Belief...by Francis S. Collins

February 17 Discussion

Question 1.  Dorothy Sayers invites us to re-think our reading and interpretation of the scriptural narrative through different lenses.  She seeks to engage our imaginations by reading a bit between the lines.  She notes “it was Cyrus and Ahasuerus who prodded me into the belated conviction that history was all of a piece, and that the Bible was part of it.”  She confronts certain Bible critics for their “very leisurely mental growth”…ouch!  What is she getting at in this critique? 

Question 2.  In her “Memoirs of Jesus Christ,” Sayers goes after “the journalese jargon to which we have grown accustomed!”  The “root of the trouble is to be found…in the collapse of dogma.”  She then gives us “Prophet’s Smile,” and “The Persona Dei: The Image of Truth,” as further invitations to imagine the “real” nature and behavior of Jesus and God…the latter piece being profoundly insightful and moving.  How did you receive her argument and how does it channel our focus on reading Scripture?  How does “The Persona Dei” further illustrate our sin and God’s redemptive action in Christ? 

Question 3.  John Stott begins with the fundamental question, “Why should Christians use their minds?”  He answers by siding with Paul, who says, “Our war is not fought with weapons of flesh…”  Stott adds, “This is a battle of ideas, God’s truth overthrowing the lies of men.  Do we believe in the power of the truth?”  Do you agree with Stott?  If so, what is the relationship between ideas and truth?

Question 4.  Stott directs our nature as humans as related to the divine image.  What separates us from other creatures with brains is our ability to “understand.”  This capacity is naturally delayed in the teenage years, but eventually blossoms (but not for all).  So, what exactly do we “understand” about ourselves and God?  Why is there such diversity of thought on this subject?

Question 5.  David Trueblood begins with a discussion on the means of verification…not real exciting, I know.  But it gets better when he asserts, “In many areas of experience there is no such thing as rigorous proof and we have to content ourselves with what is called the weight of evidence.”  What do you consider to be the “weight of evidence” for Christianity?  What specific “evidence” matters most to you and why does it carry such weight?

Question 6.  Trueblood then claims that a new quality of life should be publicly observable.  In regards to religious experience, how is this most commonly demonstrated?  How is your faith “publicly observable?”  What specifically might others notice in you that would provide “evidence” of your Christian faith?  What such evidence do you see in those at your table with you this morning?