Lost My Faith?

I don’t believe most of what I was taught in the fundamentalist and evangelical circles in which I was raised.

That doesn’t mean I’ve lost my faith.

I don’t believe the Bible is what they told me – the inerrant, infallible, perfect revealed Word of God. The scriptures refer to Jesus, not the scriptures, as The Word of God, and in many other places “a word from God” did not require scripture but some other kind of divine connection.

That doesn’t mean I’ve lost my faith.

I don’t believe in the rapture, tribulation, and literal 1000 year millennial kingdom they passed on to me from the twisted imagination of a 19th Century Plymouth Brethren pseudo-scholar named Darby.

That doesn’t mean I’ve lost my faith.

I don’t believe Moses wrote the Pentateuch or that Genesis is to be taken literally (including the creation account). There are enough other scholarly perspectives that make more sense to me now.

That doesn’t mean I’ve lost my faith.

I don’t believe that the primary reason Jesus died was to bear the wrath of God on my sins (and everyone else’s). If Jesus does what the Father does, then he never acted like that.

That doesn’t mean I’ve lost my faith.

I don’t believe that God chose/elected certain people for his favor and others (if not most) for judgment and destruction. Again, we don’t see that in Jesus (though we do see him inviting anyone who is willing to follow him).

That doesn’t mean I’ve lost my faith.

I don’t believe the good news (gospel) is a few simple steps I have to do in order to go to heaven when I die and avoid eternal conscious torment in a fiery hell. People have disagreed for millennia on how to interpret those few passages that may (or may not) be about heaven and hell, and Jesus was focused on a kingdom/society/community where shalom is pervasive, not on the afterlife.

That doesn’t mean I’ve lost my faith.

I’m unwilling to ascribe with certainty to man-made teachings like the Trinity and the Virgin Birth. Maybe it’s the case, maybe not, but there’s no way anyone will ever be able to prove it.

That doesn’t mean I’ve lost my faith.

I can’t blindly support the modern nation-state of Israel as God’s re-gathering of his people who can do no wrong. Israel has always done plenty of wrong, and there were plenty of prophets to tell them so.

That doesn’t mean I’ve lost my faith.

I don’t believe the modern 501c chartered corporation known as a “church” is analogous to 1st century community gatherings of followers of Jesus. God doesn’t need buildings, paid staff, air-conditioning, PowerPoint, rock shows with smoke and lights, and a fill-in-the-blank piece of paper so folks can follow the 3 easy steps of the week.

That doesn’t mean I’ve lost my faith.

I don’t believe it’s my job to try to convert people to a religion or a confession or any other agenda. Salt doesn’t try to win people over, neither does light; they just are what they are and have an impact intrinsically and effortlessly.

That doesn’t mean I’ve lost my faith.

I don’t believe that “faith” is a wish, nor is it a collection of traditions and teachings to which I mentally ascribe. Faith is a confidence (despite physical realities) that emboldens one to take risks based on a higher reality that can’t be proven by scientific means. Faith is it’s own evidence.

So no, I haven’t lost my faith.

Maybe my religion, but definitely not my faith.