Remember, this is a required event
for our class! Show up.
Tonight. 7 p.m. Robinson Teaching
Theater. There will be cookies and punch. And fun.
The Deadline
Your review is due as a comment on
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organized, post your review as a comment on this post so all of our
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would be great to see you making the blog into a conversation. Don't just add
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The Basics
You’ll write a 300-500 word review of
the Dilley reading. In your review, you should explain what happened at the
event, taking time to point out the most important points made or the most
significant moments. (Be sure that you explain why those were the most
important points or moments. Don’t simply assert their importance. Defend your
claims!) Build up to a conclusion in which you explain and justify your own
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what the event inspired you to do or be; and/or how the event surprised and
challenged you.
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sure, if you do so, that you still offer some original and personal reflections
on the part(s) of the event that you found most engaging or interesting or
otherwise noteworthy.
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The Reasons
Being part of a university community
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interesting speakers and artists—possibly more opportunities than you will have
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How to Gauge the Quality of Your
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The Best: Tells what happened and reflects fully on it, finding
things both to affirm and to question.
Just Okay: Tends to summarize rather than go very far with reflections.
Not So Hot: Summary alone.
Just Okay: Tends to summarize rather than go very far with reflections.
Not So Hot: Summary alone.
The first portion of the reading to elicit a response from me was her Dilley's short bit about how parents often approach her seeking advice as to how to keep their straying children firmly on the path of righteousness. In a strange way, this went against my personal grain of right and wrong. The ethical question this request brings up is whether or not one has the right to force someone onto the path of truth. I make the assumption that Christianity is the one true religion, but I'm perfectly comfortable in that regard. I'll repeat the question: should you force someone to believe in the truth? Strangely enough, God Almighty was faced with this question way back when during the creation of Man. It is simply the question of free will. Because God gave man free will, the choice to follow and worship Him is so much more deep and true. Thus, I'll have to side with God himself and say that asking for advice to try to trap children in faith is the wrong thing to do. Dilley herself is an example of waywardness turning out well in the end. Though she strayed, God drew her back to Himself with time.
ReplyDeleteA second portion that struck me was the demons that she brought along to Church. One thing I have always struggled with as a Christian is corporate worship itself. I fear the judgment that any large collective of people ultimately harbors. This mostly results from what I feel is my unique style of worship. I take Jesus' parable of the tax collector's prayer quite literally. My worship is almost entirely internal. As such, a seated person during worship appears disrespectful; however, I'm merely worshipping in my own way. Perhaps my fear is superficial and misplaced, but it is there regardless. Now that I think of it, my father once raised his voice to me about how disrespectful my actions were. If my own father thought so, what's to say random strangers don't think so? This of itself has driven me to worship on my own, apart from any group. I know iron sharpens iron, but I prefer to find my iron in books I read instead of people I talk to at church.
I think you make a good point in that parents shouldn't force their children to believe. Especially because relationships with God and Jesus should be personal, and I think being born and raised without a choice to decide for yourself doesn't promote a healthy relationship.
DeleteI agree! Although my dad is a pastor and my family has always been involved with the church I am fortunate to never have felt pressured to do anything in my walk with God. My parents believe in letting my sisters and I find out things on our own. This has been true for accepting Jesus into my heart, choosing to be baptised, and whether I wanted to become a member of the church. I believe the fact that they've let me make my own decisions makes my relationship with Christ more real, not an expectation that I feel some parents put upon their children. It is not worth being in a relationship with God if it is not by your choice. That is why God gave us free will. He wants us to choose to be in a relationship with him.
DeleteThe Dilley reading struck me on a few levels, some personal, and some were mental. Her overall presentation was as an honest human being trying to convey a story that was very personal to her, and rightly so! Here at Whitworth faith seems to be the most important thing to a lot of people, and with her being a Whitworth grad I assumed the story was going to be one of unshakable morals and beliefs. I was wrong. Her story had doubts, struggles with faith, and at the same time an underlying theme of hope. It was inspiring, scary, and altogether familiar at the same time. Her stories about growing up in a very Christian home and falling from the church all together are extremely familiar, and hit home like a baseball bat. It’s as if somebody wrote an abstract on my own life, and one I can connect with very easily. Growing up along the secular/religious dichotomy as she called it, was something that kept me interested the entire time she was presenting. I can appreciate a good work, but it’s the engaging style that really keeps someone’s interest, and in my case I was enthralled. In particular, her discussion about the conversation she had with her father about religion was intriguing to me. Religious views seem to be one of the most varied things in the world, even amongst families and with those you love. But as something increases in scope so does the debate floor, and her dialogue with her father was one of the most difficult talks one can have with a family member. I know because I have been in the same position. I have never been a firm Christian, or ever really identified with it. I was brought up that way, but never been a follower or a believer. So to see someone else have very similar life experiences is like looking in a mirror. I look forward to reading her book, and I’m sure that I will find even more similarities. I enjoyed her presentation very much, and she was very intelligent and entertaining, and is gifted with words, words that spoke to me like I was sitting in the front row.
ReplyDeleteAndrea Palpant Dilley's reading from her autobiography, Faith and Other Flat Tires, told the story of her departure, time of questioning, and return to Christianity. The story was both a personal memoir and story about coming of age. She shared segments from two chapters: Why Isn't God Like Eric Clapton and Taking my Demons to Church. In the chapter, Why Isn't God like Eric Clapton, she described her family's Christian missionary background and how even though she would not have changed anything about how she was raised, she still desired to find space and leave the teachings she had grown up holding. Her description of how struggles in faith came hand in hand with growing up really helped make a connection with the audience since every individual goes through a period of trying to decide what he or she individually believes. Dilley also struggled with the problem of God's hiddenness, especially after seeing Clapton fans acting like a church congregation in worship while watching him perform songs from his Unplugged album. In addition, the chapter revealed how she turned to music to deal with the emotions that arose out of her doubts and questions about the existence of God. The next segment she shared briefly described how she left Christianity a year after college and wandered until she was twenty-five then decided to simply sit and “take her demons to church.” With the audience mainly consisting of college students, this section also held applications for most of the individuals in the lecture hall.
ReplyDeleteThe reading really hit home for me because even though I lived in Christian home and went to a Christian school since I was in second grade. I did not make my own individual decision to have a faith of my own until the end of my Freshman year of high school. Although I never doubted the existence of God, I went through a period where I completely ignored the Christian teachings that I had grown up knowing. I wish Dilley would have shared more about her journey back to Christianity, but she did share that she felt like the love she had seen from God did not feel like enough and that she was simply disappointed in God. Her disappointment reflected my own past struggle with my faith and reminded me of the journey I had finding my own relationship with God. I really admired her openness to tell the struggles she faced, especially because it opened up opportunities for her to relate and impact her audience, including myself. Overall, Andrea Palpant Dilley was very charming and relatable, and her story truly described one example of the doubts and questions each person faces in his or her walk of faith.
