Believe It or Not!

Has Thomas been unfairly branded as a doubter? If so, why has the Christian community developed such a negative attitude toward doubt?

When I was a kid one of the favorite comic books or paperback books I used to enjoy reading was Ripley's Believe it or Not! [Hold up a copy, if possible, for all to see.] Robert L. Ripley was born on Christmas Day, 1893 in Santa Rosa, California. He began his newspaper career as a sports cartoonist at the age of 16.

As a reporter of the odd and unusual, Ripley traveled to the farthest corners of the globe, visiting over 200 countries, meeting with kings and queens, cannibal chieftains, tribesmen and natives along the way. His extensive travels earned him the title "The Modern Day Marco Polo."

You think Ripley's Believe it or Not is passe' today? In fact, his Believe It or Not series have been popular around the world for over 70 years, syndicated in as many as 300 newspapers. Today there are active museums around the world -- in three or four locations in California; Orlando, Florida; Branson, Missouri; Surfer's Paradise, Australia; Denmark, and Pattaya, Thailand.

It was not the...