Have you ever been approached by someone who asks you if you believe in the afterlife? How did you respond? I think that we have all heard the adage that it is better to believe and be wrong than not believe at all. The Bible talks about faith a lot and Jesus dealt with the faith issue head on in the post-resurrection incident recounted in John 20:24-29 which says, “Thomas, called Didymus, one of the Twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples said to him, "We have seen the Lord." But he said to them, "Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands and put my finger into the nail marks and put my hand into his side, I will not believe." Now a week later his disciples were again inside and Thomas was with them. Jesus came, although the doors were locked, and stood in their midst and said, "Peace be with you." Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here and see my hands, and bring your hand and put it into my side, and do not be unbelieving, but believe." Thomas answered and said to him, "My Lord and my God!" Jesus said to him, "Have you come to believe because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed." While not specifically about the afterlife, it does speak directly to maintaining our faith while still having doubts. The opposite of faith is not doubt but unbelief and there is a big difference. Jesus addresses this matter in Mark 9:22-24 when he encounters a man who has faith and doubt. Jesus does not condemn or turn away from the man but instead removes a demon from the son of the man. It is a human condition to have doubt but we must work to overcome it. We should seek to identify the root of doubt and that usually involves getting to know who God is and exploring our understanding of what being a Christian really means. Christianity is certainly not a blanket of protection that will ward off all bad things but instead a confidence in knowing that we should turn to God in all things. He will lead us down the right path. In addition, we should not keep our doubt to ourselves but seek guidance from God and others who can help. Speak to your priest, spiritual advisor, family or Christian friend. The apostles turned to Jesus for guidance when they had doubts. There is our example.
Kurt Hilgefort, is a Catholic father of six who publishes his thoughts on his blog Shadows of Augustine . He responded to my seven question survey with the following answers. Kurt is the first layperson to respond to the seven question survey and I think that his experience is extremely relevant to me personally and I hope that you are inspired by his thoughts as well. If you would like to respond, please send an email to fellmananthony@gmail.com with your thoughts and I will be happy to publish them as well. 1. What is the biggest challenge to your faith that you have faced so far? The biggest challenge for me has been the whole dying to self thing. On an intellectual level, there are no barriers. It comes down to a matter of accepting the authority of the Church that Christ founded upon Peter. My challenge is not in the intellect, but rather in the will. The challenge for me has always been to continually seek conversion. I want to be transformed, but I want it to be over all ...