The reading was all about the struggle between faith and the world in which we live in. Andrea was addressing this issue through her personal experiences which she read as an expert from her book. She herself went back and forth and seemed wishy washy in her position as a Christian. Repeatedly she appeared to switch roles and talk from her cynical broken teenage self and then back to her Christ following perspective she has today. I feel this exemplified her position more because she was at that crossroads of faith and a life without God. I feel her most important point to mention was towards the end with her three big questions. Why does the church seem so screwed up? Why is God so distant? Why do bad things happen under a good loving God? Andrea briefly mentioned her mission’s trip to Africa and the famine and sickness she witnessed there, and she talked of how the suffering that the saw was only adding stones to her heart meaning she was becoming hardened. She opened up her reading with the excerpt that went into detail about the hitchhiker her dad picked up and I thought it was interesting because of the Christian love and kindness her dad showed the man it seemed Andrea only saw a man who was lost and suffering in this world, as she stated this foreshadowed her own pilgrimage on the line of faith later on. She also brought this story up again as she described why she was so cynical of God but more importantly the religion. The closure for this issue and one of the more important points to pay attention to in the excerpt was how she rediscovered her faith. She said that her faith had doubts which were born of disappointment which is born for longing, longing for God which faith in the long run requires a sort of direction change. This change will still draw you towards God and for Andrea helped her discover what she truly believed in. Her ending thoughts, even though she didn’t say it, I feel she meant to challenge you to truly discover why you think the way you think, know what you know, and believe what you truly believe, her path of self-discovery set an example to truly question things and discover the answers for yourself.
ReplyDeleteAndrea Palpant Dilley read to us from two sections of her book Faith and Other Flat Tires, the first from the chapter "Why isn't God like Eric Clapton" and the second from "Taking my Demons to Church". This reading by was characterized by honesty in difficult circumstances. As she outlines her spiritual walk in the memoir, she never holds back from recounting the hard things she dealt with or the non-spiritual thoughts she had. I think the most important part was her descriptions of the events that led her to fall away from the church. She described her teenage angst and how even at a young age she was pondering tough questions and reading books such as "Disappointment with God". She also included several experiences with her very religious parents, particularly her dad. I was especially struck by some of the philosophical struggles that led her away and then back to the faith. These are important because they are things that many people think about and by putting them out there Dilley not only asserts their affect on her own life but also makes them known for others to think about. She dealt with several issues that I have also dealt with, such as wondering why God allows evil in the world and why worship sometimes seems like simply an emotional illusion. Although I have never left the church, I have had times where I seriously questioned what I believed. I think that in order to make your faith truly your own you must go through times where you doubt and question, because when you consciously decide to believe it makes your faith that much more real. In my own life I have tried to face the tough questions head on even though sometimes it's hard, and it has made my faith so much stronger knowing that I believe with my heart AND my mind. I think that Andrea went through a similar thing. Overall I felt a strong connection with her and with other believers through her reading; I enjoyed it.
ReplyDeleteAndrea Palpant Dilley’s story is one that I think many of us can relate to in one way or another. At this reading, she read excerpts from her book, entitled Faith and Other Flat Tires, she chose to read composites that somewhat concluded or gave a look into all that her memoir entailed. She read one excerpt prior to her departure from the church as well as one at the time she chose to go back to the church. Attending her reading meant even more for me because of the fact that I read her memoir for my English class. Having read the memoir, the excerpts she read and the questions she answered were more in context and therefore easier for me to understand as well as relate to. I think her story is so relatable not only because she was a Whitworth student just like us but because I know that her struggle with faith is something that so many of us have gone through ourselves. In her book she struggles with faith and the big questions that I myself have asked before. Questions like why God allows suffering and is it okay to have doubts within your faith. Another aspect that resonated with me is that she addresses the fact that for a lot of us we have the religion and the worldview that we have because it is what our parents have taught us and how we have been raised. I think that being a freshman, in what is for many of us our first time living away from home this is when we really create who we are and are presented with the decision to continue believing and practicing the things we learned as we grew up or to explore and possibly find a different worldview that is more our own. I think that is important for us to be able to answer the question that Dilley poses, not just if and what we believe, but why we believe it. A final thing I wanted to mention is the writing process that she went through. She touched on this a little bit during the reading but my English class was able to have a Q&A session with her prior to the reading in which she expanded on this subject. She said that the hardest thing about writing a memoir is deciding what to include and what to leave out. She said that there were instances where she would call the person and say this is what I wrote about you and ask if it was okay that she depicted them in that way; although the final editing was up to her I think it was really great that she took their feedback into consideration because like she told us, a lot of people use memoirs for other reasons like revenge but I feel like her telling her story will help so many others who are going through the same thing she did.
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ReplyDeleteThe first portion of the reading was about Dilley and how she grew up. She gives some details about her life such as her being baptized when she was twelve in the Spokane River. She had loving parents who tried their best to ensure that Dilley would remain on the path of righteousness. Unfortunately, things don’t always work out the way we want them to in life. I began to wonder to myself, “Did Dilley’s parents try too hard to enforce religion into her life?” As a Christian, I believe that it is important that we never make people feel uncomfortable about getting to know Christ. We must always remember that a battle with a person who doesn’t know God is not ours to fight, but God’s. We must live our lives as Christ did, doing everything we do to glorify the name of our Father and He will take care of the rest. Instead of teaching Dilley religion, her parents should have tried to teach her how to practice relationship. I do not like to ever say that I do something because of my religion; everything I do is based upon my personal relationship with Christ. Dilley’s parents, in an attempt to lead her to God, actually led her to stray away. Dilley went through a rebellious stage where she felt God could not be real because of all the suffering in the world. What she didn’t realize was that God does not allow suffering; it comes from the lack of experiencing His love. God gives us all unlimited chances to live our lives to glorify His name. His love is extravagant and will never be matched or even come close to being matched. It’s so easy in life to turn away from God and fall into the customs of this world. WE MUST remember that the pleasure that comes from the world is only temporary, but the pleasure that comes from honoring God is eternal! After leaving church for a while, Dilley finally realizes that unity and fellowship in God’s love provide the greatest fulfillment one could feel on earth. She quotes near the end of her reading, “The Lord binds us together like a chain that cannot be broken.” If our God is for us, then who could ever stop us? Together, we can make a chain that will never be broken and we will all rejoice and have eternal happiness in the Kingdom of our Lord God.
