People in Geneva Part 6

هذا يوئيل

Or in English, this is Joel. He’s originally from Iowa, USA, and came here 1.5 years to do a PhD in international history – or more precisely, the history of Syria. He’s an incredibly knowledgeable guy, and I’m always surprised by the depth and breadth of his insight when discussing with him.

Here’s what Joel would like to share with us:

“The farther I get into my graduate studies, and actually, the longer I live, the less solid human knowledge seems. Once you dig deep enough, even the things we are most sure of in the world turn out to have a lot of speculation baked into them. In most of history and social sciences, clarity is elusive, prediction almost impossible. Meanwhile, as any physicist will tell you, the deeper you probe, the more mysterious and confusing the universe gets. There’s a stereotype that educated people are the least religious, because they find out what’s “really” going on in the world. My experience has become the opposite. The more I learn, the more I know how little I know, and the more I need to rely on the Creator and Author of Truth. I always go back to I Corinthians 3: “If any one of you thinks he is wise by the standards of this age, he should become a ‘fool’ so that he may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight.” At age 29, halfway through my PhD program, I’ve never been more grateful to be a fool for God. Trusting in Him, I’m free to explore and try to understand His creation, knowing that it’s for His glory that I learn and know anything at all.”