Adventures in Faith

We talk in symbols and metaphors hard pressed to withstand the eternal "what and why." When scrutinized they cannot pass beyond their ascribed meaning and so reveal inadequacy. Of course, there are some things which must live in metaphor or sign. By nature they are poetic and delicate, not meant to be probed. They make no claim to finality (though they may have a right to immortality); these are not the current concern.

Rather, of interest are the eternal answers, truths and definitions: the final statements not admitting the prospect of limitation. Once assumed they become final irrevocable points beyond which there is no need to go, or to even want to venture.

But in truth there is always more to be said, and said with reason and conviction, even if still incomplete. Very often all that is offered as a next step is a denial, a negative statement about what went before. That is not in itself enough but it seems to require such vehemence only because opposed to so definitive a formulation.

It is always possible, and desirable, to go beyond, no matter how much uncertainty may prompt or derive from the probing. Some things may have to be left behind to make room for what is new. It is alright to do so, and easier done if we recognize there are no ultimates, no points beyond which we may not go. It is alright if it becomes an endless refinement of belief and thought. In voyages into faith and thought, as in other adventures, there is no need to fear we will fall over the end of the earth and tumble into a terrible pit of despair.