1. The Epistemology of Doubt
Travis Dickinson
Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary
@travdickinson

2. These slides can be found at:

3. Do you fly?

4. You notice someone who looks oddly like Tom Hanks in the movie Castaway (he’s been there a while) who you’ve also noticed never seems to board a flight. So you engage this person and he raises a series of questions that you’ve never thought about before.
Do you know how much an airplane weighs? 1 million pounds
Do you know what an airplane is made of? Mostly steel (heavy stuff)
Do you know how many things have to be timed perfectly for a plan to function at all? 100s of thousands of processes having to work with pinpoint accuracy or you fall out of the sky
Is it your experience that typically things weighing a million pounds, being made of steel, requiring pinpoint accuracy with 100s of thousands of processes are able to cruise 6 miles off the ground?
Have a great flight. You’d be a dummy to entrust your life to this sort of thing!

5. Making your faith your own
60% of Christian youth walk away from the church in college.
Why?
Perhaps we haven’t allowed our kids to sufficiently doubt their faith.
Some want to walk away…sin
Some don’t want to…
But they haven’t been allowed to doubt properly.

6. Let’s talk about doubt There are different kinds of doubt
I’m not talking about:
Emotional, volitional, moral, relational, etc.
I am talking about:
Intellectual doubt

7. Let’s talk about doubt Thesis: Intellectual doubt has value.
Doubt has instrumental value since, when handled properly, it leads to knowledge, truth
It can even lead to a greater faith!
Some let doubts have their way.
Some people do not let doubt have any say at all.
There are a lot of instrumental values that are like this. Exercise, making money, philosophy/apologetics

8. S has a defeater for a belief that p iff…
What is doubt?
Doubt involves the pull of what we take to be a defeater for one of our beliefs.
What is a defeater?
Something that, if successful, harms the rationality of a belief.
A defeater for p will involve a claim that is contrary to p.
Let’s imagine I’m at the zoo, and I am viewing the zebra exhibit. I see what appears to be a zebra, and on the basis of this experience, I believe that “there’s a zebra before me.” Suppose, while still looking at what I take to be a zebra, I hear from a reliable source that, given a shortage of zebras, the zoo keepers have hired Hollywood makeup artists to disguise some mules to look just like zebras. As a result of hearing this report, I’m no longer sure that I’m looking at a zebra and not a cleverly disguised mule. I’ve now got a defeater for my belief that there is a zebra before me.
S has a defeater for a belief that p iff…
S has good reasons to believe that not p (rebutting). or
S has good reasons to believe p is unjustified (undercutting).

9. Evidence matters for defeaters.
What is doubt?
Evidence matters for defeaters.
When one does not yet have good reason to believe the contrary claim, it is a potential defeater.
A potential defeater only becomes an actual defeater when there are sufficiently good reasons to believe the defeating claims.
Suppose the report about the cleverly disguised mules was completely unreliable (perhaps given by a friend known for spinning tall tales). In this case, we likely would dismiss the report since it seems so farfetched.
But notice how the situation changes when we have strong evidence for thinking it is true.

10. A person, S, doubts that p iff…
The Nature of Doubt
A person, S, doubts that p iff…
S believes that p is true.
S finds some q merely plausible to some degree.
Note: S doesn’t yet believe q.
S believes that q is a potential defeater.
Steve believes that Scripture is without error. One day, his coworker asserts the idea that there are lots of errors and points out the following passages that all differ in the details. Each of these passages reference the same event, namely, the empty tomb of Jesus and identify the women who witnessed it empty.
Matthew says, “Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to look at the grave” (Matt. 28:1; all Scripture references NASB).
Mark says, “Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome…came to the tomb when the sun had risen” (Mark 16:1–2).
Luke says, “Now they were Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James; also the other women with them” (Luke 24:10).
John says, “Mary Magdalene came early to the tomb” (John 20:1).
This catches Steve off guard, since he has never noticed how very different these passages are and begins to find plausible the idea that these passages contradict. He doesn’t yet believe they contradict, but just feels the pull of that idea. But he does believe that if these passages contradict, then his belief that Scripture is inerrant is defeated.

11. Doubt is when we feel the force of a potential defeater.
What is doubt?
Doubt is when we feel the force of a potential defeater.
When we are finding a potential defeater plausible.
Our belief is not yet defeated in a state of doubt, but it is threatened as we feel or sense the potential for defeat.
We might be considering the evidence for the contrary claim.
Instead of the language of defeaters, you can use the language of objections.
We are finding an objection to our Christian faith somewhat plausible.

12. What is doubt? Steve believes that Scripture is without error.
A coworker points out…
“Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to look at the grave” (Matt. 28:1).
“Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome…came to the tomb when the sun had risen” (Mark 16:1–2).
“Now they were Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James; also the other women with them” (Luke 24:10).
“Mary Magdalene came early to the tomb” (John 20:1).
Steve begins to find plausible the idea that there these passages contradict.
He does not believe that they contradict.
But he does believe that if they contradict, then his belief that Scripture is without error is defeated.

