How To Deconstruct Your Faith Without Losing It

[Sarah G van G]

An interesting article:

''A big reason, according to McHargue, is the level of fear involved. The more rigid your faith structure, the more drastic the leap of faith required to start asking questions surrounding it.''

“You go back to the first 1,300 years of Christianity, and faith is defined as a combination of knowing and not knowing. Of
a willingness and readiness by the grace of God to live with a certain degree of unknowing or what the mystics call darkness,” Rohr says. “Now with that out of the picture, and people getting the impression that they have a right to perfect certitude and perfect clarity and perfect order every step of the way, you’ve basically—I’m gonna say it strongly—you’ve basically destroyed the biblical idea of faith to begin with.”

''“I look back at who I was 20 years ago, 10 years ago and even five years ago and we are always growing,” Bessey says. “And I think that’s part of the point. If you’re not growing, changing and evolving, you’re not paying attention to what the Holy Spirit is wanting to do.”

How to Deconstruct Your Faith Without Losing It

 

[Gregory Thompson]

faith =/= certainty
faith = trust

 

[xianghua]

An interesting article:

''A big reason, according to McHargue, is the level of fear involved. The more rigid your faith structure, the more drastic the leap of faith required to start asking questions surrounding it.''

“You go back to the first 1,300 years of Christianity, and faith is defined as a combination of knowing and not knowing. Of
a willingness and readiness by the grace of God to live with a certain degree of unknowing or what the mystics call darkness,” Rohr says. “Now with that out of the picture, and people getting the impression that they have a right to perfect certitude and perfect clarity and perfect order every step of the way, you’ve basically—I’m gonna say it strongly—you’ve basically destroyed the biblical idea of faith to begin with.”

''“I look back at who I was 20 years ago, 10 years ago and even five years ago and we are always growing,” Bessey says. “And I think that’s part of the point. If you’re not growing, changing and evolving, you’re not paying attention to what the Holy Spirit is wanting to do.”

How to Deconstruct Your Faith Without Losing It

there is also scientific evidence for the existence of god. as you can see in my signature link.

 

[bhsmte]

An interesting article:

''A big reason, according to McHargue, is the level of fear involved. The more rigid your faith structure, the more drastic the leap of faith required to start asking questions surrounding it.''

“You go back to the first 1,300 years of Christianity, and faith is defined as a combination of knowing and not knowing. Of
a willingness and readiness by the grace of God to live with a certain degree of unknowing or what the mystics call darkness,” Rohr says. “Now with that out of the picture, and people getting the impression that they have a right to perfect certitude and perfect clarity and perfect order every step of the way, you’ve basically—I’m gonna say it strongly—you’ve basically destroyed the biblical idea of faith to begin with.”

''“I look back at who I was 20 years ago, 10 years ago and even five years ago and we are always growing,” Bessey says. “And I think that’s part of the point. If you’re not growing, changing and evolving, you’re not paying attention to what the Holy Spirit is wanting to do.”

How to Deconstruct Your Faith Without Losing It

Good post.

Religious/faith beliefs typically evolve over time, for most people that have them.

For instance, how many Christians believed in biblical creationism 100 years ago as part of their personal faith belief? Likely a very high percentage. 50 years ago, this percentage dropped and today, that percentage has dropped tremendously, from what it was 100 years ago.

That is just one example, of how personal faith beliefs, adjust as we learn more about the realities of the universe we live in.

 

[ViaCrucis]

A worldview of "certainty", I do strongly believe, is detrimental to faith. Faith needs to be more than "certainty" in the rightness of one's beliefs--faith without questions isn't faith.

-CryptoLutheran

 

[bhsmte]

A worldview of "certainty", I do strongly believe, is detrimental to faith. Faith needs to be more than "certainty" in the rightness of one's beliefs--faith without questions isn't faith.

-CryptoLutheran

Agree and will add, IMO the folks with faith beliefs, who need to claim they are 100% certain and anyone who disagrees with them are misguided, are likely the folks, that are trying desperately, to mask a deep insecurity they hold about their beliefs.

