I’ve just begun to read “The Reason for God” by Timothy Keller. This quote from the introduction struck a cord with me. I am one who was raised on the premise that there should be no doubts about religious beliefs or for that matter political beliefs. Keller describes both my experience and understanding about the place for doubt in one’s faith journey.
A faith without some doubts is like a human body with out antibodies in it. People who blithely go through life too busy or indifferent to ask hard questions about why they believe as they do will find themselves defenseless against either the experience of tragedy or the probing questions of a smart skeptic. A person’s faith can collapse almost overnight if she has failed over the years to listen patiently to her own doubts, which should only be discarded after long reflection.
Believers should acknowledge and wrestle with doubts – not only their own but their friend’s and neighbor’s. It is no longer sufficient to hold beliefs just because you inherited them. Only if you struggle long and hard with objections to your faith will you be able to provide grounds for your beliefs to skeptics, including yourself, that are plausible rather than ridiculous or offensive. And, … such a process will lead you, even after you come to a position of strong faith, to respect and understand those who doubt.