Valuing Questions

King of Peace strives to be the sort of church that you'll enjoy if you were always the kid constantly raising your hand in Sunday school class. After all, the Yellow Pages ad for King of Peace says "We value questions." Aren't questions the sign of an active faith?

Yet, questions have not always been valued by the Church. Clement of Alexandria (c. 150-215) wrote,

Now we know that certain things aren't worth questioning. For example, we don't investigtae subjects that are already evident, such as whether it is daytime when it is the day. Neither do we study things unknown that are never destined to become clear, such as whether the stars are even or odd in number...

Again, some questions demand evidence of the senses, like whether fire is warm or snow is white. Other questions demand admonition and rebuke, such as the question of whether you should honor your parents. In addition, there are those questions that deserve punishment, such as asking for proof that there is such a thing as providence.

Questions deserving punishment just for asking them. Really? Jesus asked many questions and he never seemed to mind even the most pointed questions if the asker was genuine and not looking to ensare him. If Jesus did not limit questions, should we? Or are some questions, as Clement suggests, really blasephemous even to consider? What does it mean for a church to value questions?