I’m occasionally asked whether I’m afraid of losing my faith, because of my rigorous interest in history and archaeology. Well, actually not. And not because of an apologetic approach, to which I’m rather allergic. But, questioning, I find my faith grows deeper. Here’s some of the reasons why …

• Christian faith, properly understood, is not afraid to question. Everything.
• Why? Truth is relational, rooted in the covenant between God and humankind, particularly in the encounter with Jesus Christ (“I am the Way, the Truth and the Life” John 14,6)
• Incarnation means that God enters the human story, in a particular place and time, among a particular people and a particular culture, speaking that particular language … (“The Word became flesh and pitched his tent among us.” John 1,14)
• … so we are challenged, in every age, to renew that covenantal relationship, even listening to the Word of God, the voice of the Holy Spirit, in understanding how the Father speaks to us today.
• The Church, with a capital C, ever drawing closer to Christ, ever open to the gifts of the Spirit, immersed in the love of the Father, is a community that journeys as “Pilgrim Church on earth” (Lumen Gentium, no. 6)
• Scripture and Tradition, taken very seriously, provide us with a precious ancient map that, oriented with the compass of Love, helps us navigate the complex world we live in … if we learn to read it properly as the ancient map that it is. (“He loved them to the end” John 13,1)
• The moment you think you “possess” the whole Truth, you have missed the mark. The moment you think you have boxed in God, contained the Holy Spirit, you commit the greatest sin of all: Spiritual Pride, thinking you can build the tower that reached the heavens. (“The Spirit blows where it wants” John 3,18)
• Don’t be afraid of losing your faith. You won’t. You may find yourself losing your credulity. But that is a good thing. Your faith can only grow deeper. (“I am the Way, the Truth and the Life” John 14,6)
• “O most merciful redeemer, friend and brother, may I know you more clearly, love you more dearly, follow you more nearly, day by day. Amen. (St Richard of Chichester)

[first published on Facebook & Instagram 30 September 2023]