ReplyDeleteAndrea Palpant Dilley read two excerpts from her recent book, a spiritual memoir titled Faith and Other Flat Tires. She tells about her struggle with her faith very openly and honestly. I really admired her openness. That level of transparency is difficult to reach for anyone because it makes you so vulnerable.
ReplyDeleteThe first chapter she read, “Why Isn’t God Like Eric Clapton?” was from before her departure from the church. She talked about primarily about her disappointment with God, the sacred-secular divide, and divine hiddenness. A big question that she was wrestling with was how she could relate to a God she couldn’t see or touch or hear. Why is God so hidden? Why doesn’t he speak from burning bushes like in the Bible? Why can’t God be present like Eric Clapton? I think these are questions that cross every believer’s mind to some degree or another and at different points in their lives. Often people are afraid to talk about their struggles, but when we finally open up, we realize that many people share in our struggles and we are not alone. It was very important for her that she was able to talk to her father who could sympathize with her because he had gone through a similar crisis of faith years before. And i think that this is a good reminder to us if we know someone who is wrestling with doubts, to walk along side them in their struggles.
The second portion of her reading was from a later chapter in her book entitled, “Taking My Demons to Church.” The context of this chapter takes place after her return to the church. A crucial realization she had was that doubt is not in opposition to faith; it can actually be a very necessary, healthy part of a person’s faith. She realized that it was okay to have doubts and to express them in the context of her church and faith. She figured, “I’ll always have demons, so I might as well take them to church.” She could sense a longing for God. Without her faith, something was incomplete. The thought that struck me the most throughout the whole reading was that, “Faith is a sense of homesickness.” I think that’s a very thought provoking image. It speaks of the profound, un-ignorable longing for something greater that is deep within all of us. We were created for more; this is not our home and somewhere down deep in the very fiber of our being, we know it.
I was incredibly moved by Andrea Palpant Dilley’s reading yesterday. Like many of you, what she said really resonated with me because I have had difficult times in my faith. While I couldn’t entirely relate with her anxiety over her introduction to “secular art” in the first, pre-leaving-the-church section, her reasoning for returning to the church in the chapter “Taking My Demons to Church With Me” and in the Q&A session really hit home. I didn’t grow up in a super religious household, so the thought that Dilley would struggle with a secular/religious dichotomy really surprised me, because I’d never thought that people would attach value judgments to something just because it is “secular.” That was really interesting and has been really good for helping me understand some of the different viewpoints that people come to Whitworth having. But while those parts of Dilley’s story were somewhat foreign to me, her reasons for returning to the church were incredibly familiar. The issue that she cited as being one of her biggest dissatisfactions with God—“the problem of evil”—is one that I struggle with constantly, and her discussion of morals from a naturalist world view really made me think. Because of my personal experiences, I tend to judge people’s goodness not on their religion, but on their actions, and I do not believe that being Christian (or Jewish, or Buddhist, or any religion), makes you morally superior to anyone else. I do, however, have a really strong sense of justice, and, while I understand the implications of imposing one moral code on the world, I do feel intrinsically that there must be a moral standard that we all as humans have the responsibility to uphold. I took a lot of philosophy last year, and when Dilley said that it is difficult to anchor ethics and justice in a naturalist world view, it brought me back to all of those discussions we used to have about the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the responsibility, if any, of the UN to uphold this code. What she made me realize is that all of my struggling with this issue last year is not unusual, and it might have been me just trying to get back to an ancient sense of justice, which we can find in Christianity. I still don’t know exactly where I think this justice originates—maybe through God, but people of all religions and even no religion can sense it—but it is a really intriguing issue to think about.
ReplyDeleteI really loved the scripture that Dilley quoted: “Lord, I believe…help my unbelief.” After listening to Dilley’s story and reading many of your comments, I can see that questioning is something that we all have to deal with, but as she says, it is intrinsic to our faith. We ask these questions because we believe and because we want that belief to be as strong as it can be. I really appreciate that you all helped me realize that my struggles are not unusual and they do not make me a bad Christian. Because of these realizations and new perspectives, this experience as a whole was really eye-opening for me.
At the Andrea Palpant Dilley reading, several issues she struggled with in her faith struck me. I could understand everything she went through. I was also brought up in a religious household, learning about God and Jesus and how we can find salvation through him and all of that. I also strayed from my faith. The only difference between Andrea and myself is that she found her faith again. When she began her reading, she was discussing the reasons for her discontent. She said, (and I’m paraphrasing here,) that she basically felt surrounded in a rigid Christian upbringing. I think that’s one of the biggest problems with raising children to believe a certain way. To me, when I started losing my faith I felt as if I had been brainwashed my entire life. I never had to make a decision, or ask the hard questions, I just had to follow blindly. Andrea also talked about the goodness of God. If he was real, or a part of this world, why were there children all over the world suffering and dying of AIDS? I think that’s a question that’s been asked for years and will continue to be asked. However, I think that there isn’t an answer. Even though I’m not religious, I still have respect for people like Andrea who aren’t scared to ask the tough questions. Questions that a lot of Christians don’t want to think about, or just chalk every question up to how “God works in mysterious ways.” She also asked why God doesn’t talk to people these days like he used to in the Old Testament, and why is there so much war in the Old Testament, and simply, why do kids die? I have asked the same questions, and they are deep and require thought and sometimes internal struggle.
ReplyDeleteAndrea also put a lot of emphasis on music, during her transition from believing to not. She described the fans of Eric Clapton, swaying together and looking for a God they couldn’t find. When she said this, it made me think of my own struggle with this idea. “The hiddenness of God,” she called it. She felt abandoned by God. This is the main idea that made me stopped believing. I had never felt or seen God in my life, even though I was told by others that he was there. I reached a point where I wanted to stand up and say, “This is bullshit,” just like Andrea did.
I can appreciate her returning to the church. Her story is truly inspiring for those who have lost their faith or those who have had doubt in their hearts, or even for those who have just begun to ask the hard questions. I don’t know if that will ever happen to me, but I am extremely content with where I am in my beliefs. I have other thoughts on religion and Christianity, and if anyone is curious I’d be happy to talk in person or one-on-one.
