Religious doubts can come in various forms. Sometimes mine are intellectual, but more often than not they are emotional. One thing I find, however, is that, when I am in the throes of some spiritual malaise or disconnectedness from God, my mind can play tricks on me and can bring back to the surface intellectual doubts which I quelled a long time ago. One of the best ways to counter this, I find, is to document the answers that I came to regarding those more intellectual doubts. Then, at least, I can remind myself that the intellectual questions have been answered and that what remains is, however powerful, at the very least not particularly rational.
Here is an essay I wrote last year when I was struggling with what is often called “redaction criticism” – an approach to Biblical history which views the Bible as a hodge-podge of different accounts that have been poorly and unreliably cobbled together. My knowledge of these topics is not great but it is something I have had to wrestle with. I hope that my recorded thoughts and answers can benefit those who have struggled with similar questions.
The Consolations of Writing 