A little doubt will do ya

The PhD process consists of examination of ideas and a search for what is true.  Both currently accepted truths and possible new additional truths are of interest.  But you can't focus on truth without a steady awareness of falseness.  Semi or incomplete truths may contain bias, superstition, or simply be full-sized error.  Thus, a person seeking to fulfill the doctoral degree requirements gets very familiar with doubt and the processing of doubting.

Any statement of a truth needs to be in some form or language if it is to be communicated to others and remembered.  The statement needs to make sense, to be comprehensible to others.  Even a diagram or chart needs to be in a form that will be understandable by others.

Even if it seems weird, we can focus for a moment on the size in inches or millimeters of the statement of a truth.  We are getting used to being able to project letters, charts and photos in many sizes, from microscopically small to big enough for a rock concert or stadium.  If the size is way too large, we will not be able to grasp the shape of the letters.  Similarly, with a message written in too small a form.  We need to get the statement in a form that has an appropriate magnification level.  These days, the level of magnification is often referred to as the "zoom" level.

We are listening to a series on the life of St. Francis of Assisi, who desperately and deeply wanted to follow Christ, that is, imitate Christ.  Even though Francis lived just about 1000 years after Jesus, just what one with such a desire should do was not a settled question.  Francis and his band of very intense and determined young men worried about what the appropriate zoom level of right imitation was.  If Jesus ate meat for breakfast, did that mean they should eat meat for breakfast? What about the type of sandals Jesus wore?  Did he wear a robe?  Belted or unbelted?  What color?

More relaxed observers might say that such details are too fine, not relevant, are in fact a distraction of living as He did.  But others aren't so sure.  What if some detail of posture, diet, habit, etc. makes a crucial but unnoticed difference?  Sure, professional doubters can doubt that this detail or that is important.  Modern approaches say that it can help to start experimenting.  Try wearing a belt while another group wears none.  See who seems at the end to have lived the more Christ-like life.  That can help, but it takes a long time.  

We can't check every detail at once and have to use our best judgment as to where to start. We doubt that the question of the belt matters very much, but not the practice of prayer.  We can only decide which way to experiment by good use of our doubts, whether in the matter of religion, or financial investment or which book to begin.  Those quiet doubts about this path or that are important guides for our lives.