The Andrea Palpant Dilly reading was a very strong event in my opinion. Andrea is a wonderful reader and I think it was especially powerful to hear her read her own life story out loud. The only weakness was the short amount of time set aside for questions from the audience. Many interesting questions were asked but it would have been a more interesting evening if more time had been allotted for questions. The most striking thing about the event was the impression I got that Andrea is still very much on a rough road of doubt. She is still struggling with foundational questions of faith but is also absolutely positive that those questions belong in the church. I wholeheartedly agree and it was refreshing to see a person who is okay with pursuing those questions. I truly enjoyed hearing Faith and Other Flat Tires read out loud because it gave life to the memoir and made it sparkle. It was wonderful to see a woman struggling with hard issues and to see that she was comfortable with exposing her own journey. Throughout history it has been typical for women to be silent about their own stories, but it was beautiful—even in the 21st century—to see a woman willing to expose her life and feelings to world without any serious qualms. The most important moment in the reading was when Andrea was asked whether she still struggles with the same questions and just doesn’t pursue them as much because of distractions like children. This caused her to really admit both to herself and the audience that she is indeed still truly struggling with the same questions and issues from her past. This event was significant to me because I was raised a pastor’s kid and so the similarities between Andrea’s struggles and mine are staggering. It was good to hear another woman who has struggled with similar issues and who has been raised from day one to be a model Christian. I loved getting to hear Andrea read her own life out loud to an audience and articulate her true opinions and beliefs.
ReplyDeleteIt is difficult to say that any one part of Andrea's reading affected me more than others. Everything she said registered on a deep level with me, and I hope, with everyone who got to meet her. Her book, an inspection of the conflict between faith and intellect, inspired interest and admiration in her listeners. In particular, her logical and rational defenses of faith even in the face of her own and others' doubt was fascinating. She spoke about her childhood and adolescence growing up in a very Christian household, and how it shaped her idea of right and wrong. She recounted her falling out with faith, and how she had extreme difficulty believing in God when there was so much injustice in the world. Then she ended with the story of her return to faith, not because her questions had been answered, but because she could not see any other way to make the world make sense.
ReplyDeleteAndrea has a talent for public speaking and reading. Her voice is deep and calm, but still has energy and humor. One of the most striking aspects of the evening for me, was when I turned to look at the listeners while Andrea was reading. Everyone had nearly identical looks of concentrated focus on their faces. Her story was clearly something everyone there could relate to in some way, including myself. I am still not sure I believe in a God, but her story and her clarity was inspirational. Many of the comments above show me that my classmates believe strongly in their God. I admire them for their faith. I believe that a person must have faith in something, or they will fall into the loneliness of uncertainty. Truth may not always be the ultimate goal. Hearing Andrea speak about how her community puller her through her uncertainty was something I could really identify with. Her dependence on community seemed to be a very important part of her journey. That was the main thing I took away from the reading, and from the book. It is very difficult to make your way through life alone.
At the lecture on Friday night, Andrea Palpant Dilley spoke of her own personal struggle and journey with Christianity to finding her faith. Through the presentation her book, Faith and Other Flat Tires, Dilley supplemented readings from two of her chapters with personal tribulations that she experienced thus far in her life. Although at times there were days of confusion, darkness, and hopelessness, Dilley found a way to bring Christ back into her life into a more personal and influential way than her past had brought to her.
ReplyDeleteDilley spoke to the audience about her childhood experiences with Christianity. Growing up in a very Christian house and being baptized in the Spokane River were two things that really became a part of her identity. However, Dilley shared a very open and honest account of how she lost faith and totally doubted her Christian roots as she grew to be a young adult. Her struggles with the church and her relationship with God really intrigued me and surprised me considering her background.
Her witness to a teetering faith is something I think we can all relate to—whether we are children, college students, or professors, everyone has their days of doubts and reasons to stop believing. Many times people think that being a Christian will be easy, immediately gratifying and freeing, but it is often times forgotten that being a Christian is about having a relationship with Jesus, not just following suit with a specified denomination’s belief systems or church order. Dilley’s experience of fleeing from her family’s faith despite her strong Christian upbringing is not uncommon. A lot of times parents or authority figures try to make children believe in their religion or faith simply because it is what worked for them, but they disregard the relationship the child needs to develop with God first in order for that faith to prosper. Personally, I grew up in a family that brought my brother and me to church every Sunday and followed all the Church’s beliefs and traditions. In the past, I too have had my doubts in my faith, but I realized over time that having a real relationship with God is what will bring us out of doubts and darkness. Having faith requires work and time; it demands trust and honesty no matter how ugly the truth may be. But in the end it is worth it over anything else, just as Dilley witnesses in her life now as a renewed woman in Christ.
I do agree on the fact that “forcing” Christianity down someone’s throat is immoral. But the true question is where does one draw the line between forcing and helping them have a better understanding about Christianity. My situation is a prime example regarding this issue. I’ve known my roommate for about three months now. We live very near back home and I was able to hang out with him before even coming to Whitworth. I could tell that he was Arabic from a facebook picture; however that doesn’t necessarily mean that he’s Muslim and or worships Allah. It really would have been awkward for us if I had brought up faith values, so I repelled from asking him what his religious intentions were. I was able to later find out that he was Muslim. That’s how he was raised and nobody could expect much other than that. I’m not by any means an expert on the religion, but he would tell me that he fasts on certain holidays and isn’t able to eat pork. To this day, he still participates in the practices but doesn’t really attend church. I haven’t really sat down with him, yet, to discuss his values of faith, but to be honest, I refer back to my question. How much and what information do I share with him to where he doesn’t feel uncomfortable and to where he doesn’t think I’m forcing this so called Christian religion down his throat. Where do I start? I obviously cannot say that if you don’t give your life to Jesus, you will die in hell…So it all depends on where you draw the line. It also depends on their tolerance too. Even a passage from the bible could violate them and they would feel as if one is trying to force them to change their ways.
ReplyDeleteBefore attending Andrea Dilley’s reading, I was expecting a sort of holier-than-thou sermon where Dilley would tell us how she’s always been a good, faithful Christian and how happy she is with always being a good, faithful Christian. I didn’t do any research on her beforehand, for if I had at least looked up the title of her book, I would have known better. I was pleasantly surprised to be wrong, and I could actually relate to her on several levels. When she described how seeing the suffering in Kenya was like a “stone dropped in [her] stomach” which “collectively formed her disappointment with God,” I found myself remembering the times I had felt the same sort of disappointment with God upon my own discoveries of world sufferings. I too had listened to some, if you will, “rebellious” music during my freshman and sophomore years of high school, though I never had to deal with any false dichotomies between Christian and secular lifestyles as I was never really raised around Christianity. Dilley said two things that really stuck with me though. The first was when her mother was speaking to her about the questioning of her faith, quoting Flannery O’Connor; her mother said that it was “an experience in the long run that belongs to faith.” I had felt rather insecure here at Whitworth because I didn’t necessarily consider myself Christian, though I do believe in God, but I too have been questioning God in the same ways as Dilley these past couple of years. Another part from Dilley’s reading that was especially memorable was when she was watching the Clapton concert on a TV in a store, and she began to replace Clapton’s name with God. She said, “All I see are people looking for a God they cannot find.” God’s intangibility in these times has stumped me and frustrated me before, and I relate to her finding a sort of solace in these secular musicians. Listening to angsty music helped me ride out my own angst. I don’t listen to music in general anymore, but I still look back on those times of mine with a pleasant reminiscence. Dilley’s reading gives me hope that I might be able to find a happier medium in my personal settlement with faith.
