The abnegation of reason is not the evidence of faith, but the confession of despair. Reason and reverence are natural allies, though untoward circumstances may sometimes interpose and divorce them. – J.B. Lightfoot – Saint Paul’s Epistle to the Galatians

I was reading on thinklings and I found the quote of the day to speak to feelings I’ve had for awhile. The quote sent me to the entire commentary where I read the entire introduction.

There are times when I believe my desire for contemplation works against me. In other words, I think too hard. I see people like Joel Osteen and Brian McLaren and I believe that I am really thinking too much and with too much effort.

Joel leads the largest church in the U.S. and he seems more concerned with being positive than with any real deep thought. Don’t get me wrong, his sermons are uplifting and it is enjoyable to hear them. I’m not down on that. What bothers me is the lack of any emotional and mental depth. Then I think that his audience is full of reasonable people and maybe I am looking for something that it is not fair or right to expect.

There are times I wish I was just happy with things at face value. Sometimes I believe that I am the genesis of my own misery.

Brian McLaren, on the other hand, definitely fills my need for mental depth. His articles are well-thought out and enjoyable to read. Working through his works, I remember my days in college, especially studying literary theory. I enjoy reading intelligently written articles and books. However, the aspect I enjoy most is also the aspect I enjoy least when it comes to Christian expression. I remember literary theory as using as many words as possible to say nothing at all. Scores of poetical and literary commentaries managed to produce page after page of sometimes delightful, sometimes tedious meanderings. I discovered two keys to a succesful commentary: suggest meanings without making conclusions and define a distinct and unique vocabulary. The former generated more than enough text for the size and thickness of the commentary desired. The latter allows critics to be dismissed as ‘simply not understanding’. Both are examples of mental sloppiness that I absolutely abhor, despite the fact that reading these commentaries feels like a neverending stream of cotton candy to my brain.

Then I think, at least McLaren is enjoying his Christianity (read Summer Update). At this point in my life, I am not enjoying it. It’s true, I would love to make no stands and evade any pinning down of my beliefs. I would love to engage in conditional conversations and have the adoration of thousands for sounding profound. Doing that would feel very good to me. I’d like to do that for several years.

To the point, I started reading in Galatians and read the entire book. I am struck by Paul’s reasoning through the Scriptures and take some comfort. There is at least one way for faith and reason to work together as partners. I know that there is such a thing as overthinking (hypercerebric dysfunction) and I know that I am guilty of it. However, it is encouraging to know that the solution is not to check the brain at the feet of the altar. Faith and reason are not enemies.

Anywho, enough of my ramblings this morning. There’s more personal enjoyment of Galatians, but I’m off to read it again before posting.