I talk, sometimes to myself. I talk, until even I get tired of hearing it. What are we social animals if we do not talk? And do we not stand to gain so much by seeking to know? Talking is our tool to exchange ideas. I talk, because I seek to know.
I know what I know. I know what I don't know. If someone knows something I don't, I want to know. If I know something they don't, why the hell don't they want to know?
Religion is a presumption of knowledge without possession of knowledge. A certainty without certainty. A faith in faith. A belief in belief.
Why do I oppose it? Because I make sense of what I see. If I see problems, I address them. What could be more important than filtering out misconceptions and developing a more accurate understanding of reality?
To believe in God, one must believe that belief is an ideal state. If one were to determine that belief were not an ideal state, they would attempt to establish factual certainty instead.
If we are here to love God, and God would have us believe in him, rather than know factually of him, then it can be determined that our purpose is belief, not knowledge. Knowledge may serve a purpose in this process, but it is secondary to faith.
Take the example of children. Jesus repeatedly advises us to be like children: not necessarily knowing, but trusting all the same. Adhering to an authority. Being led. This is not negative in this context. It is positive. Just like children don't understand the ways of adults, adults don't understand God. We are not meant to. We cannot.
So, why is this? What is the importance of believing in an invisible God rather than knowing an apparent God? They say God is evidenced by the world around us. What would a world not created by God look like? Chaos? Suffering? Imperfection? We see it now. Is this because we sinned? Wouldn't God know what would happen to this world if we sinned? He created it intricately and all-knowingly.
So, this is the world created by a God, who knew it would fall into disrepair because of our sins. He still expected us to see his perfect hand in this imperfection, to the point where we would believe in him without seeing him because of this world, this reality.
Again, what would an imperfect world NOT created by God look like? Terrible disasters? Slaughtered children? Dog-eat-dog survival? Fear? Hate? Confusion? Would it look any different?
This imperfect world is our evidence. These books, these prayers, these songs, these stories, these ideas, these feelings. These are what we make our choice by. Belief, not certainty. Why?
Because we can love him that much more, by trusting without seeing? Why is this true with God, but not with other people? When we look at thousands dying in Haiti, we may frown or sigh. When one child we know suffers or dies, we are devastated, traumatized. We are equipped to care for what we know, what we see. We cannot fathom God the way we cannot fathom Haiti, because we are social and personal animals.
But God has a personal relationship with us, despite a lack of physical interaction. So many questions. Why does the world exist? Why isn't he in it? Why aren't we just minds interacting with him? If this world is so evil, so destined to be evil, why did he create it? How did the world become evil just because man did?
And why is this the better way? Why is believing the better way? We'll love him more? Is this really true?
We'll see.
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