonder: is anybody really there?

Doubt is part of the human experience. We may believe in democracy, but doubt whether it can withstand authoritarianism and populism. We may believe in the triumph of good over evil, but doubt that鈥檚 true when we see newspaper front pages or listen to horrific news items on the airwaves.
Doubt is part of the journey of faith, too.

Over the past week there鈥檚 been much discussion of new data from Bible Society and its YouGov poll, which shows an increase in churchgoing, particularly among younger people. Some have debated whether those arriving at church doors really believe, or are just looking for belonging.

I鈥檓 not sure the distinction between the two is that clear. In this week鈥檚 Beyond Belief on Radio 4, writer and podcaster Justin Brierley said of Christians: 鈥淲e鈥檙e a mixture of faith and doubt, belief and unbelief. Faith is actually trusting in something regardless of whether you feel into it or out of it from one day to the next.鈥�

Perhaps what has led to our increasingly polarised world, is the human desire for absolutely certainty; certainty that our way of seeing the world is the correct one, certain that our politics, our theologies, are the only way.

Many clever people over many centuries have sought firm answers to the existence of God. When CS Lewis doubted, he found answers not in the cerebral, but in turning up, in paying attention. As he wrote in Letters to Malcolm: 鈥淲e may ignore, but we can nowhere evade, the presence of God. The world is crowded with Him. He walks everywhere incognito.鈥�

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