Skeptical Faith

Google Image One of the most powerful and memorable scenes in movie history is the baptism in the 1972 movie, The Godfather, in which “Godfather” Michael Corleone speaks for his godchild at an elaborate baptism in a Catholic church while he is having his enemies brutally slain. “Do you believe in God…?” the priest asks Corleone. “I do,” he answers as the camera moves to a scene in which one of his henchmen guns down a victim caught in a revolving door. “Do you renounce Satan?” the priest asks. “I do,” responds Corleone as another scene shows one of his lieutenants murdering a mafia rival in an elevator. “And all his works?” the priest asks. “I do,” says Corleone as another mobster puts a bullet through the eye of a victim lying on a massage table. A Willingness to Gamble with his Soul The juxtaposition of the religious ceremony and the brutality of the slayings is considered among the great cinematic innovations by Director Francis Ford Coppola and has been widely copie...

Google Image People searching for God gain insights from many sources. An obvious source, for me, is religion because it directly addresses the question of the existence of God and his/her relationship with humans. And, taking its cue from the nature of humanity, religion pursues God intellectually as well as emotionally. Science is another valuable source. Adam Frank, an astrophysics professor at the University of Rochester, author and a self-described "evangelist of science,” writes on a recent National Public Radio web site about his insights on awakening one morning during a rain storm. It occurred to him that rain falls in other parts of the universe, as liquid methane on Saturn, sulfuric acid on Venus, for instance. “We tend to think of ourselves as special, as unique,” he writes. “Our personal stories are so vivid and important to us. Our collective cultural history, expressed in our conflicts this moment, seem so pressing and so urgent. But we really don't...

Google Image Many people searching for God undoubtedly find the multitude and diversity of beliefs claimed by “people of faith” confusing, and even irritating. According to Wikipedia, there are approximately 4,200 religions in the world, and the United States has a concentration of them, more than any other country. The Encyclopedia of American Religions lists 1,584 “religious organizations” in the U.S. and Canada. When you consider that the population of the U.S. is about 319 million, and our country has a tradition of independent thinking and individualism, that number isn’t so surprising. Still, it results in bewilderment for many people searching for God. Which religion, if any, is right, or right for me? Why can’t believers agree on who or what God may be and on our relationship with him/her? Couldn’t Christians, at least, agree about Christ and what he taught? It just so happens that next year will mark the 500 th anniversary of Protestantism, when in 1517 the ...

Google Image  As you may know, the incidence of marriage has been declining rapidly. “The marriage rate is at its lowest point in more than a century,” reported USA Today in 2013, the latest year for which I could find comparable data, “and the number of marriages across the USA fell more than 5% during the recession.” There may be a silver lining, however.  “…A new analysis projects that pent-up demand and the large population of marriage-eligible Millennials, ages 18-34, means more will be headed to the altar over the next two years.” That statement is at least two years old and we don’t know how it turned out. But in the category of “anecdotal evidence,” I can say that young people in my family and those of my friends and acquaintances seem to appreciate the value of marriage and family as much or more than previous generations. Under Attack Still, the institution of marriage, and consequently that of the “traditional” family, is under attack. That’s why ...