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My faith has found a resting place,
Not in device or creed;
I trust the ever living One,
His wounds for me shall plead.
*Eliza E. Hewitt, words to first stanza of "My Faith Has Found a Resting Place."
* * *
For centuries people believed that Aristotle was right when he said the heavier an object, the faster it would fall. Aristotle was seen as the greatest thinker of all time, so surely he would not be wrong. Anyone could have taken two objects, one heavier and one lighter, and dropped them from a height to test Aristotle's claim. No one did until nearly 2,000 years after Aristotle's death. In 1589 Galileo called learned professors to the base of the Leaning Tower of Pisa. He went to the top and pushed off a ten-pound and a one-pound weight. Each landed at the same time. The power of belief was so strong, still, that the professors denied their eyesight. They continued to claim Aristotle was right.
* * *
I recall having my faith severely tested when in seminary. I had been protected from other ideas about religious faith; I was born and protected in a closed environment. My faith group was always right, always the best, and a badge of pride. We were superior.
The testing of my faith began a painful process of many years, yet, the process was part of the transformation of my faith, not the loss of my faith. The Holy Spirit will lead us to mature in our faith, and this includes change, but the Holy Spirit is not part of the annihilation of our faith. But, frankly, there were times when I felt that I had almost lost all hold on faith and that I was hanging by a thread over the abyss of agnosticism.
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