ReplyDeleteEssentially what Andrea Dilley shared was an anecdote about struggling with faith. What sets her story apart from others is that she was not supposed to struggle with accepting Christian beliefs. She grew up with Christian parents, regularly attended church, had gone on mission trips and attended camps. She was the typical church-going Christian child. Such children are not expected to have doubts about God and the Christian religion. I grew up in a similar situation. My dad is a pastor and has been such for most of my life. I believe Dilley represented youth who have grown up in such an environment more accurately. She could not help but, at times, feel disappointed with God. Her whole life she had been taught to view this man as the Savior of humankind and yet she was an eye-witness to impoverished, dying children. How is this justified? If God is all good and all loving and all powerful, how can he allow this suffering to continue? Her curiosity led her to question what she actually believed versus what she had been told was the truth. The fact that no one had answers to her questions angered her. How was she expected to believe any of this?
ReplyDeleteI think it is sometimes harder for those who have grown up in the church to accept the Christian faith. They have seen both the grace of God and the suffering of the poor and ponder how the two can coexist. When crisis arises in their own life they wonder why God has allowed it. Why did it happen to them, a good, church-going Christian? I like what Dilley said about doubt being a part of faith. That sometimes a person needs to wander and become lost just for a bit in order to get a bigger view on what life is about. Church is an amazing way to get connected with God. But if the only way you experience God is by attending Sunday morning worship, you are not experiencing Him in fullness. Dilley doubted God. She tried “worshiping” different “gods”. She tested her faith. She gave up. But eventually she came back. Because she was empty, something was missing. The phrase “you never know what you got until it’s gone” would apply to her faith-seeking journey. The great thing about God is that he will always welcome us home. Dilley’s story made me question my own faith. I wonder if I’ve asked enough questions. Do I just accept what I hear as the truth too much? Should I challenge God more? Or am I fine with where I am? Never really doubting, not questioning. Just accepting that what I’ve been taught is true and that God has a plan for everything.
Andrea Palpant Dilley started her reading off with a dream. She dreamt the things that scares all of us when we do something with people we don’t know like the first day of school, first day of a new job, or a presentation. She dreamt that she wasn’t prepared. Now, of course, Andrea was prepared, but telling us this made an instant personal connection with her audience that lasted throughout the entire reading.
ReplyDeleteAndrea read two chapters from her memoir, “Faith and Other Flat Tires,” and they both really resonated with me. Her point about suffering though perhaps stuck with me the most. In high school I volunteered at a homeless shelter in Portland and the things that people had experienced in their lives to drive them there are unthinkable. Being there made my question God and why it was that I was so fortunate when so many people even in our hometowns don’t have a place to live. Although I did see God’s work being done in the people that I worked with, it was hard for me to reconcile and still is. Andrea’s reading really helped me figure out how to go about asking God the hard questions. Just because I have faith in God doesn’t mean that I’m not allowed to doubt and that was a really important thing to hear from her.
It was also poignant to me when, during the question and answer session, Andrea pointed out that she still wrestles with many of the same questions she did when she left the church. She admits this freely, because it is something all Christians do but few are brave enough to admit. God is perfect, but religion isn’t because it is passed down by sinners and that makes faith hard but so important. Andrea is brave, smart, and God-willing is going to do really exciting things with her life and I am so glad I got to witness a part of that happening!
The Andrea Palpant Dilley Reading was a new experience for me, as I have never been to a reading before. I enjoyed hearing from a Whitworth post-grad, someone who, just a few years ago, was right where I am now. The reading started with an introduction, followed by Andrea reading two excerpts from her novel “Faith and Other Flat Tires.” I thoroughly enjoyed her reading and I am interested in reading this work as well as others she has written. It brought up some really thought provoking questions and made me want to learn more about her past. I was really curious about her faith now because it seemed to me that she was still struggling to overcome these questions. At the end of the reading there was a short portion for questions and I found myself wanting her to have that “beer, bar and three hours” so she could explain to me all that is on her mind and heart. She said that she mainly struggled with “foundational questions” and not necessarily the idea of salvation. I wonder if she has that close, loving relationship with Jesus or if she sees the idea of faith as more of the answer to her questions rather than a relationship. I loved the humor she put in her novel, she made her story sound so real and very easy to relate to. I don’t think I have ever heard an author read their own story and I enjoyed the opportunity to hear the words spoken by the woman who wrote them. This event was significant to me because it made me think through the author’s perspective, which is so important when one is reading a book. What she said inspired me to be even more accepting and patient with those who are struggling in their faith. Also, it was a reminder to keep praying for those who are hurting and lost. All of those family members were there to support her, not only through this reading but also through all of her struggles as a young adult.
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ReplyDeleteThe Andrea Dilley reading told excerpts of the author’s personal journey, telling a story that took place before she began to question her faith and a story from when she underwent doubt. With honesty and frankness, she explained her thinking and perspective as she started doubting her faith. One of the key statements was “doubt is not opposition to faith; it is part of the process”. She talked about how in the Christian realm we often treat doubt as an awful thing. I began imagining a parent small group, where one parent tearfully states their teenager has begun doubting their faith. Upon this “confession” all the parents join hands to pray that the child will cease doubting and return to the righteous path. In contrast to this perspective among Christians, she believes doubt, in the long run, strengthens your faith. Referencing biblical characters and reflecting on her own experience, she developed the argument that doubt is not destructive of faith. Instead, it can develop and build up your faith. She also discussed how doubt stems from disappointment.
ReplyDeleteI agree that doubt can strengthen your faith. When part of your belief comes into question, it causes you to dig deeper and discover an answer. For example, say someone makes the claim that the Bible is not historically reliable. This can cause doubt. If the Bible is not reliable, then our faith, which is built upon the Bible, is not true. However, this doubt can lead you to dig deeper and discover that the Bible is relatively one of the soundest historical documents. This knowledge strengthens your faith. If Christians never question, they never need to seek answers. True, Christians can still learn and grow without asking questions, but deep learning and deep growth comes from doubting and questioning. When it comes to the idea of doubt strengthening your faith, I agree with Mrs. Dilley.
