Embrace Doubt

I hear people say, "I'm spiritual but not religious."  It's one of those phrases that let's me know I most likely have little to talk about with that person.  Generally, what I've found is that phrase gives the person a way to avoid the details of religion but not sound like a heathen. It excuses them from an in-depth study of different faiths and allows them to just be a nice person that the grandfatherly, gentle, nice God looking down at them would be pleased with.

On the other hand, when someone claims to be religious, I'm not 'most likely' going to have little to talk about with them,  I'm very likely going to have little to talk about. 

In Karen Armstrong's book, Twelve Steps to a Compassionate Life, she says not to enter into a discussion with someone unless you are willing to truly listen to them and change what you believe if what they are saying makes sense; if it is right. I think it's safe to say that when a religious discussion starts, neither side is interested in changing their own mind based on what the other is saying.  Our lexicon even has changed to define religions as things that people will not change their mind about, such as Windows vs. Linux, Chevy vs. Ford, Republican vs. Democrat.

So, what is the path of religion? Most think it is a path to truth and certainty. I say it is simply opening your mind to the unknown and to seek answers.  It is to accept you have doubts, to accept that you don't know and it is humanly impossible to know the ultimate truth, yet to long for the truth.

When it comes to talking to religious people I always think about a scene in Crossroads (1986) where Willie Brown says to Eugene, "You got your mind made up about how everything works. How you gonna learn anything new when you KNOW everything already?"

Paul Tillich says, "Doubt isn't the opposite of faith; it is an element of faith."  I think the truly religious/spiritual people are the ones who realize they don't know the truth, embrace their doubt, actively search to answer questions and all the while push themselves to be a blessing to the people around them.  Those are the people I want to listen to.