Reason and Revelation
As many of you know, I enjoy a good debate. I don’t care for politics and I think those debates are anything but useful and are of very little consequence. Religious debate is much the same, in that both sides are typically limited to incorrect presuppositions; namely, the creeds. There are a myriad of other reasons and presuppositions that leave reasonable people wanting for satisfactory answers to the big questions of the meaning and purpose of life.
In life there is a progression from the utter dependency of infancy, to the exuberance of youth, to responsible adulthood, and finally to the experience and wisdom of old age. In our quest for understanding, we follow much of the same pattern of progression. Those who seek for understanding in each of these life phases, arrive at waypoints in this spiritual journey and think they have arrived at the destination. The same is true for those locked into the parameters defined by creeds, the current scientific paradigms, and philosophical axioms. These creeds, paradigms, and axioms are waypoints, not destinations. So, when we observe religious debates, they are simply inconclusive because of the limitations of the arguments.
As I have observed people engaged in their search for meaning, I see their dissatisfaction with the answers. This is because they recognize that the God they are seeking is not found in the creeds or in science and philosophy. At that point, most people give up, but those who persevere and look beyond the limits of worldly wisdom arrive at the truth.
There are three logical ends for those who don’t give up in the search for knowledge, understanding, and meaning. I suppose there is a fourth conclusion for some people, and that is nihilism, but that is unacceptable. The first is acceptance of the creeds, which is stopping short of the mark. The second is atheism, which is actually the most reasonable conclusion you can arrive at because the God of the creeds is nonsensical and ultimately tyrannical. I know that is a bit harsh, but that is the atheist view. The third is a personal encounter with God and ongoing revelation.
As we begin to get into the first few sections of Doctrine and Covenants, revelation is the theme. Both restorative and personal revelation are discussed, along with how we receive and react to it. We read how Martin Harris and Oliver Cowdery reacted to revelations given to Joseph Smith on their behalf. Martin relied on his own wisdom and Oliver assumed that spiritual gifts took very little effort to obtain. I have been there with them at different times in my life. We can learn from their experiences and avoid the spiritual pitfalls that beset them if we are wise and can put away our pride.
So, how are reason and revelation related? The Lord said to Oliver, “… I say unto you, that you must study it out in your mind; then you must ask me if it be right…”. Reasoning can be thought of as critical thinking and problem-solving. As we engage in reasoning, we rely on our accumulation of knowledge to help inform us. If we lack knowledge we can turn to available information, and if that is not available we “ask of God”. Joseph Smith first turned to scripture and its many interpretations by religious leaders and teachers for answers, but that ended in confusion, so he turned to God.
As in Joseph’s case, reason only got him so far. In the case of modern Christianity, it can only take you so far in your search for meaning. A thoughtful atheist recently said that the only way he could become a believer was to have some kind of personal revelation because he rightly believes that the God of the creeds is not believable.
When it comes down to it, the only way we are convinced of the reality of God is through revelation. However, we don’t generally get revelations without reason. We should not expect to get a miraculous vision or witness some marvelous thing. Revelation comes in small impressions. Joseph Smith once said, “A person may profit by noticing the first intimation of the spirit of revelation; for instance, when you feel pure intelligence flowing into you, it may give you sudden strokes of ideas, so that by noticing it, you may find it fulfilled the same day or soon”.
I hope each of us will seek to gain or strengthen our testimony of Jesus Christ by utilizing the gifts of reason and revelation.
Happy Sunday.