Where faith and reason met

I was due to pay a tribute to the late Professor Oleap (JNO) Fernando at a thanksgiving service on Saturday July 27, but was unable to do so. Consequently, I offer this public tribute as the next best thing I can do.

From the time I got to know him, Oleap impressed me as a fine blend of faith and reason. He was both a scientist and Disciple of Christ at the same time.

As a leading scholar in his beloved discipline of chemistry, he nurtured and used his intellectual gifts to capacity, passing on his knowledge and the fruit of his research to generations of students at the University of Colombo as well as at the Chemistry Institute, of which he was a visionary founder.

Oleap’s intellectual interests and engagements however did not obstruct or dilute his faith and life in Christ. To the contrary, he demonstrated that the faculty of reasoning and the cultivation of the mind were compatible with Christian belief and values. Working with him, and at meetings and in conversations, one sensed that in him, reason and faith informed, fed, and redefined each other, as they are meant to. He did not have to pretend to believe in order to reason, and did not have to compromise on reason in order to believe.

Tensions between faith and reason have existed in Christianity for centuries. This is largely because the Church has mistakenly taught or implied that faith is the opposite of reason and that ‘strong faith’ eliminates questions and has little to do with reason. This thinking came to a head during what is known as the ‘dark ages’, when the Church out of ignorance failed to understand that human curiosity also came from God, and virtually shut the door on the scientific method as the enemy of faith. Since then however the work of Biblical scholarship and theology has attempted to put this right, by affirming that reason with integrity is not only compatible with faith, but also nourishes faith.

The blending of faith and reason is intrinsic to the method and teaching of Jesus. Time and again as recorded in the Gospels, Jesus confronted the crowds and His Disciples with questions to make them search and think and then believe. And time and again as recorded in the Gospels, He welcomed questions from the people, including His adversaries, reasoning and offering insights into the mysteries of life in a way that appealed to the mind. Even a cursory glance at the written Gospels reveals that a high proportion of the teaching of Jesus has emerged out of this discourse of questions and reasoning.

For example, Jesus reveals His true identity ( His life and work) by pressing His Disciples to think and declare who they thought he was, narrates the immensely challenging parable of the ‘Exemplary Samaritan’ at the end of a bout of questions on eternal life and ones’ neighbour, teaches true greatness by querying a discussion among His Disciples on this theme and unravels the connection between theology and financial ethics when faced with a trap question on whether it is proper to pay taxes to Caesar.

There are many, many, more examples of the importance that Jesus gives to the blend of faith with reason. But the point is clear; in the fuller understanding of the Gospel, integrity of mind, plays a crucial part in producing an integrated faith.

The reason-faith connection that Oleap displayed was more than a theory. In him the thinking- reasoning- believing, process, was intrinsic to life and work. To encounter him was to encounter the life of a Christian academic. While he would have been the first to recognize that his life as a scientist and academic was inspired and spurred on by this connection, its spillover into a lively and life- giving witness in the church, was vividly clear to others. We have time for two examples.

The crafting of the current Church of Ceylon constitution, adopted in 2007, required the best from the best minds in the church. Oleap along with persons like Bishop Kenneth Fernando, Bishop Kumara Illangasinghe, Dr Narmesena Wickremasinghe, Yohesan Casiechetty and the late Sriyangani Fernando, all excellent examples of the ‘ faith- reason’ blend, were some of those who worked tirelessly to bring this work to completion. Among the salutary features of this constitution are the ample freedom bestowed on the two Anglican Dioceses to do their own thing and serve Christ among people, as well as provision for a Presiding Bishop and a General Assembly to facilitate the freedom to serve. Given his unstinting, intelligent and faithful contribution to this groundbreaking achievement, the 2007 constitution stands as a tribute to the endeavours of persons like Oleap who made it a reality.

The other is the modification of the duration of the annual Diocesan Council Sessions. For decades this entire event ran over a period of four tiring days, requiring people to come and go eight times, and imposing heavier demands on those who travelled from far. It was Oleap’s concern for the people and his relentless reasoning that changed this to the current format of one evening and two full days. At times a lone voice, he insisted that change was necessary and possible, and that the change he proposed would not undermine the business the Church was called to address. To remember him is to remain ever grateful for this act of compassionate advocacy.

Prof. Oleap was a gift to the Church and nation. Integrating faith and reason in his life, he taught us that the probing of faith and the pursuit of explanations does not amount to heresy. As a scholar he reminded us that it is she or he who reasons with integrity who grasps the fullness of faith. As a Disciple of Christ he endorsed that faith slowly comes to life, and is then slowly stabilized and sustained, through reasoning.

We remember him with gratitude for these lessons and more, and indeed for the most valuable ‘ faith- reason’ legacy he left behind. We honour him best as we imbibe and pass on this legacy. Bishop Duleep de Chickera