What Faith is NOT: Part 2

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" rowspan="2" width=210 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000" bgproperties="fixed" background="1552c963.jpg"> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="2" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="158" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" ALIGN="RIGHT" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=CENTER BGCOLOR=#660000 HEIGHT= 71 WIDTH="146"><div> <A HREF="wf.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Waco Partnership for Psychological and S"><U>Waco Partnership for Psychological and Spiritual Care (WPPSC)</U></A></div> </tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <bR> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <A HREF="mailto:wmeades@gmail.com" TARGET="_top" TITLE="mailto:wmeades@gmail.com"><U><IMG SRC="6799c150.png" border=0 width="156" height="21" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Practical Spirituality"><U><B>Home</B></U></A></div> <bR> <bR> <div> <A HREF="intro.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Introduction"><U>Introduction</U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id484.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="What Faith is NOT: Part 1"><U>What Faith is NOT: Part 1</U></A></div> <div> <B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b700dcffffff00.png" HEIGHT="15" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">What Faith is NOT: Part 2</B></div> <div> <A HREF="id486.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Faith: Living As If"><U>Faith: Living "As If"</U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id487.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Faith: What Gets You Up in the Morning?"><U>Faith: What Gets You Up in the Morning?</U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id488.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Faith and Telling the Truth"><U>Faith and Telling the Truth</U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="7.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Abby and the Bad Witch"><U>Abby and the Bad Witch</U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="mfis_htm.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Mature, Functional and Immature Spiritua"><U>Mature, Functional and Immature Spirituality</U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id502.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Faith: Concrete and Abstract Thinking"><U>Faith: Concrete and Abstract Thinking</U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="rohrville.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="A Trip to Rohrville"><U>A Trip to Rohrville</U></A></div> <bR> </td> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=170 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000"> <bR> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="589" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 143 ><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="78480800.png" border=0 width="128" height="128" ALIGN="LEFT" HSPACE="10" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR><div> <IMG SRC="78c9e700.png" border=0 width="414" height="112" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 19 WIDTH="146"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="19" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="146" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP WIDTH="432"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="19" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="432" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" height=310 colspan=2 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <B>What Faith is NOT: Part 2</B></div> <div> <B> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="702" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 1154 WIDTH="696"><div> <B>What Faith is NOT: Part 2</B></div> <div> <B>The Misperception of Faith as Leading to Less Pain</B></div> <div>                   </div> <div> I recall thinking as a fairly young person something like, "If God really wanted to sell this whole Christianity thing, you'd think he'd work it so that Christians are happier and healthier than everyone else."  This way of thinking has roots in both the Old Testament and in the protestant work ethic (that some argue provided the religious fuel for America's frantic drive towards materialism). </div> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="5" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="613" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 84 WIDTH="41"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="84" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="41" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP BGCOLOR=#660033><NOBR><div> <B>     God causes the sun to rise on the evil and the good, </B></div> <div> <B>     and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.</B></div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <B>The New Testament book of  Matthew, Chapter 5, verse 45</B></div> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <div> Since most of us would like to be protected from the dangers of life, it is not unusual for us to want our religion to provide some of that protection.  In fact, there are those in virtually every religion who insist that believers in their set of facts have better lives than everyone else (though these are never, I would argue, the most mature expressions of the religion in question).  </div> <bR> <div> It doesn't take long for the observant person to see that God doesn't do a very good job of simply blessing the good guys and whacking the bad guys.   And yet, it is amazing to me how tolerant I can be of this obvious injustice, until it hits me close to home.  I seem to be able to rock along quite nicely, fully aware that hundreds of innocent children die of starvation every day.  Yet if something painful happens to ME, or to someone I love, the injustice leaps into bold relief.  Furthermore, miraculous healings and personal transformations, I've discovered, seem to occur with as much regularity outside the fences of my religion as they do within.  Again, this seems like an embarrassing oversight on the part of a God who surely is trying to convince the world that my religion is the best religion.</div> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="572" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 127 WIDTH="102"><div>   </div> </tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP BGCOLOR=#660033><NOBR><div> <B> </B></div> <div> <B>Christians know that Christianity is simply </B></div> <div> <B>extended training in dying early.</B></div> <div> <B>    </B><B>  </B></div> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <B>Stanley Hauerwas (See note)    </B></div> <bR> </NOBR></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <div> All folks who stay on a spiritual journey eventually have to come to grips with the fact that faith doesn't grant any special privileges.  In fact, mature religious faith will generally be a source of discomfort, if not outright pain.  Those who aren't willing to swallow this rather annoying concept usually either reject religious faith altogether or relegate it to a set of comforting religious practices that bring order to life.</div> <bR> <div> Questions to consider:</div> <div> <IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Wing0a73007700f000000000.png" HEIGHT="16" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">What DO I think about the place of pain in the life of faith?</div> <div> <IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Wing0a73007700f000000000.png" HEIGHT="16" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">Was I taught, directly or indirectly, that I could expect a less difficult life if my faith was "right?"</div> <div> <IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Wing0a73007700f000000000.png" HEIGHT="16" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">How do the current painful circumstances of my life effect my faith?</div> <div>      </div> <div> If, as I'm insisting, faith has nothing to do with believing information or avoiding pain, then what does it mean to have faith?  There are many, many thoughtful reflections on this question.  I'd like to focus on two:</div> <bR> <div> <IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Wing0a73007700f000000000.png" HEIGHT="16" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">Faith is living "as if ."</div> <div> <IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Wing0a73007700f000000000.png" HEIGHT="16" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">Faith is what gets you up in the morning.</div> <bR> <div> <I><B>---------------------------------------------</B></I></div> <div> Note:  Hauerwas, Stanley.  "Abortion, Theologically Understood," in The Hauerwas Reader, John Berkman and Michael Cartwright, eds.  Durham and London: Duke University Press, 2001, pp. 603-622, p. 614</div> </tD> </tR> </TABLE></B></div> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>