Help my Unbelief!

 A brief devotion / teaching that Alan recently shared:

 

Mark 9: 20-24. CSB. (The Christian Standard Bible translation)

So they brought the boy to him. When the spirit saw him, it immediately threw the boy into convulsions. He fell to the ground and rolled around, foaming at the mouth.

“How long has this been happening to him?” Jesus asked his father. “From childhood,” he said.

“And many times it has thrown him into the fire or water to destroy him. But if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.”

Jesus said to him, “‘If you can’? Everything is possible for the one who believes.”

Immediately the father of the boy cried out, “I do believe; help my unbelief !”

 

I included the early verses of that passage for context, but for me the key verse is the capper, the punch line: “Lord I believe. Help my unbelief.”

I love how human that statement is, this co-mingling of belief and unbelief.

And this is simultaneous. If you say those sentences, “I believe. Help my unbelief.” – there is less than a second between those sentences. These can exist in the same person, at the same time, this faith and doubt, this belief and unbelief.

I think that in the modern American church, we flinch at the notion of unbelief, of doubt, those are harsh-sounding words. Perhaps you’ve been in situations where expressions of doubt or uncertainty over a particular bit of theology was greeted with … criticism, with condemnation. Or perhaps you’ve been told than any little bit of doubt is sin.

But no, that is not the case. “Lord I believe. Help my unbelief.”

So I prefer to think in terms of certainty and uncertainty. Maybe uncertainty, that is a less troublesome-sounding word than doubt or unbelief.

But whatever we call it, it goes hand-in-hand with belief. Doubt and faith, we can think of them as different sides of the same coin – but remember, it is the same coin!

A lot of churches recite the Apostles Creed, as part of their service. Our church has a point where we recite something together, often a Bible passage, and every month or so it’s the Apostles Creed. Now there’s one clause I’m not sure about, but most of the time I’m at a solid 98% on the Creed. But I’ll be honest, there are times when I scan through the Creed and …. I’m more like believing 75% of that stuff.

But those questions, whatever momentary uncertainties I may have, they aren’t because I don’t believe. It’s actually because I want to take my faith seriously, I want to know what I believe. That’s why I study, why I read theology, to know as best I can what I believe. And I do that with a willingness to learn – and if I’m gonna learn, I need to be willing to change my mind a little bit, there need to be some places where I set my certainty aside. So I can learn.

I would also mention ideas of essentials versus non-essentials in terms of theologies. Essentials are the foundational things, and to me that’s a pretty small list, mostly revolving around the person and work on Jesus … and the types of things in the Apostles Creed. Yes, there are some things we stand firmly on, but there are a lot of areas, lots of doctrines, where some questions, some uncertainty, some willingness to learn … not just not a bad thing, might actually be a good thing.

“Lord I believe. Help my unbelief.”

So in conclusion, which is what every preacher says when they have 10 more minutes to go and 4 more key points to make … but in conclusion, I intend this to be encouraging. Give yourself grace – give others grace, of course, but give yourself grace … for your moments of … call it whatever we want … our moments of uncertainty, of doubt, of unbelief … remember that they are OK. It’s not about being fully one or the other, believing or unbelieving; as humans, we are a strange melange of both.

Doubts are OK. Questions are OK. God can handle your questions, and he can handle your doubts.

Doubts, questions, even times of unbelief … they don’t mean that you don’t believe. 

Podcast #041 - Harry Whodunit #3

 "Harry Whodunit: The Mystery of the Nine Samsons"

Enjoy your Covid lockdown with this Harry Whodunit mystery audio adventure!

Back in Episode 31, we mentioned Harry Whodunit as one of our favorite little-known bits of Evangelical pop culture. 

And in Episode 32, we played a digitized version of one of the two cassette sets we own. And then in Episode 36, we played a digitized version of the other set we own.   

As we discussed last episode, creator Terry Scott Taylor recently put his entire audio archives up for sale, including the entire (4 adventures) Harry Whodunit collection! We were very excited to see that, and bought the collection.

And here is the third adventure we've posted, although it was the first one produced. And so, we proudly present "The Mystery of the Nine Samsons!"

