Hank Shiver (June 25) seems to be well versed on selected biblical verses. But I wonder what happened to him that he still reads the Bible but yet refuses to believe. He literally has turned into the biblical “doubting Thomas.”
It has been said that it takes just as much faith to believe in the existence of God and Jesus as to not believe. Hank, not all prayers are answered. Yes, we all pray for the end of gun violence and yet that prayer remains unanswered. Just the same that we pray for the end of Democratic-supported abortions. But alas, that prayer also goes unanswered.
Doubt, like faith, has to be learned. But even as believers and followers should learn to look for reasons behind their faith, skeptics must learn to look for a faith hidden within their reasoning.
To doubt someone else’s beliefs means you must have some faith in your own beliefs. The only way to doubt Christianity rightfully and fairly is to discern the alternate belief under each of your doubts and then to ask yourself what reasons you have for believing it. How do you know your beliefs are true? It would be inconsistent, contradictory and unfair to require more justification for someone’s Christian beliefs than your own. But that is what frequently happens.
In all fairness, you must also doubt your doubts, like you doubt Christianity, and you might find that they are not as solid as you believe. Humans are deep thinkers, capable of contemplating problems until solutions are encountered. Most of us have profoundly wondered as to our purpose and meaning in life. Avowed atheist Bertrand Russell said it best: “Unless you assume a God, the question of life’s purpose is meaningless.”
Joel Ramirez, Edinburg
