The Joy of doubt...

"...honest questioning doubt from a desire to believe, may have more to do with the deepening of our faith, than a unquestioning blind faith..."

I've begun an unintentional habit of reading the most profound articles in the most unusual of places. It makes going to the hairdressers and the Chinese take away a little more interesting. Last month it was an article about recapturing the emotion of awe and how a lack of awe affects our well-being .... fascinating. Saturday while waiting for numbers 18, 24, 32, 34 and 37 in the Ho Hing I ruffled through the usual freebie papers and magazines to find the Psychologies magazine and an article by Emma Cook called the 'Joy of Doubt'.

"Doubt is an inescapable aspect of human nature, and yet how many of us wish it were not?"

"Make peace with doubt -When you doubt, rather than automatically criticising yourself for being indecisive, remember that doubt is a healthy process by which you can discover your true beliefs..."

"We should feel proud of the fact that we see and struggle with the contradictions of the world. That is a very noble situation to be in . The opposite is to be a fundamentalist - unwilling to engage with or appreciate any position but your own..."

"Doubt is the beginning, not the end of wisdom..." (George Iles).


An interesting thought might be that honest questioning doubt from a desire to believe, may have more to do with the deepening of our faith, than a unquestioning undynamic blind faith that refuses to move beyond anything more than the cosmetics of mere acceptance.

"Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!" (Mark 9:24)

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