Question 1

Is this for me if I'm still a Trinitarian?

Accepted Answer

Yes. You do not have to change your mind at the door. This is a place to sit with better questions about the Pioneer — who he is, what he did, and whether his life is followable. If you hold the creeds with a sincere conscience, you are welcome. If those same creeds have started to feel like a locked gate, you are also welcome. We will not demand a signature. We will keep asking what Jesus asked.

Question 2

Do I have to leave my church?

Accepted Answer

No. Plenty of people read this while still showing up on Sunday. If your church is a place where the road is being walked — mercy first, people before formulas — stay and be that kind of presence. If the building has become a monument you can no longer pretend to admire, you do not owe it your silence or your seat. Leaving is not required. Honesty is.

Question 3

What if I don't believe anything anymore?

Accepted Answer

Then you are in the right place. This was built for the person who never stopped caring about Jesus and stopped trusting the certainty they were handed. You do not have to arrive convinced. You only have to be willing to sit with a good question. Doubt is not the enemy here. Indifference is.

Question 4

Is this anti-Christian?

Accepted Answer

No. It is not anti-church either. It is recovering what the Church was meant to be before the creeds traded mercy for a formula. The Pioneer still stands at the centre. The Father is still One. Love is still the metric he named. If that sounds like unbelief to you, notice which question you are protecting — his, or the institution's.

Question 5

Who is the Pioneer?

Accepted Answer

Jesus. Hebrews calls him the Pioneer of our faith — the one who goes first into the danger so others can follow. He was sent by the Father, distinct from the Father, created, fully human, fully surrendered. That is what makes him followable, not merely admirable. We do not call him a statue. We do not call him a formula. We call him the Pioneer.

Question 6

What is the wooden pole?

Accepted Answer

The site of his execution. The Greek points to wood — a stake, a tree — not the later religious symbol. We say wooden pole or tree because that is closer to what happened, and because gilding it has made the cost easier to wear than to carry. On that wood he held the shape of the Father's mercy under the full weight of human suffering. Costly love. Not a transaction in the sky.

Question 7

What is the Verse or Scene of the Week?

Accepted Answer

Every Monday the homepage shows one passage to sit with — a single verse one week, a named scene the next. Not a sermon. Not a five-point plan. Open it in every translation we keep, and carry it through the week.

Question 8

Who is Oliver T. Shepherd?

Accepted Answer

Oliver T. Shepherd is the pen name of the author of Functional Faith. Writing under a pseudonym is a long tradition in theological publishing. The author has chosen this approach to let the work speak for itself. All content is written, reviewed, and published by the person behind the name. Full disclosure is on the About page.

Question 9

Why do you use Jehovah rather than Yahweh?

Accepted Answer

Both are approximations of a name whose original pronunciation was deliberately lost in the Second Temple period. We use Jehovah because it is the established English form with a four hundred year history in English scripture and theology. Read our full article on the name →

Questions about the questions

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