However, she made the argument that doubt is good and doubt stems from disappointment. This caused me to question the line of thinking. If doubt strengthens faith, and doubt comes from disappointment, where is disappointment in relation to faith? Is disappointment inevitable in faith, just like doubt appears to be? And if disappointment with our faith is inevitable, is there then a flaw with faith or is there a flaw in our thinking? If faith fails to fulfill us, is that a flaw of faith or a flaw in what we are trying to make faith fulfill? Maybe I misunderstood her point, but I got the impression that she was saying disappointment is inevitable in faith. A faith that will cause disappointment to me seems to be flawed. Or is it just the nature of faith?
To me personally, the event challenged my thinking. The reading caused me to reflect on where I believe doubt and disappointment fit in in relation to faith.
Even before Andrea Palpant Dilley started talking about her experience growing up in a Christian household and being ushered into her parents' faith, I knew this was something I would be able to connect with. One of the points she made that really struck me concerned the big chasm between Christian and secular music. For many people, it seems silly, but I was comforted, even thrilled, when the subject was brought up. I have always been surrounded by the influence of Christian music, and when I dared to step past those boundaries set forth by my parents, it could have been the next World War. When kids are restricted in such a way, the need for rebellion is almost doubled. I took extreme measures when trying to bootleg secular tapes and CDs into my room. It was interesting as well when she described how most of her life was also controlled in such a way. It was interesting because it almost seemed like she was reading out of the book of my own life. After relating the sheltered childhood she endured, she went on to explain her abrupt, and quite harsh, rebellion and detachment from the church. I experienced a similar break up, but mine was not as drastic. I never got up the nerve to lash out at my parents and storm out of the church, but it was more like I was a soulless being wandering in and out of church. I would have to say that one of the most moving points of her reading was when she described the way she came back to the church. It struck me because the way she outwardly approached the situation was how I internalized coming back. My heart was gone from my church for the longest time and one day, I came to church with my heart prepared to worship God. My parents could see the change, and it was a very emotional experience. It was difficult to pick out only a few parts of her reading that stood out to me, mainly because our stories correlate so closely. I am very glad I was able to be there.
ReplyDeleteWhat stuck with me the most about the Andrea Palpant Dilley Reading was how honest she was. She wasn’t preachy, she didn’t play the victim, she just told her story. After hearing so many religious people act “holier than thou,” her simple honesty was extremely refreshing. I was able to really focus on what she was saying. I loved what she said about the Eric Clapton concert. “All I see is people looking for a God they can’t find.” Everyone is searching for God, but there are so many theories and religions in the world, and sometimes it’s so hard to have faith. All of the big questions that she brought up are questions that I have been wondering about for the past couple of years, and it was so comforting to hear that someone else with my same doubts had found answers and comfort through religion. When someone else is fighting or has fought the same battle as you, it is inspiring and comforting to know that they were victorious, and that there is a way through.
ReplyDeleteI also really liked it when she said that she believes that “God honors our honesty.” It’s impossible to hide your true feelings and thoughts from God, but so many people try to sugarcoat their religion and pretend that everything is fine, when really it’s not. If you voice your questions and doubts to God, He can help you find answers. The first step to fixing a problem is admitting that you have one, but if you refuse to ask the hard questions and just blindly believe, at some point in your life, life will throw something at you that you won’t be able to handle. Her idea that doubt helps lead to a stronger faith made complete sense to me. When you explore why you believe, your faith has a foundation that you can then build on. But without that foundation, it is easily knocked away.
I really enjoyed the reading – it was different than I was expecting, in a good way, and I am very excited to read her book.
A) I saw no cookies or punch.
ReplyDeleteB) There are already enough summaries so I’m not going to say what every one already knows.
C) What blew me away the most from Dilley’s reading was her utter honesty. I find doubt to be severely frowned upon in the church, people are ashamed of there own doubt, especially those raised in a Christian community. Yet Dilley hid nothing. It was her own spiritual experience and it was what she really felt and believes. I felt her struggles with faith, her yearning for God and God feeling distant, her heart for suffering and being deeply effected by it, to be really beautiful and true. Dilley made a reference to Frederick Buechner’s quote, “Faith is homesickness,” when talking about her own yearning for the presence of God. That struck me. I could relate to her in that yearning.
I also admired her respect towards the spiritual mentors in her life. She appreciated their sincerity towards her own questions and their respect towards her own struggle. I also admired that she kept with the questions that bugged her. She didn’t shove them down simply because her mentors felt differently or couldn’t answer them.
It was really cool to have someone who was in the English program at Whitworth, who was in the same place as some of us are now, come back and share both her work as a writer and her story. She went to readings because she had to, she listened to lectures we are now. She was reading professionally to professors she took classes from, that she wrote papers for. That was a cool “coming full circle” experience.
“It’s an act of art, it’s an act of ministry, but it’s not an act of triumph,” Dilley said. I appreciated that she wasn’t writing a memoir because she has all the answers and she wants to share the revelations that have alluded so many. She wanted to share her own experience, her own views on doubt and faith. And relate that to all those who share a similar story.
If I had money, I’d buy the book
ReplyDeleteOn Friday night, Andrea Palpant Dilley came to her alma mater to read from her book, Faith and Other Flat Tires. To be honest, on Friday afternoon I was wishing I didn’t have to go, but as soon as Ms. Dilley began reading, I was glad I did.
She opened the night with the explanation that her book was a story of her faith journey: being raised in the church and the mission field, leaving the church when she moved out, and later returning. Dilley continued to say that the reading would be from two parts of her book, one that took place in her adolescence and the other that took place several years later as she returned to her faith.
As the reading began, she wove a story from her childhood about her father picking up a hitchhiker on the side of the road, speaking with him, and then having her brother in the backseat give the hitchhiker the jeans he was wearing, because the hitchhiker’s own jeans were full of holes as he walked along the cold roads. The hitchhiker walked away, and what started as a nice story was revealed in the next sentence to be an important point, foreshadowing of the author’s future decision to wander from the church.
Ms. Dilley began the second half of her reading, the chapter entitled “Taking my Demons to Church”. Personally, I found this chapter to be the more relatable and engaging of the two. (Unfortunately, I was so engaged that I forgot to take notes for a large portion of it!). This chapter took place during the end of her “rebellion” and centered around her decision to return to the church. What I think to be the most important part was near the conclusion of the chapter, where she asserted the image of God, or “Imagio Dei” planted in her a longing: a longing for heaven, a longing for God. This longing, because she was and is just on earth, lead to disappointment of the life around her, which led her to doubt her religion. However, it was because of this doubt that she was able to work through her doubts and have a new faith grow, much like new vegetation growing after a forest fire.
It was refreshing to hear from a spiritual memoir author (especially one reading in front of friends and family at a Christian University) that crafted the raw truth of her story into words that inspired empathy and laughter. Having gone through similar doubt and reemergence of faith myself, her words resonated in my head with almost a content feeling of fellowship with someone that I don’t know who preached personal, more-common-than-acknowledged truths.
