Stirring of Skepticism

Learning how to overcome skepticism with love

09/29/2021

Jn 1:47-51 Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him and said of him, “Here is a true child of Israel. There is no duplicity in him.” Nathanael said to him, “How do you know me?” Jesus answered and said to him, “Before Philip called you, I saw you under the fig tree.” Nathanael answered him, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel.” Jesus answered and said to him, “Do you believe because I told you that I saw you under the fig tree? You will see greater things than this.” And he said to him, “Amen, amen, I say to you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.”

Something strange starts to happen when we become teenagers: we start to feel like skeptics. Do you know what a “skeptic” is? It is someone who questions, doubts and even rejects things for which they cannot find proof. Have you ever felt that way about things your parents say, or even that your priests say, or the Church teaches? For example, today we celebrate the great Archangels, Michael, Gabriel and Raphael. But some of you may be sitting there thinking: “Yeah, right. Angels are all make-believe stories for little children to keep them from getting scared, like Santa Claus and the Tooth-fairy and the Easter Bunny.” Do you feel skeptical sometimes?

But I would suggest to you that skeptics don’t go far enough, that is, they stop short, and don’t question or doubt everything. Put positively: they take some things on pure faith. For instance, some people read their horoscope every morning because they believe it predicts what will happen to them that day. (But it won’t.) Other people believe in ghosts and watch T.V. program about paranormal activity. (But that’s not true.)

And that is why Taco Bell pays Tom Brady millions of dollars to be in their commercial for just a few seconds, and DirecTV pays Serena Williams to star as Wonder Woman in their ads. Why? Well, because we do not question or doubt what Tom Brady and Serena Williams tell us. We take them on pure faith, and so we eat at Taco Bell and we buy DirecTV. In other words, skeptics are not skeptical enough. Sooner or later we all walk by faith, and not by sight or by skepticism.

In the gospel today, Jesus helps Nathanial to see the limits of his own skepticism, and helps him to walk by faith and not by sight. First, however, Jesus compliments Nathanial on having a healthy skepticism and questioning things. So, Jesus says about him: “Here is a true Israelite. There is no duplicity in him.” In other words, Nathanial is nobody’s fool: he questions and doubts, he tests theories and seeks scientific proof.

But if Nathanial is really honest, he will admit he also takes some things on faith, and that is how he begins to believe in Jesus, even more than we believe in the words of Tom Brady and Serena Williams. And Jesus says that soon Nathanial would also believe in the goodness and guidance of the archangels. Jesus predicts: “You will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man” (Jn 1:51). That is, sooner or later we all walk by faith and not by sight, or by skepticism.

Boys and girls, you may be feeling the first stirrings of skepticism in your mind and in your heart. You feel like questioning and doubting and even rejecting many things, like Nathanial did. And that is generally a good thing because you are being more honest and not naïve or gullible. But also realize that there is more going on in the world than meets the eye.

And that is why I believe right in our teenage years, when we have questioned and doubted everything, we fall in love with someone. Have you noticed how you are also attracted to boys and girls, and some have boyfriends and girlfriends? And what happens? We believe everything the other person tells us! Girls, especially, believe all the stupid things boys tell them. Why don’t you girls be a little more skeptical of those stupid and stinky boys? Because sooner or later we all walk by faith and not by sight or skepticism.

You see, the way to overcome the first stirrings of skepticism is with the first stirrings of love. Love is the antidote to the sickness of skepticism. May the Archangels Michael, Gabriel and Raphael help us to walk by faith and not by sight, so we do not stumble over our skepticism.

Praised be Jesus Christ!