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"Jesus replied: 'Love the Lord, your God with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your mind.'" -- Matt 22:37 NIV

For me, this verse, brings one question to mind.

What does 'with all your mind' entail? Clearly it is important to love the Lord, our God in this way (with everything we have) - it's mentioned in Deut 6:5, Deut 11:13, Deut 13:3, Mark 12:30, Luke 10:7; with the mind being specifically mentioned by Jesus in the three gospels - using our minds as valuable tools to exhaust in our service and worship to the Lord. It makes no sense, then, that God (or specifically Jesus) would then expect us to shut off our brains and rely blindly on faith for the Truth of His Gospel.

The Truth of His Gospel refers to the way the Mormon church interprets it.

Which, when faced with facts of a historical, scientific, mathematical AND sociological nature, crumbles like a loaf of cornbread.

Being a person of logic, intellect and reasoning (read: science nerd), I am more than a little cynical and like proof. Doubting Thomas I am not, however. I believe in the saving love that Christ showed when He died upon the cross, rescuing me and anyone who believes from our deserved fate of an eternity in Hell. How? I can't put solid irrevocable evidence that can be seen, smelled and touched out for people to examine and believe what I say. That part, must be taken on faith.

I have been told that it is this way for the Mormon faith, as well. Take essential pieces of the doctrine on faith. Indeed, faith seems to be emphasized almost to an idolatrous degree. It is true faith is important. Jesus said so to Thomas in John 20:29, "Because you have seen me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed."

Faith is important. Vital, even, to any person who follows a Higher Being. Because a Higher Being is the Unseen, the Unknowable there is always a small kernel of doubt. Out of sight, out of mind, one could say. But, there is a huge difference between being faithful and following blindly. After all, didn't Jesus rebuke Peter when he sank in the waves? "Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. "You of little faith," he said, "why did you doubt?" (Matt 14:31).

The way the Mormons have described Faith seems more on the level with willful ignorance: deliberately shutting off the mind, turning eyes from the truth that is out there to be sought because one is arrogant enough to believe that they know all there is to know, or frightened of the possibility what they believe to be truth is, in reality, false.

Faith does not give us the the liberty to stop seeking God everywhere in the truth and physical proof that He, Himself provided upon the creation of the Earth. It should encourage us to seek Him more in the places where His Glory is present.

It may be argued that people of faith are afraid to look in the world for proof - because the world is fallen and therefore will not represent God truthfully. The world is fallen, but the world is still of God’s creation. He made it. He put his fingerprints on everything our eyes, ears and noses come across. There is no way, if God truly exists, and has placed His mark on His Creation so as to make Himself visible to those who seek Him, that anything science, history, geography, economics or any other study could dig up that would deny His presence. It makes no sense. Like a house divided in among itself, and as we learned, a house in such a state could not stand.