Click on the player below to listen to the episode:

You may also subscribe to the podcast through Apple Podcasts or the RSS Feed.

We would love to hear from you about this topic, or the podcast episode. Send e-mail feedback to dorknesstolight@gmail.com 

You can follow the network on twitter @DorknessToLight or Alan @ProfessorAlan

Podcast #040 - The Book of Ruth

"The Book of Ruth: An Original Graphic Novel"

Alan and Em discuss the original graphic novel The Book of Ruth, by Meredith Finch & Colin Dyer. The book retells the Old Testament story in the context of the Dust Bowl era. The discussion includes a deep dive into atonement theology, but somehow they manage to reference Babylon 5, Leverage ... and more!

Click on the player below to listen to the episode:




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Link: The Book of Ruth Kickstarter
Link: Meredith Finch on Twitter
Link: The Harry Whodunit Collection
Link: Tomato Bird's Tumblr


We would love to hear from you about this topic, the podcast episode, or the podcast in general. Send e-mail feedback to dorknesstolight@gmail.com 

You can follow the network on twitter @DorknessToLight or Alan @ProfessorAlan

Podcast #036 - Harry Whodunit #2!

"Harry Whodunit: The Mystery of the Spitball Ghost"

Start the New Year right with this Harry Whodunit mystery audio adventure!

Back in Episode 31, we mentioned Harry Whodunit as one of our favorite little-known bits of Evangelical pop culture. And in Episode 32, we played a digitized version of one of the two cassette sets we own.

And here is the second (and last) one ... with maybe not the best results in digitization from a 20+ year old audio cassette ... we present "The Mystery of the Spitball Ghost."

Photos of the cards that came with the cassette can be found here in the blog, in the prior entry. . 

Click on the player below to listen to the episode:


You may also subscribe to the podcast through Apple Podcasts or the RSS Feed.

We would love to hear from you about this topic, or the podcast episode. Send e-mail feedback to dorknesstolight@gmail.com 

You can follow the network on twitter @DorknessToLight or Alan @ProfessorAlan

Podcast #032 - Harry Whodunit!

"Harry Whodunit: The Phantom of the Barn Mystery"

As discussed on last episode, the Harry Whodunit series of audio mysteries was one of Em's favorite things growing up. And here ... with maybe not the best results in digitization from a 20+ year old audio cassette ... is "The Phantom of the Barn Mystery."

Photos of the cards that came with the cassette can be found here. 

Click on the player below to listen to the episode:


You may also subscribe to the podcast through Apple Podcasts or the RSS Feed.

We would love to hear from you about this topic, or the podcast episode. Send e-mail feedback to dorknesstolight@gmail.com 

You can follow the network on twitter @DorknessToLight or Alan @ProfessorAlan

Bible Study, via Batman

In the recent DC Comics issue of Batman 38, the Caped Crusader stumbles across this note, while investigating a crime. 

 

There are some interesting things to note in this flier. Both the first and last paragraphs are reasonably solid theologically, and could have come from a number of legitimate Christian organizations. But it's the middle paragraph this is the problem.

Keen-eyed readers, especially those with a bit of Sunday School in their background, will note that there is no book in the Bible that abbreviates to "NED." And the words that Jesus is quoted as saying in NED 4:1 ... not even close.

To give Batman credit, he knows that as well, and quickly recognizes that entire paragraphis an elaborate clue. And ... spoilers ... Batman uses that information to save the day.

Podcast #016: The Prince of Egypt

"Commentary: The Prince of Egypt"

On this sixteenth episode, Emily & Alan observe Passover by talking about one of their favorite animated films, "The Prince of Egypt," one of Dreamworks' earliest movies. Actually, they talk OVER the film. Grab some popcorn and a beverage, and settle in for a commentary episode.

Click on the player below to listen to the episode:




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We would love to hear from you about this issue, the podcast episode, or the podcast in general. Send e-mail feedback to dorknesstolight@gmail.com 

You can follow Alan on twitter @ProfessorAlan or the podcast @DorknessToLight

Super Bowl Prediction via Church Sign

I assume this is a congregation in Philadelphia ...

