Doubt
“Intolerance
is the natural concomitant of strong faith; tolerance grows only when
faith loses certainty; certainty is murderous.”
Will
Durant
Historian, Will Durant,
summed up our time pretty succinctly. Across the globe, people have
organized themselves into camps of certainty—and then used that
certainty to force others to conform. This seems to be a repetitive
human theme over the centuries. Whether we're talking about the time
of the Crusades, the Middle Ages, the World Wars, or now, when people
have felt absolutely certain of their “rightness,” and their
righteousness, they have turned murderous. Interestingly, when we're
in one of these periods of drawing firm boundary lines around our
encampments, facts don't matter at all, and science cannot penetrate
the darkness. All that matters is protecting our very iron-clad
faith.
Only when we begin to
entertain doubt—that is, uncertainty—do we allow a tiny light to
shine through the crack in our faith. Doubt is a very healthy thing.
Let me repeat that: Doubt is a very healthy thing. Having
doubt of my rightness means that perhaps I can listen to you. Maybe,
I can even begin to understand where you are coming from. I don't
have to agree, but understanding is like striking a match inside a
cave. Suddenly, we are simply two human beings huddled together in
the dark, and not bitter enemies bent on destroying one another.
We need to strike that
match right now. We need to put aside our certainty and allow doubt
to teach us tolerance, acceptance, and compassion. This is my prayer
for today: Open our hearts and minds to the myriad possibilities, and
allow us to learn from one another. Let us take off the armor of our
certainty, and put on the robe of doubt.
In the Spirit,
Jane
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