13. What is doubt? p = Scripture is without error
q = Scripture has contradictions
Steve believes that Scripture is without error.
Steve is finding the idea that Scripture has contradictions somewhat plausible.
Steve believes that if these passages contradict, then his belief is defeated.

14. Hang on! How to Doubt Well
Doubts and objections should not straightaway defeat our beliefs.
How many of you will get on the airplane?
Would you get on the flight?
I’m not saying ignore the challenge. You’ll need to address the problem. How’s the best way to do this? In community…this leads to my next point.

15. How to Doubt Well
I find a few objections to Christianity, to some degree, plausible.
What?!
A merely plausible claim is not necessarily a fully reasonable claim.
The only reason that this sounds strange is because we are not used to considering objections.
The first thing to say about how to address a doubt is that we shouldn’t run from it. It may not be an enjoyable experience, but we should see a challenge to our beliefs as an opportunity for greater depth. Rather than avoid our doubt and hope it goes away, I want to suggest that we investigate our doubts.
I’m 100% confident but I’m not 100% (mathmatically) certain.

16. How to Doubt Well
It’s perfectly possible to doubt p and keep rationally believing p.
Remember it is just a potential defeater. Why concede until it is an actual defeater?
I fly on airplanes regularly. If I’m honest, I don’t really know how a craft made of mostly metal and weighing about a million pounds (if it is a 747) can lift off the ground and literally cruise through the sky six miles above the earth. It’s almost absurd, if you really stop to think what happens when we fly. You and I could be sitting in the airport struggling to know how this phenomenon is possible. But here’s the thing. When my seat section is called, I’m getting on the airplane. Wouldn’t you? I think we would because we know enough about airplanes and air travel to know that it is a very safe and reliable form of transportation despite the fact that we have some doubts. We could even be cruising at 30,000 feet, entrusting our very lives to the airplane, and continue to struggle with these questions.

17. How to Doubt Well “Doubt your doubts”
Evaluate the epistemic status of the contrary claims you’re finding plausible.
Two ways to evaluate your doubts:
Ask: So what?
Ask: Is the claim reasonable? Is it more reasonable than my current beliefs?

18. How to Doubt Well So what? Let’s say it is true. So what?
If it is true and reasonable, is it a really a defeater? Is it really contrary?
When S doubts, S believes that q is a potential defeater (#3 from account).
But is q really a potential defeater?
If it is not, then it is not a problem.

19. Steve’s Doubt Belief: Scripture is without error. But…
“Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to look at the grave” (Matt. 28:1).
“Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome…came to the tomb when the sun had risen” (Mark 16:1–2).
“Now they were Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James; also the other women with them” (Luke 24:10).
“Mary Magdalene came early to the tomb” (John 20:1).
Steve begins to find plausible the idea that there these passages contradict.
He does not believe that they contradict.
But he does believe that if they contradict, then his belief that Scripture is without error is defeated.

20. Steve’s Doubt So what? These are different…
“Mary Magdalene and the other Mary” (Matthew).
“Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome” (Mark).
“Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James; also the other women” (Luke).
“Mary Magdalene” (John).
But are they contradictory?
Steve begins to find plausible the idea that there these passages contradict.
He does not believe that they contradict.
But he does believe that if they contradict, then his belief that Scripture is without error is defeated.

21. How to Doubt Well Is the claim reasonable?
When S doubts, S finds q plausible to some degree (#2 from account).
A crazy claim can strike us as plausible.
But is it reasonable?
If it is not reasonable, then the claim is not a problem.
For example, say that we hear a news report of the discovery of an ancient Palestinian ossuary that bears the name “Jesus, son of Joseph.” The claim is made that they have discovered the bodily remains of Jesus Christ. Is this a problem if it is true? You bet it is! It has been Christian orthodoxy from the beginning that Jesus rose bodily from the dead. If His bodily remains are found, then clearly this central claim is defeated.
But now we need evidence, because this tune has played before (usually around Easter time on public television), and let’s just say it has not always been a hit. If the ossuary dates early and looks to be authentic, then it would of course be a genuine problem for Christian faith. If it turns out that there are compelling reasons to think the inscription is a modern forgery, then the problem is dissolved. But notice it is the evidence that matters here.

22. Is this okay?
Isn’t it wrong to question God? Aren’t we told to have childlike faith?
Matthew 18
James 1:6 But he must ask in faith without any doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind.

23. Is this okay? Isn’t it risky to doubt your faith?
No more risky than ignoring doubt.
I believe more people walk away from ignoring their doubts, especially when crises hit.
If done properly, we will end up with a more rational view.
Take this process slowly and do it in community.

24. Conclusion
Christians stand in a long and rich tradition of considering the hardest objections and offering thoughtful responses.
How are we doing today?
Christianity has the resources to address our deepest and most difficult questions.
In order to get to these answers, we have to appreciate the hard questions.

25. Conclusion
If Christianity can address our hardest questions, we come out with a deeper more abiding faith.

26. Conclusion In the words of Jesus…
Matt. 22:37-38: Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment.

27. “The Benefit of the Doubt blog”
Conclusion
“The Benefit of the Doubt blog”
@travdickinson