Unfolding the Wiedmann Bible

We mentioned recently the artistic achievement that is The Wiedmann Bible. Expaining the unfolding aspects of the mile-ling work is one thing, but seeing it unfolded is another. In this video, the complete Wiedmann Bible is unfolded for the first time.

The Wiedmann Bible

We learned of this work during a recent trip to the "Unser Buch" ("Our Book") exhibit in Wittenberg. It is a fascinating work, and an impressive achievement. 

The book, which consists of 3,333 images, was painted by Willy Wiedmann over the course of 16 years, although it was not discovered until after the artist's death. It contains extensive depictions of both the Old and New Testament, all presented in Wiedmann's unique polycon style. 

We did not see the actual book, but the exhibit included a digitized version of parts of it, giving us a chance to see the (literal) unfolding of the story. It was the most memorable part of a very memorable exhibit. 

The "Unser Buch" Exhibit

One of the highlights of our recent trip to Wittenberg was the "Unser Buch" ("Our Book") exhibit, put on by the Museum of the Bible. The exhibit, subtitled "The History of the Bible form Moses to the Moon," traces the history of the Bible, and includes examples from a variety of time frames and languages.

They have a working old-style printing press, which each day is set up to print a single verse. There is also a very cool exhibit regarding The Wiedmann Bible, an illustrated version of the book that includes over 3,000 illustrations.

It was a wonderful, meaningful, and impressive exhibit.

Holy Week Humor!

Podcast #011 - Religious Fandom & Spiritual Head Canon

"Religious Fandom & Spiritual Head Canon"


On this super-sized episode, Emily & Professor Alan talk about some of the similarities between religion and pop culture fandom.

Then they spend most of the episode talking about their own individual faith journeys, doubts, beliefs, questions, and oddball notions. 

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Link: The music of The Choir
Link: The music of Iona
Link: The music of Anderson Cale

We would love to hear from you about this issue, the podcast episode, or the podcast in general. Send e-mail feedback to dorknesstolight@gmail.com 

You can follow Alan on twitter @ProfessorAlan or the podcast @DorknessToLight

Podcast #007 - Kingdom Come

"It's a Bird, It's a Plane, It's A Podcast Crossover!"

In this episode, we continue a conversation that began on episode 243 of Michael Bailey's Views From the Longbox podcast. Over there, we covered the basic comic-book stuff in Alex Ross and Mark Waid's 1996 graphic novel "Kingdom Come."

In this episode, the three of us talk about the spiritual and religious aspects of the comics. We cover Reverend McKay's pastoral style, whether Superman should be presented as an analog of Jesus or of Moses, and whether an atomic bomb could really create a mushroom cloud in the shape of a cross.

Because we had a guest on this episode, we did not cover feedback from our terrific feedbackers. But please send in feedback on this episode, and we will cover it all on the next one!

Click on the player below to listen to the episode:





You may also subscribe to the podcast through iTunes or the RSS Feed.

Link: Michael Bailey's View from the Longbox
Link: Anderson Cale's music 


We would love to hear from you about this issue, the podcast episode, or the podcast in general. Send e-mail feedback to dorknesstolight@gmail.com 

You can follow Alan on twitter @ProfessorAlan or the podcast @DorknesstToLight

Bible Study, via Preacher

Nobody is going to mistake Jesse Custer, the lead character of AMC's comic-book-inspired TV show Preacher, for a good pastor. But on the third episode, "The Possibilities," which first aired June 12, he did a pretty decent job officiating a funeral.

Earlier in the episode, he performed baptisms, and maybe his heart wasn't in it. But when it came to the funeral at the end of the episode (spoiler, I guess), it seemed that he was taking his job seriously.

He read from 1st Corinthians 15:51 (and 52, although he only identified 51), a passage which is often read at funerals.

^"Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed — in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed."

First, the show gets credit using a real verse (I'm looking at you, X-Files), from a real translation (the New International Version), a translation which seems like a reasonable choice for a small church in rural Texas). Second, it was quoted properly, and in context. And although Pastor Custer is a troubled man - a very, very troubled man - he read the words with an appropriate sense of the moment. As if the words he spoke, their message, have power.

