everything that's on my mind

In his song “I Remember (It’s Happening Again)”, Griffin House sings about war, including the tragedy and suffering it causes. In the song’s final verse, he sings of a friend who is “fighting for our country” in the middle East, and near the end says, “I need a reason why.”

Everyone has felt that way at some point, and not just about matters of war and it’s justification. Injustice and suffering exist in abundance in our world. We see it every day in the news or in our lives. And “why” is often the question on our minds, if not on our lips.

A couple of years ago, I read Bart Ehrman’s book “God’s Problem: How The Bible Fails To Answer Our Most Important Question – Why We Suffer.” Part of Ehrman’s disillusionment with the Christian faith he once held to (he now considers himself agnostic) was his inability to find a satisfactory answer to that question: why do we suffer?

Many of the questions Ehrman asks in his book are questions I have as well. And many of the biblical answers he rejects are likewise difficult for me to swallow. Like Ehrman, I want to know why, and for some reason, the older I get, the more difficult I find it to accept the standard answers.

Just last week, another event not too far from my home brought these questions back to my mind yet again. Flash floods killed 20 people who were camping in western Arkansas, leaving families without loved ones for no apparent reason other than being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Two families camping together lost six members between them.

Candace Smith lost her husband Anthony Smith, 30, 5-year-old son Joey and 2-year-old daughter Katelynn. They were from Gloster, Louisiana.

Kerri Basinger lost her husband Shane 34, daughters Kinsley 6, and Jadyn 8. Jadyn was the 20th victim found Monday. They are from Shreveport, Louisiana.

I’ve seen report after report on both local and national news over the last several days, and it’s so difficult to watch. Why did it happen? There is no answer. Some would say that’s fine, that we don’t and won’t understand everything now. For me, that does nothing to quell the questions. I need a reason why.

We used to sing a hymn in the church I grew up in that includes the line, “we’ll understand it all by and by.” I’m not certain we’ve been promised that to begin with, but it is beyond my ability to comprehend how senseless death and suffering can be explained adequately. If eternity has all of the answers, why can’t it share them with us now?

Perhaps my frustration with this lack of explanation (or, at the least, a perceived lack) and my struggle with doubt clouds my vision. Philip Yancey has always been one of my favorite Christian writers. Just this morning, a post on his Facebook page quoted from one of his books:

Doubt is the skeleton in the closet of faith and I know no better way to treat a skeleton than to bring it into the open and expose it for what it is: not something to hide or fear, but a hard structure on which living tissue may grow.

Doubt was never exactly looked upon favorably as I grew up in the church. I don’t really recall hearing much about it, and if I did, it was clear that it was not a good thing. But for me, it has grown significantly since my youth. I always thought faith would be easier as I grew older. Instead, it seems the opposite is more often the norm.

God is supposed to be in control, but when flood waters wash children away from their parents and husbands away from their wives, it’s hard to have faith that this is true. Whatever it is that we’re supposed to find out “by and by” might be helpful about now, because in the present, it sucks to be in the dark about why these things happen.

Yet I have hope that Yancey’s quote is accurate. Perhaps good can come from the doubt and the anger as well, and perhaps someday the answers to the question will seem more acceptable, or at least not as necessary. Maybe faith will be enough.

Until then, the question remains.

Just a few of the things I’ve been reading online this past week…

Jesus delivers the constitution?

I came across this painting online late last week. (Actually, I saw the version with humorous captions first.) I didn’t use the image in this post since it states on the site that it is copyrighted, so you’ll have to click the link to view it. It’s a ridiculous conflation of Christianity and American nationalism which is offensive in many ways. I considered commenting on it then but didn’t have time. Instead, I will direct you to a post by Greg Boyd, who pretty much nails it (and said it better than I would have anyway):

There are many other loathsome aspects of this idolatrous work that could be mentioned, especially regarding the people present in “Satan’s corner” (on the lower right corner), but enough has been said. The bottom line is that someday, people from every tribe and every nation will gather around Jesus (Rev. 7:9-10) and I assure you he won’t be holding a particular nation’s Constitution! The chief business of the church is to model this beautiful unity-amidst-diversity in the present. We are to manifest a Kingdom in which there is no male or female, Jew or Greek, rich or poor, American or British, and in which there is no violence.

This painting is a perfect illustration of the sort of primitive tribalism and diabolic nationalism that keeps Christians from doing this. It must, I believe, be renounced in the strongest possible terms.

Read Boyd’s full post Painted Idolatry: “One Nation Under God.”

To be a Christian…

The war between Christianity and science that some believers find it necessary to wage is often sad enough, but far worse when it manifests itself in such a way as to drive someone away from Christianity altogether. Internet Monk tells the story of “Niki”, a Japanese student visiting the United States. Niki came and left an atheist, and prior to leaving, explained why she could not be a Christian to a teacher of hers:

“I am an atheist because I believe in evolution. When people here explained to me what they must believe as Christians, I always ask them about evolution, and they say “You cannot be a Christian and believe in evolution.” So I cannot be a Christian, because I believe that evolution is true.”

I cannot personally buy into the idea that science is simply a “vast conspiracy” to destroy Christianity, as some seem to believe. Science seeks to explain the way the world works and sometimes that may contradict some interpretations of scripture. (Few people still believe the world is flat, after all.) Hopefully, we can learn from stories like Niki and not allow rigid beliefs regarding how God accomplished certain things (when he has not specifically revealed it) hinder others from believing in him. It’s not necessary to dismiss modern science in order to believe. Faith in God and faith in science can coexist.

You can read the full post here: Niki Made Her Choice and, Apparently, So Did We.

A love story

I’ve seen a couple of Michael Moore’s films (Bowling for Columbine, Sicko) and enjoyed them. While there are always valid arguments against some of the things he says or does through his films, I thought that both of the films I’ve seen raised important questions and created dialogue about the topics they covered. And that, in part, is what Moore is shooting for, I believe.

I’ve never known anything about with what kind of religious/spiritual beliefs Moore has, if any. (Turns out he is Catholic.) With his new film Capitalism: A Love Story just being released, I read this letter from Moore regarding the film and the question he asks: “Is capitalism a sin?” I thought it was worth the read, and look forward to seeing this film as well. You can read the letter here: Michael Moore: “Would Jesus be a capitalist?”

WM3

Just this morning I read this article posted at The New York Times site: Torn by 3 Lost Boys and 3 Convicted Youths. It concerns the case of the “West Memphis Three” and their ongoing attempts to get a new trial. Shortly after reading it, another article appeared in my reader from the WM3 blog titled “New Eyewitnesses: 3 Boys Last Seen Alive With Terry Hobbs”. Apparently, one of the boys’ step-dad (Hobbs), who was never interviewed, was the last person seen with the boys. Also, as was discovered two years ago, Hobbs’ DNA was found on one of the bodies. While much remains to be seen, it seems there’s one more bit of evidence pointing towards someone besides the WM3.

I’ve posted before on the WM3 case and have made plain my feelings about the case. Parents of two of the murdered children (including Hobbs’ ex-wife, the biological mother of one of the victims) now believe in the innocence of the WM3. Likewise, I continue to believe that the true perpetrator of this crime was never caught, three innocent men continue to sit in prison 16 years later, and hope that justice will be served one day soon.