Thought for the Week

I was asked recently: ‘What is the opposite of faith?’

Instinctively, I would answer: ‘Doubt.’ But is that right? The opposite of faith is surely not doubt, but certainty. If you are sure you know something to be the case beyond contradiction, you don’t need faith.

Doubt, on the other hand, is strongly linked with faith because, while you may have faith strong enough to move mountains, there is always the possibility your faith is misplaced.

I would argue the existence of God is proven by large amounts of evidence, but in the end that is a matter of faith.

The Bible recognises this right at the start where Adam and Eve leave the Garden of Eden and do not see God face-to-face anymore. From now on, they, and we who come after them, must live by faith.

This is what it is to be human – and faith is always open to challenge.

When suffering occurs, when disaster looms, people ask, ‘Where was God?’ and use what has happened to deny God exists. Yet the faithful keep believing. Why? There have been many attempts by faithful people to explain unbearable tragedies with faith in a loving God. Few are convincing – at least at the time.

For me, the love that people give to one another is God reflected in human goodness.

Living by faith is not easy. Sometimes it means being assailed by doubts and I believe we must be honest about our questions.

After all, did not Jesus say: ‘The truth will set you free.’ (John 8:32)

When those most bitter and painful tragedies strike us down, faith can be a consolation – sometimes the only consolation – even as at the time it is tested to breaking point.

Reverend Steve Fulcher, Church of Scotland, South Kintyre Team Ministry.