I was listening to a fantastic song by my favorite band Becoming the Archetype. The song "Evil Unseen" contained the lines "We exchange our faith for rational thought/ We trade our conscience for advanced reasoning" (These guys are a Calvinist death metal band. Epic.) The song then goes on to explain "There's no hope in justifying wrong/ Just death in rationalism/ I am not of this world/ And science cannot explain me/ I will transcend death/ This body will not contain me"
The aforementioned lines got me thinking though. How would a non-Christian view lines about rejecting rational thought? Clearly, they're out of context, but what would a pagan think? Nowadays, "rejecting rational thought" is laughed at and ridiculed. Reason is the god and anyone that claims that reason can't contain their religion is just a backward barbarian. Yet, God is a God of order. Surely reason has it's place? And yet...
So, is Christianity rational? The answer is complicated. Yes and no.
Yes: When God created the universe, He made it in such a way as to be rational. One thing leads to another. Not only in how the universe operates, but also in the truth contained within the universe. Ultimately, God's laws, plans, and emotions make perfect logical sense in His infinite mind. Many of the things He reveals to us in The Bible are very logical. That's why studying the Bible is possible! We can compare passages and ideas and make rational conclusions about doctrine and life.
On a side note, it annoys me when people will not listen to an argument that involves pulling together different ideas and multiple passages. Somehow studying and interpreting what the Bible is trying to say is wrong? If it isn't plainly stated in a single verse than they won't believe it. While I can see the many errors that this safeguards against, this type of thinking is overly simplistic.
Also, God's truth is perfectly logical from an objective stance. When surveying the true state of man, God, and the universe, Christianity is entirely reasonable. I have broken the law of a righteous, holy, and eternal God. Now I must pay the punishment. That's logical. Now He has provided his Son as a sacrifice to take my punishment for me! Now, I can be returned to a right relationship with Him by having faith in His Son's work. That is so simple even children understand! This brings me to why Christianity doesn't appear rational. (Ironic, huh?)
No: Man's sinful mind has completely distorted God's truth and made it seem foolish and horrible. Every man is looking at the same story but some people are looking through the lens of sin. This is twisting the beautiful and logical plan of God's redemption. Now it doesn't seem logical at all. "I never broke God's law! How can He require anything of me? In fact, He doesn't even exist!" Atheism is a mortal man spitting in the eye of the Creator of the Universe. That isn't so logical now, is it? But at the time, the sinners sees it as the only right response!
Another aspect of why Christianity isn't rational is its very nature. If there is a philosophy that attempts to explain to finite men about a holy and infinite God, there are going to be things beyond our comprehension! God is God because we cannot fully explain Him. He is so transcendent that we will never grasp him. And you know what? That's just the way it ought to be. Now, the Bible does tell us some things about God but we can't always fully understand them. They may not be logical to our brains, but they are no less true. If we could fit God into our box, we would have essentially denied His divinity!
Christianity is rational because it is the true explanation of the universe God created. Christianity is rational because God is a God of order. Christianity is rational because we are sinful and cannot see the beauty of its truth. Christianity is irrational because it is conveying truth about an eternal God to finite men.
God is Truth.
God Bless,
Stanley
'These guys are a Calvinist death metal band.' I've heard it all now Stanley! What next, the pope rapping with Snoop Dogg; nevermind.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, great post. Often at times the Bible seems to contradict itself; it seems to say one thing, and then 300 pages down the line it seems to say something completely at odds with that other sentence. God is bigger than our misgivings about Him, and He is a God who can't be contained by denominations or one group of people or our limited thought patterns; He is beyond understanding and true evaluation because however clever we might be He is infinitely so.
Equally, if a person disbelieves in a loving Creator who created everything from scratch, that disbelief will take them on strange tangents altogether; disbelief is a kind of disobedience after all. When you look at the wonders of nature or hear the purring of a kitten or see the miracle of childbirth, and so on and son, there is the proof of God right there! A disbeliever will see a miracle and still disbelieve and a believer will see the wonders of God all around him or her.
lol, there guys are really great. Death metal is simply a style of metal. Metal is actually my favorite kind of music. I don't think I've mentioned that on this blog. Maybe I should write a post about that...
ReplyDeleteYou said that He can't be contained by a denomination or one group of people or our limited thought patterns. I would agree but with hesitation. It's true that ultimately God is too great for us to comprehend. But the beautiful thing is just how much He has told us about Himself. The Bible is full to abundance of pictures and descriptions of God. God has given us more than enough information for us to form an idea of him. Ultimately, it can't truly capture Him, but it is what He has revealed and it is sufficient for us to see His beauty and power.
The very thought of God being infinite, his majesty so transcendent, his thoughts higher than our thoughts, Almighty - gives me a sense of security.
ReplyDeleteI agree that Christianity if rational. I think that true logic can only come from knowing God. All things, as you have already mention, come from Him and our intellect can only be satiated by His presence.
ReplyDeleteRight and wrong, good and bad,... without God to make things clear and draw the proverbial line in the sand nothing would matter. It wouldn't even exist!
Love the blog. Keep writing! We need more single Christians online sharing what God is teaching them. Blessings to you.
Excelent post, Thank you.
ReplyDelete