Faith versus Belief

We recently finished reading Life of Pi in my junior/senior English class. Pi is a story about a story, if that makes sense. Pi Patel grows up the son of a very rational zookeeper, but quickly sees, via the animals, that there is more to life than reason. Eventually, Pi embraces Christianity, Hinduism and Islam, a seemingly sensible way of life to him, but one that amasses confusion for those who know him. Pi's faith is put to the test when his father decides to sell the zoo and move the family to Canada. ON the way, the cargo ship transporting the family and the last remaining animals sinks, leaving Pi on a lifeboat with an adult Bengal tiger. The tale expands as Pi is tested and torn for 227 days at sea. It is a good read if you have the time.

The students had to choose an essay topic from a list I provided. One of the topics was whether or not religion is just a mask for "story telling" ( in other words, is there any substance to religion or are all relevant details left to the imagination). A sub-topic within this question would be whether or not a story having believable aspects challenges the reader to have faith that it is in fact true. One of my students asked me if there is a difference between believing in something and having faith in something. At first, I blocked his question by playing devil's advocate and trying to provoke him towards an answer on his own. But then I thought about it.

Is there a difference?

The more I thought about it, the more clearly I saw what God wants us all to know. Belief in something is about capability, while faith in something is about probability. In other words, I believe that my students are capable of making A's in my class, but I have faith that the probability of that happening is somewhere around 25%.

The same goes with "religion" or worldview, or enter some philosophically charged word here ______________.

James 2:19-20 tells us that the demons believe...and shudder. A lot of people-- a lot of Christians--believe in God. But do they have saving faith? Do they genuinely trust that God is going to do what He says He's going to do? Do they only see him as "existing" and not in His function of Creator of the Universe, Master, Messiah and Lord? I hope that probability is much higher than 25%.

Musings of a school teacher

Those of you who know me well know that I consider it a privilege to teach. Even though my students really challenge me at times, I love the opportunity to invest into their future, as painful as that may be.

I have one student who continually amazes me. I have assigned somewhere around 6 essay/writing assignments this school year. He has turned all of "0" in on time. It's always the same ole same ole..."I will turn it into you this evening, Mr. Sheneman." "This evening" must be a time frame that does not fall within this universe's spectrum of order because "this evening" has not happened. Obviously, his computer exists inside a black hole, making typing utterly impossible. How is one to format a paper if the keys are all spatially challenged? Now, if I put the assignment on MySpace and had them type a bulletin, he would miraculously manifest a 30 page thesis about the "effects of rock music on the equilibrium in the inner ear," or something relevant like that. Go figure, right?

Initial Thoughts

So....this is my third attempt at "blogging." My first shot at "blogging" failed after three entries...my second made it to five. Both times I have tried opposite extremes. The first blog was intended to be composed of deep theological posts that wowed the reader and put an end to any debate; the second was to be a hodge podge of happenings in my life with my fiancee at the time (who is now my bride....yea me!) This time around...I have it solved. My blog will be a chameleon. It will take on the color of my mind prior to that given entry. Some posts might be short, event-laden blurbs pertaining to the epic adventure that is my life (riiiigghhtt). Others may quite become a lexicon of knowledge, unveiled in the very face of tomfoolery, laughing insistently at the reader as they fail to plum the depths of the post's proponderence ( I hope none of that made sense, but I think you get the point). I am just an average guy with an above average itch to write...and this will soon become my hydrocortisone. This is my Whirling Derbish.

That being said, let me address my first issue.

Political assumptions are made on a regular basis. From the booth voter in some no name county Mississippi to the Suits on Capital Hill, all those who boast to be in the "know" regarding all things political make certain assumptions. One of those assumptions is that the President of the United States of America has America's best interest in mind. This may very well be the case of the present; however, yesterday's events suggest otherwise. In fact, yesterday's events display that the venerable Commander-in-Chief is not as "clued in" as he should be. When asked if he knew about the flyover of Air Force One in Manhattan, Pres. Obama claimed "he did not know." I get the critic's responses about him not being behind the wheel and that he has other "larger," more current, issues on his plate. Even so, how clearly should this resonate with each American? The leaders of our nation thought it appropriate to FLY A LARGE PLANE OVER DOWNTOWN MANHATTAN. Are we serious? I was beside myself when I saw the news reports. CNN, as they always do, quickly spun the footage into a Obama-supporting direction. The clips clearly showed frightened people fleeing their offices and places of employment and running for their lives. Forget who needs to take responsibility for the arrangement of the flyover, the real discussion should be how quickly we have forgotten what happened on 9/11. People can condemn Bush all they want, throw him under the bus and say he was uneducated and unqaulified. But none can say that he put the interests of the American people aside on that dark day. He was real, he was concerned, he was an American. I shutter to see what America's future holds.