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With this in mind, it could be wise to rephrase the question this way: “When you’ve had doubts, how have you dealt with them?” Simply put: I’ve had to learn to rest in the contradictions. There are some questions that won’t go away easily and when faced with paradox, we can either ignore it, run away from it or learn to coexist with it, albeit with unease. I’ve not perfected it, but I do think we in the church should be more honest about our doubts, embracing them rather than hiding them. Hi! I’m Jesse, and I don’t have all the answers. As a pastor, there are questions I’ve encountered over and over. They’re sometimes about theology and the Bible, but more often they’re about everyday life, and they can’t be answered easily or quickly. If you’ve never had the opportunity to ask a pastor tough questions this is the place to ask them, and I’ll do my best to respond honestly, authentically and biblically. As a pastor, have you ever had doubts about your faith or the church system?—Josh, NZ Anyone who says they’ve never doubted their faith, God or the church isn’t telling the truth. I’m no different. I can recall countless private conversations with pastoral colleagues who have shared with me their personal struggles with their religion and the church, and I’ve certainly been in that position myself many times. Pete Enns remarks in his book The Sin of Certainty, “church is too often the most risky place to be spiritually honest”. Everyone has doubts, including pastors.
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Are all Adventists vegan? Do I need to be vegan to be an Adventist?—Anonymous, NSW No and no. While you will find that many Adventists are vegan, it’s not mandatory. What is true is that health is important to the church. What you eat, how much exercise you get and how much time you spend outside all affect your physical, mental and spiritual wellbeing. The healthier you are, the better your life will be and that will inevitably overflow into your faith journey. Of course, God meets us wherever we are, but if we can help it, we should do everything in our power to eat a healthy, balanced diet. I say this as someone who doesn’t always get it right, and could certainly benefit from eating more salad and fewer chocolate bars. It’s just such a shame chocolate is so delicious.
Is God a man, a woman, both or neither?—Anonymous, NSW Genesis 1:27 reads: “in the image of God He created them; male and female He created them.” From the beginning of the biblical story, this combination of masculine and feminine represents the fullness of the image of God. Though God is typically referred to with masculine pronouns, there are passages in both Old and New Testaments that attribute feminine attributes to God (Isaiah 42:14, Hosea 13:8, Matthew 23:37 for example). In a literary sense, one of the most commonly used names for God: YHWH (or Yahweh) is made up of “yah” (which is feminine) and “weh” (which is masculine). We should of course also recognise that even Jesus refers to God as His Father (Matthew 12:50), while also insisting that God is Spirit (John 4:24). So where does this leave us? Is God a man, a woman, both or neither? Perhaps this question provides us with an opportunity to stretch our categories. As Augustine of Hippo once said: “If you have understood, then what you have understood is not God.” God is mysterious, transcendent and beyond our comprehension as mortal beings. And yet, we are made in His image, designed to reflect His glory. Whatever your gender, God’s image can be found every time you look in the mirror.
Got a question? Ask it here: SIGNSOFTHETIMES.ORG.AU/ASKJESSE MAY 2022 • SIGNS OF THE TIMES.ORG.AU
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