BreakPoint Blog
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Is What You Believe Really Real? Five or six years ago Focus on the Family released “The Truth Project” DVD series, and I went through it as a discussion leader of a small group. I haven’t looked at it since, so when a friend of mine said a group was going to go through it and invited me, I agreed. I thought it would be good to refresh what I learned from the DVDs and maybe learn some new things I missed the last time. This week we looked at Lesson 1, and in it, Dr. Tackett asked what he called a haunting question: “How do you really know that what you really believe is really true?” This is a question that all of us need to ponder, Christian and non-Christian alike. Whether you believe in Jesus and the Bible, Buddha, Mohammad, Richard Dawkins, or any of a number of different beliefs, you need to answer this question for yourself if not for anyone else. Many people haven’t given this much thought, but to go through life believing in something that you haven’t really delved into and determined the truth of is can be scary. What if it isn’t real? What if you only believe it because your parents or friends believed it? What if you based it on what you saw on TV? If what you believed weren’t real, wouldn’t you want to know that? I would. I challenge each of you to ponder this question. Think about your belief, why you believe it, and whether it fits with reality. When you find your answer to this question, it should impact your life. If it doesn’t then you really haven’t answered the question. |
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Comments:
Having been raised Roman Catholic and not being a 5-Pointer nor the owner of an iPod, listening to the defense of Catholicism might not cause too much mental or material trauma.
In my twenties (yikes! half a lifetime ago!), I went to a few YA groups where "Catholic" was a dirty word, where when someone would say, "I was raised *Catholic*..." the room would break out in sympathetic grumblings. Since then, I've come to realize that listening to and interacting with the Liturgy most Sundays of my childhood laid a fantastic foundation for my current faith, that at its core the Roman church is a Christian church, and that God hasn't given up on it.
From my current perspective, it surprises me that Chesterton and Tolkien chose to worship within the Roman church. The fact that such men chose the Roman church makes me want to understand their choice. Perhaps Dr. Kreeft's defense of Catholicism is a good place to start.
Ellen, my best suggestion for you is to get Lee (no relation) Strobel's "The Case for Christ" and "The Case for Faith". Both have extensive bibliographies, and both Kreeft and Craig are interviewed (if I recall correctly). You'll also read interviews by others who have delved deeply into these issues.
Peter Kreeft's lectures can be found here:
http://www.peterkreeft.com/podcasts/index.xml
William Lane Craig's materials, including a podcast, can be found here:
http://www.reasonablefaith.org
Ravi Zacharias's lectures are here:
http://www.rzim.org
"Let My People Think" splits a lecture into two parts or so of about 30 minutes each (I think). "Just Thinking" does the same thing, but in 10-to-15-minute chunks, which are more suitable for listening to on-the-run (like, say, as a busy mom might do). Of all the material there, the best ones are the Q&A sessions at university campuses. But the longer ones explore philosophy in depth from a Christian perspective.
I went on at length about Dr. Zacharias, but anything by Dr. Kreeft or Dr. Craig is worth listening to - including Dr. Kreeft's defense of Catholicism, unless of course you're a 5-Pointer given to throwing your iPod at the wall...
I know, I know, it probably wouldn't take much of a hunt. But you've been so great with posting web addresses in the past, that I'm surprised to not see them in your latest post.
(Well, hey - *you all* just did.)
Fill in the blank: "I Know That My _______ Liveth"
OK, but Dennis is right - *how* do you know?
That's how many freshmen in college lose their faith.
Peter Kreeft and William Lane Craig have each written good books and also spoken on this topic. Ravi Zacharias has lectured on it in an entertaining way. Better, even, than most sitcom reruns.
What is real? (Metaphysics)
What do we know, and how do we know that we know it? (Epistemology)
And yes, it is just as much an issue for Christians as for unbelievers.
I would like to add also that, biblically, there is a volitional aspect in our beliefs: Jesus says that there is more involved than merely allegiance to the truth (John 5:40, 7:17).
Excellent challenge, Dennis.