Scripture
Mark 9: 23 - 24
23 Jesus said to him, “If you are able! All things can be done for the one who believes.” 24 Immediately the father of the child cried out, “I believe; help my unbelief!”
Isaiah 41: 10
do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God;I will strengthen you; I will help you; I will uphold you with my victorious right hand.
Reflection
What does it mean to believe? I have been wondering about this for a while now. Does belief mean that doubt shouldn’t exist. The scripture from Mark is the end of an interaction between Jesus and the father of a sick boy. The father begs for healing for his son, and we see Jesus’ response. We spoke about this in bible study, but I believe it bears revisiting. In reading this it appears as if there might be a word missing between the “I believe” and “help my unbelief.” We could put the world “but” in between the two and I think that this is how many of us see our faith. There are times in our faith when we believe and then there are times when we don’t believe. So our belief and unbelief are diametrically opposed, opposite ends of the spectrum. Although I agree with this perspective, I wonder if it might be more accurate for us to actually put the word ‘yet’ between these two, so that it says, “I believe, yet help my unbelief!”
If we understand that both our belief and unbelief can, and do, exist together. I wonder if sometimes we are afraid of our unbelief. If we admit that we sometimes struggle with our belief than our faith is not strong. I think that if we feel as if our faith is not as strong as we think it should be, we become afraid. It is that fear that might cause us to hang tightly to how we understand our faith at any given moment. Yet, the reading from Isaiah assures us that there will be times of fear in our lives and it is at those times that God will strengthen us. Does that mean that God will strengthen us to remain where, and as, we are or will God strengthen us as our beliefs evolve, change, and grow?
But what if there is something about unbelief that is important to our faith. When we struggle with our faith, when we question, when we are unsettled, we might just be in the process of exploring our faith in a deeper, more fulfilling way. If this is the case then the opposite might just be true. When we are always comfortable in our faith, when we are certain in all of our beliefs, all the time, are moving deeper into our faith? The late Roman Catholic Archbishop, who was instrumental in the formation of liberation theology, Oscar Romero was quoted as saying, “A church that doesn’t provoke any crisis, a gospel that doesn’t unsettle, a Word of God that doesn’t get under anyone's skin, what kind of gospel is that? Preachers who avoid every thorny matter so as not to be harassed do not light up the world.”
To live in a state of both belief and unbelief allows our faith to challenge our own lives. My mother is fond of saying that the role of our faith is, “to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable.” To afflict the comfortable is to know that unbelief is the process by which we expand the depth of our belief. To view scripture in a way that challenges our preconceived notions, that can challenge our belief and helps our faith grow. To see God in a new way, a way that expands what God means, that can challenge our belief and that helps our faith grow. To include those who have typically been excluded, that can challenge our belief and helps our faith grow. To exist within the bounds of both belief and unbelief can allow us to not be rigid in our beliefs so that our belief becomes that which evolves and grows. So I now offer to you this new version of a creed that might just challenge our faith in such a way that we continue to stretch, expand, and grow our faith.
Rev. Rachel Small Stokes offers us the following “Sparkle Creed”
I believe in the non-binary God whose pronouns are plural
I believe in Jesus Christ , their child, who wore a fabulous tunic and had two dads, and who saw everyone as a sibling child of God.
I believe in the rainbow Spirit, who shatters our image of one white light and refracts it into a rainbow of gorgeous diversity.
I believe in the church of everyday saints, as numerous, creative, and resilient as patches on the AIDS quilt, whose feet are grounded in mud and whose eyes gaze at the stars in Wonder.
I believe in the calling to each of us, that love is love is love, so beloved, let us love.
I believe, glorious God. Help my unbelief. Amen.
Prayer
God, of Infinite Diversity, help us to see that belief and unbelief are not opposite, but rather coexist in our lives. Give us the courage to wade into place of unbelief, so that we might not become rigid in our faith, believing that we have all the answers. Give us the wisdom to find ways to explore our faith in a deeper, more authentic, way. Help us to know that faith sometimes brings us into uncomfortable places, and we question our faith, but also let us know that you are always there with us, throughout it all. We ask this all in name of Love Incarnate, your son, Jesus. Amen.
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