A Conversation on Faith

A friend and I recently had a conversation that left me deep in thought for many days thereafter. It was a conversation on "faith" and what it means to individuals. This friend of mine is one in which I have great respect and admiration. He is very intelligent and, in my observation, looks at life way beyond its superficialities. He and I do not share the same religious background, but with respect for one anothers' beliefs we ventured into this conversation open minded and without any sort of agenda.

I've always considered myself a person that has a faith based life, which faith dictates many paths and decisions I have taken and will take. This, I learned, was common ground for the two of us. Based on the faiths of our parents, we were taught in our childhood. These teachings encompassed freedom to decide for ourselves if what was taught was to be accepted and lived by. Understanding that he too had convictions and a set of beliefs that served as a guide through his life, he posed to me a few questions that made significant imprints on my mind. Considering all the different religions throughout the world and through time he asked me and I paraphrase, "What difference does it really make? None among us knows how things actually are after this life and therefore faith should not be shared among each other unless one is seeking it. It's possible that what you believe it true, it's possible that what I believe is true, and it's possible that none of it's true or that all of it's true. It's possible that there are no absolute truths." These "possibilities" I found hard to argue, because if I did know then it would not be faith, it would be knowledge.

He went on to say that he certainly hoped that was more to life than just living and that he and others would be held accountable for there actions, but that was his personal belief. I give great respect to his points and found much validity in them. It is here that I found much upon which to contemplate. I agree with him that faith is extremely personal. My belief, whether it's "correct" or not, should not dictate the beliefs of others. Religion throughout time has brought both good and bad to the world and its people. It draws lines, and where there are lines there are sides which can lead to great controversies. I do however believe that personal faith is more than just something good to believe in that gets you through the day, if this was the case then I suppose it wouldn't matter what we believe as long as it gave you the hope you were looking for.

I believe there are eternal, absolute truths no matter if you believe them or not. I believe in a God that loves all of his children and has a plan for each of them no matter what they believe. I am firm in my faith and am willing to share with whomever make seek it, but I also believe in having tolerance for others not of my faith. This dichotomy leads me to wonder, how is it possible for one to have firm convictions in his belief and yet be open minded? This seems to be sound in theory, but practicing it is not a easy as it ought to be.

"Call me Ishmael"

Everyday I commute from home to school. It typically takes me about 20 minutes to make the drive from one location to the other. The carpool that I once belonged to dissolved now that we have differing school schedules based on our clinical rotations. Even though I liked the company, I have found that I enjoy having this time to myself each day. Sometimes I would listen to the radio and sometimes I would just drive with nothing on at all. After a while I became bored with the pointless and tactless morning radio shows and decided to begin something new, listening to audio books. Lookly back on my adolescent years, one of my regrets is not spending more time reading quality books, books that I felt would have added quality to my character and imagination. At the time, I thought myself to be clever by writing books reports on books that I never even tried to read. So I resolved to begin a quest of "reading" as many literary classics as I could. I went to the local library and made my first selection, "Treasure Island" by Robert Louis Stevenson. Being only able to listen to it for a sum total of 4o minutes each day, I knew it would take a little bit to finish. But this was no complaint of mine as I quickly began looking forward to that time of day when I would drive to and from school. Jim Hawkins and Long John Silver did an excellent job of captivating me within there story. Upon finishing this story, I eagerly began a new book, my next story to conquer, "Moby Dick" by Herman Melville. I was thrilled each time I got into the car to listen to Ishmael describe the overpowering desire that he saw in Captain Ahab to seek revenge on that monstrous whale. I was not disappointed by any means as it came to its climactic ending, however different then I imagined.

With two classic stories under my belt, my hunger for my quest has only increased. I thought I would stick with my new affinity for stories of traveling, sea faring men and their adventures and am currently listening to "Gulliver's Travels" by Jonathan Swift, another wonderful story.

I find that in each of these short 20 minute increments, I feel much more productive and culturally enriched than had I been otherwise. It has been a fun way to pass the time and I actually feel like I'm catching up on what I missed out on in earlier years. Even though some might consider it cheating by listening to it rather than reading I figure as long as I can find good books, I will continue this new found tradition. Any and all recommendations for good books are welcomed.