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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Don’t limit God’s truth with either/or thinking

A popular book from a few years ago claimed that all the really important rules in life were taught in kindergarten. I hadn’t mastered advanced metaphysics at that age, but I was brought up in a culture that taught me to think about key theological problems with a “both/and” mindset rather than an “either/or” one.

Back in grade school, I was a lot like the Karate Kid, bored and somewhat frustrated with my education that felt more like painting the fence and “wax on, wax off” than anything really valuable (like learning the batting averages of my favorite ballplayers).

In spite of my natural resistance to school uniforms and nuns, I actually gained some wisdom by being exposed to the traditional Christian mindset that has helped to chart a path of truth for the last 2,000 years.

This mindset grasps the essential nature of the truths of Christianity – that they are revealed mystery and therefore cannot be reduced to the kind of either/or thinking that we use in the ordinary world of business and science and sports.

One specific example from baseball: If the hitter is charged with an “at bat,” then he either got a hit or went out. The ratio of hits to at bats is what we understand as a batting average, a very useful thing to know in the world of baseball.

If you look at the basic truths in the world of Christianity, you will notice a curious pattern emerging. In spite of man’s attempts to create either/ors, the revealed truth has the form of a both/and.

Was Jesus man or God? According to the early church councils, Jesus was both fully man and fully God – not a man with an extra dose of God spirit, and not God with the mere appearance of humanity (both popular heresies that have reappeared throughout history).

Can my logical mind grasp how Jesus could be both fully man and fully God at the same time? No. Is it revealed as mystical truth? Yes.

And if I let this truth-form shape my mind in this matter, the derivative thinking about Jesus falls into line with other Scriptural statements and church doctrines about Jesus.

Now how does this apply to the question, “Is God a blessing God or a judging God?”

Notice the either/or format. This polarizes answers into either the soupy feel-good theology of a Matthew Fox and “Original Blessing,” or the shame-based self-hatred of John Calvin’s total depravity.

A both/and option allows the Scriptures to speak the revealed truth: God the Creator blessed, man brought about the curse of sin, and God blessed us at a higher level by sending a redeemer.

Does God judge or bless? Both. In the bigger picture, even God’s judgment is a kind of blessing as it makes us aware of our need for the ultimate blessing of a Divine Redeemer who wants to live in and through us with the gift of new life.

Once you become aware of either/or vs. both/and thinking, you will see a number of traditional theological controversies that become clarified.

Are we predestined or do we have free will? Both. (And this agrees with Scripture.)

Do we need Jesus or the Church? Both. (Ditto on Scripture.)

Does salvation involve faith or good works? Both. (Double ditto on Scripture.)

Not every theological question can be solved by applying a magical both/and format. Linking a couple of heresies does not create the truth.

But when you find a particularly sticky theological dilemma, be open to the wisdom of the 2,000-year-old Church that oftentimes seems to speak in a foreign language of both/and dogmas.

John Dunne is a counselor in Spokane with master’s degrees in counseling and English literature.