 

[Citizen of the Kingdom]

I don't see how anyone can grow in faith w/o having the bottom fall out of their belief system numerous times only to be replaced with higher truths. Those are the times that faith is tested the most and rewarded the strongest. Truth has a way of being only yah wide but it is also infinitely deep.

 

[afishamongmany]

An interesting article:
''A big reason, according to McHargue, is the level of fear involved. The more rigid your faith structure, the more drastic the leap of faith required to start asking questions surrounding it.''
How to Deconstruct Your Faith Without Losing It

Hello Sarah G – O dear, I read through T. Hukabee's article and found it quite depressing. There is so much of this stuff around these days.

The main message seemed to be that being secure and certain in the christian faith is crass but that uncertainty and insecurity about what one believes is cool. The Mchargue quote, “The biggest thing I got from being a fundamentalist evangelical and then a fundamentalist atheist, was I was fundamentally wrong about how the world works twice. I’m determined to not make that mistake again.” seem to be advocating a life of continual incertitude. This is not what The Lord teaches.

It's all so vague. I don't know what Sarah Bessey believed before her 'faith deconstruction' nor what she believed after it. She talks of 'a system of beliefs' that 'are no longer adequate', that she no longer trusts. Here is the crux of it. Saving, sustaining christian faith is trust in and knowledge of a person, the Jesus Christ of the Bible. Doctrine (systems of belief?) is important but first must be that foundational rock on which all else (that endures) is built.

God's word speaks of growing in faith, walking in faith, overcoming by faith. We are told that, faith is substance and evidence and that by faith we understand things that otherwise would be unknowable to us. Nowhere is the notion of 'deconstruction' 'reconstruction' of faith taught as being a component of sound christian living. Paul does warn of the possibility of faith being shipwrecked.

Go well, go wisely
><>

 

[2PhiloVoid]

An interesting article:

''A big reason, according to McHargue, is the level of fear involved. The more rigid your faith structure, the more drastic the leap of faith required to start asking questions surrounding it.''

“You go back to the first 1,300 years of Christianity, and faith is defined as a combination of knowing and not knowing. Of
a willingness and readiness by the grace of God to live with a certain degree of unknowing or what the mystics call darkness,” Rohr says. “Now with that out of the picture, and people getting the impression that they have a right to perfect certitude and perfect clarity and perfect order every step of the way, you’ve basically—I’m gonna say it strongly—you’ve basically destroyed the biblical idea of faith to begin with.”

''“I look back at who I was 20 years ago, 10 years ago and even five years ago and we are always growing,” Bessey says. “And I think that’s part of the point. If you’re not growing, changing and evolving, you’re not paying attention to what the Holy Spirit is wanting to do.”

How to Deconstruct Your Faith Without Losing It

I would just add that IF a person feels like deconstructing her 'faith,' then she should remember that the same sauce that's good for the goose is also good for the gander. So, deconstruct faith all you want; just remember to apply the same philosophical scrutiny to all other views as well.

Peace,
2PhiloVoid

 

[Sarah G van G]

I don't think the author simply chose to deconstruct her faith because she thought it would be a cool thing to do. It seems more like it happened due to the extreme grief she experienced when her baby died in her womb.

 

[bhsmte]

We all can have events in life, that either bring us towards faith beliefs or either move us away from faith beliefs.

 

[2PhiloVoid]

I don't think the author simply chose to deconstruct her faith because she thought it would be a cool thing to do. It seems more like it happened due to the extreme grief she experienced when her baby died in her womb.

Well, yeah. That is a sad circumstance that could lead one to deconstruct faith. I think it is for many. I know that it was one of the things that caused by mother to have emotional disturbances later in life that plagued her attempts to affirm her faith. From what I understand, there was the potential for me to have had an older brother.

 

[afishamongmany]

I don't think the author simply chose to deconstruct her faith because she thought it would be a cool thing to do. It seems more like it happened due to the extreme grief she experienced when her baby died in her womb.

