Faith and reason and reasons for faith

Watching Bones, and I found this conversation at the end of an episode (5:14 The Devil in the Details) fascinating. 

Booth is a practising Catholic, with genuine faith (sometimes muddled, but real).

Bones is a logical empiricist and atheist, who frequently says that she doesn't understand how anyone intelligent could believe in God (she's autistic - tact is not her strong point!).

They have just been dealing with a particularly troubling case, in which there has been a lot of discussion about good and evil and religion.

 

BONES: I need to ask you some things.

BOOTH: You gonna ask me about God and the Devil?

BONES: Yes!

BOOTH: You're going to ask me how God can place such a burden on good people.

BONES: No, I'm going to ask you how you can still believe in a kind God after a case like this.

BOOTH: Was my faith shaken? 
Yeah. Mm-hmm. It is.

BONES: It is?

BOOTH: Yeah. I'll go home tonight and I'll lie in bed, and I'll toss, and I'll turn, and I'll beat myself up, and uh...I'll question everything.

BONES: Will you get your faith back?

BOOTH: Always have in the past.

BONES: So you have faith that you will retain your faith. 

(Booth nods) 

BONES: Why?

BOOTH: Because, Bones, it's...the sun'll come up, and tomorrow's a new day.

BONES: I know that feeling.

BOOTH: Really?

BONES: Mm-hmm.

BOOTH: You know what it feels like to get your faith back?

BONES: When I see effects and I am unable to discern the cause, my faith in reason and consequences is shaken.

BOOTH: And then what happens?

BONES: Two plus two equals four. I put sugar in my coffee and it tastes sweet. The sun comes up because the world turns. 

These things are beautiful to me. 

There are mysteries I will never understand, but everywhere I look, I see proof that for every effect there is a corresponding cause. Even if I can't see it. I find that reassuring.

BOOTH: And life is good again.

BONES: Life is very good.

BOOTH: Yes it is. Amen

(Both laugh)

 

 

This made me think of a quote by C.S. Lewis:

"I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen: not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else."

And then a line from a song came into my head: "the sun came up today" - which after a fair bit of brain-racking I realised was this, by Andrew Peterson:

 

 

And now I'd better get back to work...