I decided recently that I would start blogging about my faith for Lent. This sounded like a great idea until I got ready to do it. It's actually pretty frightening. Blogging about faith is like getting a tattoo of a cross. It is very permanent, very public, and it is guaranteed to make people think differently about you.
Depending on how I do it, a blog about faith and religion could be just a small step from standing on a box on a college campus. At Florida State in the early 90s (and probably still today), this job was usually performed by Brother Jed. Brother Jed was the stereotypical street preacher. With floppy bible in hand, he would shout out to everyone who walked by, whether they wanted to hear him or not. He insulted people, stirred up crowds of hecklers, and scared thousands of people away from anything related to Jesus. I would usually stop for some great free entertainment whenever Brother Jed was in town. By the sheer number of people he has shouted at, he may have chalked up some successful conversions, but I suspect the net result of his work has been a loss for Christianity.
A more subtle approach used on campus was that of the Campus Crusade for Christ. Instead of standing on boxes, members trolled the campus for people who seemed like they were in a good mood and open to some conversation. I must have looked pretty harmless, because I got approached quite a bit. They would walk up to me and introduce themselves, often in a too-friendly manner that reminded me of used car salesmen and infomercials. From there, we would sometimes participate in a few hours of intellectual sparring that left the Crusader exhausted, and myself in an even better mood than when we began.
Well-meaning friends spent years trying to convince me of their faith. Some friends shared books with me, but with their mostly faulty logic, most of those authors only sharpened my arguments against faith.
Years later, when I did become a Christian (through the help of many more well-meaning friends), I realized that there are some crucial pieces missing in the arguments that I had fought so hard against. I realized the following:
- No one can be converted to any religion by another person. We are too smart for that. We "know" too much. We can only convert ourselves by making a decision to believe, based on a limited understanding of what we are believing in.
- There are some things that we don't really understand until we experience them. Roller coasters, beautiful views, raising kids, starting a business, falling in love, or great music are some examples. Imagine someone trying to argue with you about the beauty of a certain song you hadn't heard, or that a specific person you have never met is destined to be your true love!
I am just going to share my experiences and my own understanding, in the same way that I might share any other life changing experience. In the process, you may come to know me better, and gain some understanding about how a staunch, rational atheist can become a Christian.