Hi Sarah G - nearly missed this, presume it's a response to my post.
No I don't think that the lady was concerned about being cool either. Yes, she was reacting to her extreme grief. The point is, was it, is it, the right reaction? My wife and I experienced two miscarriages between the births of our first and second child. Did that cause great emotional pain and much questioning? Sure. Did it cause us to 'deconstruct' our faith in Jesus Christ The Lord? No, because we were and are certain that He is faithful and true.
As I said, the problem with the article is that we don't know what was 'wrong' with the un-deconstructed faith that was then made 'right' by the reconstruction of faith. It is process (a reaction?) that is being commended without any examination of results.
Go well
><>

 

[GrowingSmaller]

One way to deconsruct is to reverse the binary oppositions, and I might do that by using a "projective theology".

Its not that I want to destroy my faith, only to question some of the assumptions I have about God.

I recently read a Catholic article on the devil, and a priest argued if you're going your way, doing your will, then that's a sign you're going wrong.

 

[Sarah G van G]

Its not that I want to destroy my faith, only to question some of the assumptions I have about God.

Exactly. It is great to me that a Christian publication ran an article about deconstructing faith. We should all be taught rational thinking in school so that we have the skills to question information when we want or need to. If there is nothing false about a religious teaching then there should be no fear in holding it up to the light and giving it a stretch.

One way to deconsruct is to reverse the binary oppositions, and I might do that by using a "projective theology".

Can you show me an example of what this might look like (I'm not sure I understand)?

 

[Rajni]

a priest argued if you're going your way, doing your will, then that's a sign you're going wrong.

I would ask the priest, "What if one's way and one's will just happen to be
the right things to have and to do? Would the person still be going wrong?“


-

 

[GrowingSmaller]

Can you show me an example of what this might look like (I'm not sure I understand)?

Sorry for long response time...

Not used to using the alerts function.

I am thinking of the idea that "theology is anthropology" (L Feuerbach) which afaik is basically an atheist position where God is an imaginary projection of our own minds, values, wishes etc...

Philosophy of Religion » Ludwig Feuerbach: Theology as Anthropology

 

[GrowingSmaller]

I would ask the priest, "What if one's way and one's will just happen to be
the right things to have and to do? Would the person still be going wrong?“


-

I think the action would be correct, but the intention, I am not sure about. If you help someone to glorify your self, for instance. There cautions about hypocrisy in the bible (praying just to be seen etc).

"And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full." - bible

 

[Sarah G van G]

Sorry for long response time...

Not used to using the alerts function.

I am thinking of the idea that "theology is anthropology" (L Feuerbach) which afaik is basically an atheist position where God is an imaginary projection of our own minds, values, wishes etc...

Philosophy of Religion » Ludwig Feuerbach: Theology as Anthropology

''
Ludwig Feuerbach: Theology as Anthropology
The idea that religion is not something instituted by God, but rather is man-made, can be traced back to ancient Greece. It was not until the 18th Century, however, that it began to seem possible to finally prove what had previous been mere speculation. Ludwig Feuerbach, drawing on Hegelian philosophy, set out the idea that the process by which religion was invented was wish-fulfilment. God, according to Feuerbach, is projection is the strongest desires of humanity.

For Feuerbach, much of the appeal of Christianity lies in its promise of immortality. Human beings have many fears, but most of all we fear death. Christianity, in promising eternal life, offers to take this fear away from us. If we are willing to buy into religion, then we can escape from our fear, and live in blissful ignorance of our mortality. This accounts for the attractiveness of religion, the strength of its grip on human minds.

Of course, for this process to work we cannot consciously decide to adopt a religion as a means of escaping from our fears. No, the decision must be unconscious; it is the unconscious mind that drives us to religion.

To understand God, on this view, one must understand human psychology; as Feuerbach put it, “theology is anthropology”. ''

That is certainly one perspective to consider. I am grateful to have the courage and faith to consider all possibilities. The adventure of faith is very exciting and wonderful

 

[GrowingSmaller]

Glad to be of help.

There was a science study one time, iirc, where its reported believers think God agrees with them on major issues. Sometimes I think "God wont mind this sin or that one" and that's why I mentioned projectionist theology. Maybe I am really obeying myself, sometimes, with the illusion of piety? Hence, in that case, my view of "God" would really be me falling into temptation.

The study:

https://medicalxpress.com/news/2009-11-believers-inferences-god-beliefs-uniquely.html

"Religious people tend to use their own beliefs as a guide in thinking about what God believes...."