Doubt

The opposite of faith is not doubt, it’s certainty. 

Certainty is missing the point entirely.

                                                    - Anne Lamott 

Certainty is so tempting, isn’t it? In the pursuit of life, with all its messiness, chaos and stress, most of us crave something or someone to give us the authoritative, right answers to all our existential questions.  We long for someone to reassure us and give us hope. We seek after something to be that certainty upon which we can ultimately rely. 

This is most certainly true when it comes to matters of faith in God. Yet, as the theologian Paul Tillich suggests, with God we cannot have certainty. Why? Because, according to Tillich, we are finite beings with limited understanding who are seeking to comprehend that which is infinite, unlimited and thus beyond knowing fully.  Additionally, certainty ends the questioning and searching that defines genuine faith, making it stagnant, asserts Tillich. Certainty is an ego thing, and a point of pride. This is why Anne Lomott can say, “Certainty is missing the point entirely.”

Doubt, on the other hand is essential to faith. Doubt paired with faith keeps us humble. It requires vulnerability and the ability to hold space for not knowing. It keeps us from a rigid, closed-minded idolatry to the absolute answer. It brings on a surrendering of the ego and places us in a posture of least resistance to the work of the Holy Spirit.

So, if you have ever had doubts, congratulations, you are in good company. You have a healthy, questioning faith. You are right where you need to be in the process of receiving the faith. And, it is a process of receiving, as we will come to see. 

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Have you ever questioned your faith? Ever had doubts? Have you ever had someone tell you doubting and questioning is a sign of weak faith or a lack of faith altogether? What do you think of this idea of doubt being an essential part of faith?  What do you think of this idea of certainty being the opposite of faith? 

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Photo: The Baths, British Virgin Islands, Eric Murray