Bono & Petersen & The Psalms

A very interesting short film was released recently, documenting a nearly 15-year long friendship between U2 singer Bono and Bible translator Eugene Peterson. Peterson is the author of the contemporary-language version of the Bible, The Message.

The conversations revolves about their common interest in the Psalms. Based on interviews conducted by Fuller Seminary faculty member David Taylor and produced in association with Fourth Line Films, the film highlights in particular a conversation on the Psalms that took place between Bono, Peterson, and Taylor at Peterson’s Montana home.

John & Martha Kent, Bible Scholars

The graphic novel Superman: For Earth, from 1991, sees the Man of Steel taking on environmental threats of all kinds. In a brief scene back in his hometown of Smallville, Clark and his parents lament the loss of farmland in their community, as it keeps being "gobbled up" to make room for apartments. Pa Kent wonders how these people will be fed, and then quotes one of the famous bits of Genesis 1:28.

"Be fruitful and multiply," he says, before offering some commentary about people using their common sense on that front. Ma Kent adds the next clause of the verse.

"And replenish the Earth," adding her own two cents that people have forgotten that part.

The quote is from the King James Version, and it's reasonable that this is the version of the Bible that the Kents would have heard growing up in church in the Midwest of the 1950s.

Their analysis is an interesting take, one appropriate for a farm family, for people close to the land. The next clause, "and subdue it," is an additional pro-farming concept. And the verse was certainly appropriate for the theme of the work, commenting on overpopulation and poor stewardship of the Earth.

Give the Kents credit (and writer Roger Stern). They did a better job handling their Bible quote than Fox Mulder did with his.

Bible Study, via Fear the Walking Dead

In the fourth episode of the first season of AMC's Fear the Walking Dead, the bible reference "Rev 21:4" appears. It has been affixed to a chain-link fence that separates the community from the National Guard instillation that is "protecting" the community.

The verse, in the New King James Version, says "And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.”

In a scene just a few minutes later, a portion of the text of the verse is seen, tacked up in the zombie-infested side of town. So they definitely used a real verse (I'm looking at you, X-Files) and quoted it properly.


Now there is a basic rule in Robert Kirkman's work that any character of faith or show of devotion is punished, usually in a pretty gruesome way. So the inclusion of any Bible verse in the prequel series is an interesting choice.

One attraction of the verse to the producers may be the end of the passage. The words on the sign, the beginning of the verse, speak to the blessed hope of the believer, and is routinely used as a source of comfort. The promise of the former things passing way is a wonderful promise, as the glory of the coming Kingdom is the ultimate good news for creation.

But I wonder if the show is thinking about the end of the verse, commenting on the notion that in the world of their show, the former things have indeed passed away. A more cynical take on the verse is that the zombie apocalypse does indeed wipe away the former things, but what replaces it is far, far worse.

Know Your Bible Translations

A legitimately funny cartoon from Adam4d. There are many things about Christian culture to poke some fun at, and the myriad Bible translations available in the English language is definitely a good choice. The characterizations of the New King James and the ESV struck me as particularly funny.

Fox Mulder, Bible Scholar

In the X-Files Episode "3" (season 2, episode 7), vampire cult killers leave behind a message in their victim's blood.

John 52:54

Fox Mulder demonstrates his knowledge of Scripture by quoting the verse in full. "He who eats of my flesh and drinks of my blood shall have eternal life. And I will raise him up on the last day." He then makes a crack about "big-haired preachers" and their feeble literal grasp of the Bible.

One problem. The verse doesn't exist. What he quotes is in fact John 6:54, although the wording did not precisely match any popular English translation that I could find.

I'm not going to hypothesize on why the episode's writers decided to make up a Bible reference instead of using an actual one. But whatever the reason for referring to the words of John 6:54 as John 52:54, it stands out as a choice that is ... just weird. 

Yes, this was in the long ago days before Google and Bible Gateway made looking up verses really easy. But still ... aren't there fact-checkers in the organization somewhere? And the cynic of course wonders why nobody in the ENTIRE production crew noticed the mistake.

Again, they get Jesus' words correct, which I appreciate. They didn't make up words and put them in the Bible. But they made up the place in the Bible where those words are found.

It's just weird.