-Kristin Bennett
I have been taking English 126 Women Writers this semester and in our class we have been reading Faith and Other Flat Tires by Andrea Palpant Dilley. So before attending the reading, I have already read and discussed this book in good detail. This book has been an extremely interesting read for me for a number of reasons. Dilley’s writing is extremely clever and funny which makes this a pleasant read even if you don’t relate to Dilley’s story. Luckily for me I find myself relating to Faith and Other Flat Tires in several ways. Perhaps one of the greatest ways I find myself drawing similarities is how Dilley talks about being a “third-culture” kid as she was raised in Kenya. Being raised in an alaskan village, this is a title that I can put on myself and I understand how hard it can be living and transitioning between cultures. While I have read the book before attending the reading, I was still able to get a lot out of it. It gave a new insight into Dilley’s personality and character, in the way she read her book and answered questions. Dilley had come into my class earlier that day for a question & answer session so it was nice to be able to ask her questions then but it was very different at the actual reading. At the reading something I noticed was how traditional peoples questions were for what I consider to be a very nontraditional memoir. Stuff like how were you feeling at this time or what bible verses helped you etc. etc. I was impressed however with how honest Dilley was regardless of the questions or the underlying pressure to stay traditional with her answers. The reading gave me a whole new appreciation for the author and this fantastic tale that everyone should check out.
ReplyDeleteThe Andrea Palpant Dilley reading was definitly interseting. Though i already read th book, "Faith and Other Flat Tires" in my women writers class i still enjoyed hearing her again. She had read a different section of the book as well as answer my question in class but when she did her offical reading it was like something else entirely. She took on th role of a narrator. Her voice brought new life to the words on a page. I felt that everyone enjoyed her reading however after hearing some of the questions, im not so sure about that.
ReplyDeleteEven after hearing her twice i still enjoyed myself. One thing that makes me bias is that i really resonated with her doubts in faith. Though my question was answered I still enjoyed her some of th other questions asked. Some of the questions however annoyedand angered me. The one who asked "what Bible verse helped her find her faith?" was one that did anger me,. I felt that some of the questions asked her judging her. She admits in her book to still having doubts; there was no verse that brought her back to the church. Her need and want for a communtity, as well God and her doubts are what brought her back. Some of the questions were very Christian based like they didnt want to her about doubt and faith. They also seemed a bit judgemental of her book and some of the things she did during her pahse of doubt. I just didnt understand why, because its healthy to have doubta, we've all had them. Its not something to get mad about. I thought Andrea Palpant Dilley was very brave and bold for having the courage to tell her story, especially in such detail.
When I think of a memoir, there are a few criteria that, in my mind, define the genre. For one, the author has to be super old and usually dull, because people want to hear someone drawl on and on about their mundane life in a memoir. In addition to this, the work needs to relate to no one but the author –– it would be ridiculous if the reader were able to glean something from the piece. Finally, you should never want to go to a reading of a memoir out of your own free will, as you will probably fall asleep in front of everyone and be embarrassed about it for the rest of your life. Luckily for me, last Friday "Faith and Other Flat Tires" redefined my notion of what a memoir actually is.
ReplyDeleteSet primarily during her time as a young adult, "Faith and Other Flat Tires" is essentially a reflection of author Andrea Palpant Dilley's struggles with religion and her faith. Though I had not read the book, after hearing Dilley recount two chapters during the hour of speaking time she was allotted I definitely put it on my to-read shelf. Everything about "Faith and Other Flat Tires" was intrinsically personal, but at the same time completely relatable. If anything, this is what took me aback the most about Dilley's work: the fact that, in her memoir, she is stark with her honesty, baring all for readers. Dilley does not write simply to describe a half-true story that is meant to inflate her own ego, but to narrate a time in her life where she was longing for answers to the unanswerable. This is something that I think the youths of our generation can relate to –– I'm obviously extremely lost because I can't even remember to submit a response on time. But I digress.
Overall, I was pleasantly surprised by the Dilley reading. It came as quite a shock to me that I was at a symposium on a Friday night and I actually enjoyed myself, in addition to learning a lot about what makes a well-written memoir. If Dilley graduated from Whitworth after studying English, I'm sure I'm majoring in the right subject, because she seems to have her calling figured out.
I really enjoyed the Dilley reading. I always think it's interesting to hear something in an author's own voice, because you get to hear the intonation and thoughts exactly as they intended them. I thought it was a good choice on her part to read excerpts from her story both before and after her experiences of doubt and leaving the church, because it provided insight into both parts of her story, which she sort of stylistically chose to divide into two major sections: before and after, and so the writing in the different sections reflects a different mood, so it was certainly worth hearing from both sections, and it effectively presented a sample of her whole story instead of just a sample of part of it.
ReplyDeleteI bought a copy of her book and had her sign it, and I thought it was cool that in all the books that she signed, she wrote "a fellow pilgrim". After reading the first part of her book I found that this was a reference to the fact that she based her book thematically on "Pilgrim's Progress", but it worked well for the signing, because it evoked a sense of togetherness, that everyone in the world is a pilgrim on this journey of life or of faith, and the idea of being mutually on a journey can bring us together and build community.
I thought it was really interesting that she described her childhood as being really good, and very spiritual, and her parents were very involved in faith, and yet she still had time when she doubted and left the church. It sort of showed me that doubts are part of the christian experience, and not something you can always, or should always avoid. I also thought it was interesting how she described her faith now as not having answers to all the questions that she was so worried about once, but she's made peace with the fact that she doesn't have the answers and accepted that she doesn't necessarily need to know the answers in order to know that God is real and working in her life.
Overall, I really enjoyed the event, and I am really enjoying reading her book. She has a very engaging writing style that is insightful and fun at the same time. I think that came through especially when she was reading out loud, because I really got to hear the emphasis and tone and phrasing exactly as she wrote it.
Going into the reading, I had the assumption that Dilley would be discussing her path of perfection in the Christian faith simply based on her background at Whitworth. It was therefore very shocking to hear of her struggle with her faith as she grew and became the inspiring woman she is today. The one thing she talked about that struck me as the most significant aspect of her journey was her teenage years and the rebellion – so to say – that ensued within them. Her metaphor of God being more like Eric Clapton put her struggle – and possibly that of many others – into simpler terms for me; “why can’t I see, touch, or hear God like I can Eric Clapton?” she asks. That sentence, which she phrased multiple ways, really made me think for a minute: why can’t we? How do we know that everything are raised by is real? These are the questions Dilley was continuously pondering and what eventually led her into the secular divide in coming of age. The change in music was especially significant for her. On one side, she mentioned, were church hymns; the other side her mysterious angst through Eric Clapton and other “unapproved” artists to show the confusion in not only her beliefs but herself as well.
