Todd Agnew always has an amazing point to make. So as I was reading the bio on his page just now, I really wasn’t surprised to find something thought-provoking there.
You know that saying that there are no stupid questions?
Well.. Todd makes the statement that this tends to not apply in the church.. or at least we don’t act like it applies there. He says, “So many — young and old, male and female, seeker and believer alike — run into opposition of asking the tough questions in the one place they should feel most free, the church.”
Have you ever thought about why this is the case? I’ve been thinking about it.. actually quite a lot lately.
I have this theory that maybe people don’t like to ask hard questions in church because they feel like they’ll be looked down upon for even thinking such a question. Maybe we feel like we’re just supposed to know the answer, so we’ll look stupid if we ask. Maybe people will say “that’s not a question a mature Christian would ask”.. so we’re discouraged from our curiosity and left to wonder on our own.
And.. when left to wonder things out [I just made up that phrase..] on our own, I think, is when people inside the church begin to look to places, people, and things outside the church to answer these questions. [Not that all people do this.. I’ve sure seen it happen a lot though.]
What do you think? Could it be an issue of pride within today’s church, making people feel inferior because of their questions or ideas?
The church should be the one place over all others where someone could go and ask their honest questions, unafraid of getting bashed for thinking or not knowing something. Yet.. I’ve seen so many pushed away because of some arrogant person, one of these know-it-all sort of people who think they have every answer.
It’s not a question of interpretation of the Bible that I’m talking about here.. it’s a question of the attitude at the heart of us all. Whether or not somebody has the right answer does not give them license to act in a prideful manner.
Maybe this is a bit abstract.. but my thoughts aren’t all the way formed on exactly what I want to say on this at the moment.. or how I want to say it. It’s just something that’s been on my mind lately.. I’m sure it’ll come up again in the near future, as I explore this further…
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March 20, 2008 at 7:49 pm
Carol
Hi Tara,
I agree with you in that we should be able to ask questions in the church. My husband was raised Greek Orthodox, and he has told me before the story of how he wanted to become an altar boy when he was younger. He was going through the process, and the priest was explaining different things about the garments that they wear to perform their duties. My husband also had an aunt who had told him that the Bible is the Word of God and that the beliefs of the church come from the Bible. My husband in sincerity, asked the priest where he could find the information about these garments in the Bible. Well, this priest got really angry, and basically told my husband he had no business to be asking that kind of question. My husband left humilated, angered and confused and never pursued being an altar boy after that. Today he is the pastor of a Pentecostal home missions church, and you know what? When people ask him questions about the Bible and things that relate to God and the chuch, he will either give them an answer or if he doesn’t know, he will be honest and tell them so. Of course, I do believe too that there is a time and a place to ask questions. If I were teaching a Bible study on baptism and someone asks me a question on the book of Revelation, I would perhaps defer that to a later time and maybe take some time with that person one by one. Anyhow, I’ve rambled enough, but I hope you understand what I’m saying. Thanks for this thoughtful post.
Carol
March 20, 2008 at 8:22 pm
tara
Carol,
Thanks so much for your comment! 🙂 I completely understand what you’re saying!
It is just.. wrong.. for people to act like that, not welcoming questions…
Of course, yes, like you mentioned, there are appropriate times and places for certain questions.. like if they don’t pertain to the topic at hand.. I guess what I was thinking of is more like the example you gave of your husband asking the priest those questions. It’s something I hadn’t really thought much about until fairly recently.. at least I hadn’t really given much deep thought to it.
I’ll have more up on this soon too. 🙂
Thanks again for your input!
~ Tara