Russell Gifford

“Faith After Doubt.” Brian McLaren. 2021. A Review. At the outset I think it is important to recognise that there will be a degree of cultural context when describing personal Christian faith. There is of course a wide spectrum of Christian belief within New Zealand but I would contend that the Kiwi Christian tends not to cling as rigidly to dogma as perhaps is the case for adherents of the evangelical tradition in USA. Brian McLaren has cast a magnifying glass view of his own journey of faith and offers a carefully thought-out schema for his readers consideration. Brian sees four stages of developing faith. He uses the growth rings on a tree as metaphor. Each successive ring is greater in dimension but is dependent on earlier growth. His first ring is “Simplicity.” The boundaries of Simplicity are trust and authority. This is the experience of the infant child. If the “big people” in the child’s life say that the world was created in six days, then that must be right. But the child grows. As adolescence looms, questions arise. Science and history are providing a wider view. So, the solution is to seek the writers and speakers who have a wider understanding. And there is no shortage of such people. This stage he describes as “Complexity.” Complexity may serve well enough (albeit exhausting) for a number of years. But in the end, there are still questions. The move to stage three “Perplexity” |means further a divesting of certainty but the rewards are humility and honesty. To admit to difficulties with ‘inerrency’, to affirm the full dignity of the LGBTQ community, and to welcome studies of mysticism are several bridges too far for the conservative Christian community. The result is excommunication. His final stage is “Harmony.” This is described as a further divesting of certainty and is left for the individual to figure out. For me the big plaudit has to be his plug for “Liberals.” Brian is the first recent Christian author that I have come across that uses the term positively. His encouragement to keep reading, and to keep thinking critically I found deeply encouraging and refreshing. Brian makes the interesting case for transferring his 4 stage development scheme to the conduct of nations, This is a visionary dimension and one that I think we should consider carefully. One has to assume that Brian is comfortable with a “Trinitarian” understanding of Christian faith but, surprisingly, he makes almost no mention of this. Given his recent close association with Richard Rohr he must enjoy a close association with the person of the Spirit of God. It seems to me that the whole picture of all the stages of faith needs to be grounded in the realities of faith and one of them, for me, has been the recent focus on the “Trinity.” To have the assurance of the of the constant presence of the Person of the Spirit is deeply encouraging and an important dimension of being Christian. Brian describes periods of loneliness during his journey. There is a remedy for this sad situation. Find a group of like-minded people and share the ups and downs of your journey. This is a vitally important component in the lives of many believers. It will not happen at Sunday morning worship. I will always be grateful for the 8 guys I meet with early each Friday Morning. No topic within this group is off limits. OK, it’s a guys’ group. There is a generous amount of humour, even irreverence. But it is “growth promoting.” Some describe this group as their church. Russell Gifford Christchurch. New Zealand.