ReplyDeleteThe most amazing part of her reading, for me, was when she told of the Sunday morning she realized she needed to go to Church again after abandoning it all those years ago in the middle of the sermon. She found that she needed to “work out her demons” and that the doubt and disbelief in the faith she had been carrying around for all those years had turned into a longing. She needed somewhere to go for guidance and came to an understanding that this could only be fulfilled with God’s help. This proves that even in disbelief, God is there to guide you subconsciously through your hardships.
While I couldn’t relate to Dilley as she spoke of her teenage confusion in the Christian faith, her points made my faith and trust in God stronger. The reading as a whole inspired me to reach further into myself and in my knowledge that God has a plan for me and will always be there to guide me; even if I may not be there to consciously follow.
I thoroughly enjoyed Andrea Palpant Dilley’s reading of her novel, Faith and Other Flat Tires. I actually had to purchase and read the book for another class, so I was already familiar with the work. I connected very deeply with this book, thinking of my own struggles with faith, observing how God and religion seems so far removed from the world of today. Why is God so obscure in today’s society? Why can’t God be more like Eric Clapton? I definitely related to her frustrations with the idea of a hidden, intangible god. Hearing about her life before she left the church—growing up in a Christian house, going to Sunday school, accepting the beliefs handed to her without question—struck a chord with me. It sounded a lot like my own upbringing. I didn’t grow up in Kenya, but my position in the Christian community has been secured for me from a very young age. I accepted my own faith without question. It was when I got to be older that I started asking a lot of the same questions Andrea Palpant Dilley asked. Why can’t God be more like Eric Clapton? It was later, when I was more “mature,” that I began to dare question the presence of a being, a being I had been assured existed my whole life. I never doubted to the extent of Andrea Palpant Dilley, nor have I ever actually stepped over the threshold and left the church. But I have quietly and grudgingly questioned; why there is suffering in the world, why I can’t see God in the ideals of today’s society, why God seems so passive as opposed to the Old Testament when he would talk to people through burning bushes. I have become increasingly and achingly aware of the faults in the world, especially the faults that have no way of being fixed by mere human beings. Why did God make us flawed? Why can’t God swoop in with a cape and fix this? I found more and more that growing up and growing in faith can either go hand-in-hand or head-to-head. Hearing Andrea Palpant Dilley talk about her own life, and describe the force she experienced when they bashed heads, caused me to look inward at my own faith, as well as give me an idea of how to overcome my own struggles: take my demons to church.
ReplyDeleteComing into the reading on Friday night I had a lot of preemptive ideas of what the evening was going to be like. A lecture hall might actually be the last place on earth that I want to spend my Friday nights, so that in itself added to my annoyance. I’m not saying that I dislike literature, because that is far from the truth (I wouldn’t be taking the CS Lewis class if that was the case) but as I was sitting down in Weyhauser 103 I had a million other things (Atilano’s runs, parties, Red Robin with friends, the list goes on) that I could have been doing, all ranking – in my mind – as far more fun that being talked at for an hour. With everything going on in my head I was surprised that I started off paying such close attention to Andrea. Maybe somewhere deep within me I was actually excited to listen to her readings. As for the actual chapters, I found myself noticing similarities to her story with mine, which always allows for more interest to spike. I mean, I never had a huge drug-filled falling out with my faith or anything dramatic of that sort, but I was born into a Christian environment and have had my fair share of doubts. That was probably my biggest take-away from her reading: that doubt (in certain amounts, of course) can actually be incredibly healthy within the church. Doubts are in fact, a healthy part of being a Christian. If one just blindly followed faith and never asked some of the difficult questions that Andrea asked in her adolescent youth group days, would their faith actually mature? I strongly believe that it would not, and I am certain Dilley would agree with me. The times in my life where my faith has really been tested, I have always come through in the end feeling that my faith has been strengthened because of doubts or hardships. So although these readings weren’t absolutely riveting and I didn’t have a huge life revelation, Andrea touched on some subjects that should strike a chord with any Christian who takes their faith seriously and asks those tougher questions.
ReplyDeleteI was not sure what to expect at Andrea Palpant Dilley’s reading. All I knew was that she was a Whitworth graduate and she wrote a book about her religious journey. I expected more of a “preaching” type feel, but what she delivered was an honest conversation about a major struggle in her life with the church. After talking about how she lost faith in religion and then came back to it after college two things struck me the most. First, I was interested to know more about what specifically led her away from the church. Whitworth is obviously a very religious school and so it was interesting to me that she was driven away from it rather than more secured. The second thing that stuck out to me was her answer to a question: how are you going to change your parenting based on your experience with Christianity. I thought her answer was very intelligent and sensible. She basically said that she could see how much pain she put her parents through with her own struggle and that she hopes her children won’t stray away like she did. However, what I loved is she also said that if they did, if they decided to go their own way that she would love them no matter what and support them in whatever they did. I think that this is perfect because it is very important for kids to find their own way. I have a friend who was raised in a very Christian home and never questioned his beliefs because he was raised not to question to just believe. Recently he started to struggle with that, realizing that he had no idea what he truly believed in his heart because he was always told what to believe. A faith that one finds on their own will be much stronger than one someone is just put into. I’m not saying I think that a Christian upbringing is bad by any means; I am just saying that I agree with Andrea. Letting your children know that you will support them in whatever they do is very important.
ReplyDeleteLike many of my other classmates, I was not too thrilled about spending my Friday night in a lecture hall listening to what I was sure was a stuffy author reading from her book in a strictly monotone voice. I was relieved to not only see that the author was young but that she had emotion in her voice which made her reading even more compelling to listen to. I found it interesting to see that not only did Dilly doubt God and question God, but she decided to lave the church until she felt compelled to return. I find that in today's society, more and more young people are leaving the church for these exact reasons. I have often asked myself why this is. The church has programs and ministries to foster the spiritual growth of all its members; so why are more people leaving the church? Being the daughter of a youth director, I was always encouraged to bring friends to church and going to a Christian high school only enforced the significance of spreading the word of God. However, no matter how many friends I asked to come with me to church, I got the same response every time.
ReplyDeleteDilly stated in her reading that she craved the "sense in my heart for the longing of God" is the reason that she left the church in the first place. She didn't have the craving for Christ, so she left. When she found that longing again, she returned. I think Dilly speaks for all who question God. Young people especially question and doubt God and therefore leave the church in order to find what they were missing. This is where our job as Christians and disciples of Christ, comes in. We are meant to spread the gospel to all we come in contact with. I think that her book should be recommended to all who have doubts about the Almighty and the Church.