Believing and knowing are not distinct in the matter of certainty. The certainty of faith is as firm as that of knowledge. Indeed, the certainty of faith is the more intense of the two: it is virtually unshakable and ineradicable. For their faith people are prepared to sacrifice everything, including their life. Galileo three times retracted his agreement with the Copernican system. Kepler, against his conviction, occupied himself at Graz with astrology to maintain his livelihood; the needy mother (astronomy) had to live from her foolish daughter (astrology). Who would give his or her life for a scientific thesis, for example, that the earth rotates around the sun? But religion produces martyrs. In terms of sheer power the assurance of faith far exceeds scientific certainty.
~Herman Bavinck~
Reformed Dogmatics Vol. 1: Prolegomena (Grand Rapids, Michigan; Baker Academic; 2003) p. 577-578.
The Old Guys 
Leave a Reply