What level of evidence is sufficient?

‘Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; but if you do not, then believe me because of the works themselves‘ (John 14:11)

The lie detector

 John 14:1-12 (Year A: Fifth Sunday of Easter 14^th May 2017)

A question: How do we know that God exists?  And does it matter?

That makes two questions, in a way: the how and the so what.

This Sunday’s gospel holds a key to answering these two questions.

In verse 11 in chapter 14 of the Gospel of St John Jesus is reported as saying:

Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; but if you do not, then believe me because of the works themselves

We like some degree of assurance, if not outright certainty, that what we believe to be ‘true’ is indeed ‘true’. Moreover, we like some degree of assurance if not outright certainty that what we do is ‘right’. 

Being ‘true’ and being ‘right’ are important regardless of what we say we believe or do. Among Christians and other believers in God, there can be an understandable frame of mind (usually kept quiet) that ‘non-believers’ and ‘non-practicing’ persons are more susceptible to being less ‘true’ or less ‘right’ than ….. well …. us/me (delete as appropriate). This sort of frame of mind is a deadly trap for ‘religious’ persons because we, all, like to think that we have the ‘truth’ (nothing like a devout and convinced atheist to preach his/her ‘truth’, religiously).  Presumption, arrogance and complacency are the hallmarks of bad religion and Jesus was scathing about bad religion.

If we are Christians in the full sense, we say that we believe in the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.  We say that the right way to live is by treating others as we would like others to treat us (we would not like to be murdered, lied to, robbed or cheated on …. you get the picture). It helps or it should help to locate a system of values, beliefs and mores in the Jesus story. The Jesus story is about God sending His (strictly speaking God is neither male or female but it is customary to address God as ‘He’ or ‘Father’) Son to save us from our sins and to show us the way to Life in this world and in the next. The key to salvation is faith or trust in the God who shows us infinite love and compassion and is waiting every moment of our remaining life to welcome us on the basis of a free decision and choice on our part but always as part of a plan of Grace or Graciousness. But, to be true and to be effective this faith – alone – which saves us works through free actions and free works of compassion on our part. It is like God’s compassion flowing out from within and through us to others (and not forgetting ourselves either!).

But, how do we know that any of this is ‘really’ ‘true’ and really according to the way we should live?  The use of ‘inverted commas’ in this blog, so far, is not accidental. Every word we think or use is conditioned and shaped by meanings that can be difficult to pin down.  We might admit to ourselves when the children are gone to bed that, whereas there is no Santa Clause ‘there’, there is a truth in the story of free kindness and the notion that what ‘goes around comes around’. 

Now, it would be a travesty to suggest that religion in general and Christian religion, in particular, is a type of Santa Clause ‘true myth’ though many people assume this to be the case. Still, there is much that we cannot and will not understand about the mysteries of God, of God-in-Jesus as Son of God and in the life, ministry, death and resurrection of Jesus along with the place of sacraments, prayer and witness in this life.  One thing that a Christian can never be caught out on is believing and acting as Jesus would have us act. We might even be pleasantly surprised after our death!  Sometimes, this way of thinking is classified as ‘Pascal’s Wager’.

A serious challenge to religious faith is the charge that a loving God could not permit huge and unnecessary suffering in the world. This charge is not easy to address. Glib answers along the lines ‘from evil comes good’ or ‘suffering is redemptive’ or ‘its an excuse for human compassion’ and so on do not hold water with many today.  In my view, there is no completely coherent or convincing explanation as to why God-who-is-love allows suffering including unspeakable barbarities (and sometimes carried out in the name of some god). Rather than try to explain it away we might be advised to accept the reality of suffering but strive to cleanse this world of all unnecessary and human-made suffering.

Jesus has shown us a way to live as well as a way to deal with the great questions and sufferings of life. More than this he shows himself as The Way.  He points us to the best way of life which can be nothing less or more than love – love laid down for others.  By following in this Way of Love we are assured of the truthfulness of the Jesus story. In so far as any human being can know the truth Jesus is the Truth about God-who-is-love.  So, Way and Truth go together for us who follow Jesus as The Way and The Truth. But, that is not all.  Jesus is, also, The Life.  If we were to think that we had embraced the way and the truth of the gospel but had no ‘Life’ in us then we are good for nothing.  That life which was the light of the world has entered our darkness whether we see, feel or know it. That life is like the blue sky above those Irish clouds: it’s there always to be noticed or sensed regardless of the shifting cold fronts sweeping in from the Atlantic Ocean.

When Jesus says ‘..believe me because of the works themselves’ he is offering us a type of ‘Plan B’ approach to Christian faith. Some today might find a recitation of the Nicaean Creed a challenge (to be clear, this blogger doesn’t have issues with it).  A lie detector wired up to members of an average (even greying) congregation on an average Sunday in an average Church might emit signals of possible discomfort arising from private mental reservations as people rise to give intellectual assent to various important propositions. To these, Jesus, in the 14^th Gospel of St John, is saying ‘well if you have problems with the wording of this then believe me because of the works of kindness, compassion, healing, mercy, peace, joy and liberation going all around you in this loving community’ or words to that effect. Ah, but what if the communities in which we are planted are not on fire in such manner that the pagans are dazzled?  Writing a century after the gospel of John was written the North African theologian Tertullian (some of the best Christian theology, at that time, was coming out of Africa and Asia) wrote in The Apology (39:7):

See, they say, how they love one another, for themselves [pagans] are animated by mutual hatred; how they are ready even to die for one another, for they themselves will sooner put to death.

If only!

(And, we wonder why are churches are emptying out and many people, especially, the young search for spiritual meaning, belonging and fulfilment somewhere else.)

None of the above is to be taken as a reason for laxity and indifference on areas of core doctrine (for middle-of-the-road Christians that means the authority of the scriptures, the truth of ancient creeds, the Gospel sacraments and the work of ministry at the service of the whole body of Christ). However, intellectual assent, alone, will never suffice to open the doors to the way, the truth and the fullness of life offered freely by Jesus. We need all three – a way of life, a body of truths and a life of honesty, integrity and genuine love.

Even still, among us are those who wonder and doubt some of the time or all of the time. To doubt is only to be human. To doubt and still carry on believing and trusting and living in love is to share in the divine.  Can anything stop us acting ‘as if it were true?’ Just try it and stick to it and you will see a continuation of miracles in your life. To believe (trust) in God is easier if we believe (trust) in the ‘works of God’ revealed through compassion in this often brutal but beautiful world.

The author of the letter to the Hebrews provides a very concise definition of faith as follows:

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. (Hebrews 11:1 – KJV)

What is that we hope for? We hope for one another life, peace, freedom and contentment in this life and, God willing, beyond this life.

What evidence is there that this hope is not in vain though we cannot ‘see’ God face to face? The evidence is written in our hearts as well as in the stars we gaze at on a clear night sky. It is all that we encounter every day – difficult and joyful, painful and glorious.  The ‘evidence’ is in front of us and within us if we could only open our hearts a bit more.

So, what level of evidence is sufficient for me or you? I turn, again, to Pascal to say it best:

‘Le cœur a ses raisons que la raison ne connaît pas.’

("The heart has its reasons, of which reason knows nothing.")