Doubt can be insidious — and culturally, we have a litany of myths and anecdotes signifying the dangers it poses, especially compared to the strength of faith.

Perhaps one of the original examples is Doubting Thomas. For the nonreligious, Thomas was one of the 12 disciples of Jesus in the Bible. Without reciting scripture, the basic gist is that when the resurrected Jesus came to the gathered disciples, Thomas was absent — and despite the rest of them telling him that Jesus was back, Thomas refused to believe until he saw the evidence with his own eyes.

After a while, Thomas was present when Jesus came by, and having seen the evidence with his own eyes — some doctrines say his own hands — he came around, after which Jesus gently scolded him: because others have believed without seeing, they are blessed, while Thomas required the evidence to believe.

Catholics and Protestents have slightly different interpretations from this, and that isn’t important to get into beyond noting that there is a difference of perspective on the issue depending on who you talk to and what their personal beliefs are.

What both agree upon is that faith is superior to evidence, and that doubt is the enemy.

While this is valid for matters of religion, we want to point out that our cultural zeal for faith is — perhaps — a drawback for more Earthly matters.

Doubting Thomas is one colloquialism. Here’s another: faith is blind.

Many (not all) Democrats have a strong faith at the moment that Trump, Musk, et al are breaking the government, destroying America and a host of other catastrophic fears.

Maybe that’s true. But, what if you’re wrong?

Flip side: Many Republicans (not all) have a strong faith that climate change is exaggerated — scientists are lying or making up data, it’s part of the planet’s natural cycle, and so on.

Maybe that’s true. But, what if you’re wrong?

These are but two common examples, but you can see where this is going.

I’ve written before — and, I’m sure, will again — on concepts of liberal and conservative. Notably, this is not the same as Democrat and Republican.

Fundamentally, we have gotten where we are as a nation — a true great power in a historical sense — because of balance. Within our borders is contained a myriad of viewpoints, opinions, beliefs — and doubts.

We would not be here today without the capacity to dream — for our liberal thinkers to stretch beyond what was thought possible, and have the cultural permission, nay, encouragement, to do so.

We would also not be here today without the capacity to withdraw — for our conservative thinkers to say: wait, perhaps it is not wise to dream in that manner.

One thing that everyone, regardless of whether you are liberal, conservative or somewhere in between, should be able to agree upon is that this moment in history is fraught.

People are anxious and afraid. Nobody really knows what is happening on the ground in D.C. Programs that people rely on are going to be cut and thousands of jobs –possibly tens of thousands — lost.

There are fears of a new pandemic shortly on the heels of the last one, to say nothing of the state of our healthcare industry and medical workforce.

War drums beat in the distance: Russia is being appeased — historically speaking, usually a mistake — while an emboldened Israel now eyes Iran and China continues to pursue its Taiwanese ambitions.

And on all sides, we should have doubt.

Maybe the Trump admin will be able to work a miracle and both reduce the federal bureaucracy while also keeping the economy from melting down.

What if they don’t? What if we enter a new depression, with untold suffering waiting in the wings?

Maybe repealing and purging every mention of diversity practices will usher in a new era of egalitarianism and equality.

What if they don’t? What if discrimination returns and our hard-fought civil rights — rights most of us now alive have never lived without — are lost?

Maybe the scientists were right, and climate change is progressing far more rapidly than previously thought, with catastrophic impact to our disaster preparedness and food production capabilities.

What if they’re wrong? What if we fundamentally alter our lifestyle, production methods, transportation, power generation and more — for nothing?

What if, what if, what if.

Doubt.

In our Earthly world dictated by social media, pundits and influencers, doubt is healthy and faith is toxic.

Get informed and make up your own mind based on your own values, whatever they may be — don’t just blindly heed whatever you are told.

As my father always said, trust — but verify.

Arianna McKee is the editorial page editor and design editor at The Express.