I haven’t written in awhile as I’ve been processing many of my thoughts. This, I’ve come to realize will be a lifelong journey of discovery and amazement. Here are a few of my recent ponderings:
Why do people hold fast to traditional beliefs, and justify their commitment to them by faith alone?
If by faith you mean: “strong belief in God or in the doctrines of a religion, based on spiritual apprehension rather than proof”, or “the evidence of things hoped for but not yet attained”, which is the definition given by people of faith. I say, how can you justify anything with something you’ve made up in your will and mind to exist? By very definition, faith is believing in something that you can’t prove exists. Couldn’t what they believe actually have been the original conception of some other man’s mind, without ‘divine’ inspiration?
Are you living in fear if you get angry at someone that presents a different point of view?
Let’s just be honest and tell it like it is. You’ve had to have had someone lash out at you or because of their personality… simply ignore or refuse to talk to you, for no other reason than you expressed a differing idea or point of view. Even if you are just looking to explore other thoughts or ideas, without actually making them your own.
Why do people sacrifice relationships on the alter of identity preservation, when their identity is wrapped in a belief or an idea. Shouldn’t our identity be wholly ours alone? Maybe that’s the problem… we’ve been duped into thinking that we are not our own, we are part of a greater ideal in which we exist not for ourselves, but for what someone else has deemed is greater. Is that why our only significant relationships tend to be based in what we do or do not believe?
6 Comments
Hey, Paul!
Interesting post. I happened to be rolling around the various blogs and stumbled on yours.
I am a person of (sometimes not enough) faith, and maybe it’s because of my age or the length of time I’ve had the belief – but I’m not offended, angered, or shaken by differing viewpoints.
A lot of new believers *in anything* are excited about their newfound belief. This is great, but the downside of it is that they want to share that with those around them. Sometimes forcibly.
No matter what your belief is – whether Christianity, atheism, buddhism, whatever – the best credit you can do to your belief system is to be a good human.
Do I think it’s important for people to believe as I do? Of course I do. Everyone holds that kind of urgency based on their beliefs.
Ultimately, we can only present the belief as we see it and allow the other person time and space to make their own decisions. Not to pressure them, bury them with data, or make them feel like an inferior decision maker if their conclusions are different from ours. So the takeaway? To use an old saw, we have two ears and one mouth for a reason. Listen to each other a lot, say a little, and be a good human.
Sorry to soapbox on your blog… That’ll teach you to allow comments.
Thanks for the response Chuck, I appreciate you sharing your thoughts.
At this point in my life I don’t have a belief system that I adhere to. My journey has brought me to a place of quiet disagreement with religious belief as a whole, whether it is christianity or any other belief.
I spent 20+ years actively involved in christianity as a worship leader and activist for the faith. The past 7 or so years I continued a deep search for truth in my belief system, and while there are many truths in the bible, my personal discovery was that there are too many holes in that belief system. And add to that, the many other religions out there adhere to a similar set of beliefs in that their god is the only god, and their way is the only way to god.
To be completely honest, I just do not find any use or need for christianity or any of its rituals. I am not angry at the church, or any person (except in the case of people following blindly without question, which you don’t seem to be)… nor am I just a back slider, or simply fallen away from the faith. I walked away intentionally and purposely, and have no intention of ever walking back.
I agree with you that we can only present our ideas (you say belief) and allow others time and space to make their own decisions. Our only tool is persuasion, but without the other person having their mind actively engaged… there can be no discussion, i.e., many people I know hear that I no longer believe in their god, and they either get angry, or simply choose to not communicate with me any longer. They have not allowed themselves to think outside of what they currently believe. That’s the scary thing to me, that people can allow belief to control them so intensely.
Anyhow, thanks again for sharing your thoughts, and I wish you well in your journeys. I hope that you always keep your heart and mind open as you seem to be already doing.
–paul
i found much truth in your statement about faith…faith by its definition really requires us to delude ourselves into believing something that we think we ought to
i am really hesitant to write those words, because I know that faith has brought great comfort and solace to many, its just my experience with faith in a christian conception is that i try to make myself feel something that i dont…
i found the observations in the 1st paragraph very relevant
Thanks for your thoughts douglaskev, and I want to be sure to affirm your comment on faith bringing comfort and solace to many. I have many friends and family members who adhere to those beliefs, and I respect them for that. I am merely expressing my thoughts based on my experience.
Just imagine how many unnecessary conflicts could be avoided by just a willingness to share our ideas, and actually take the time to consider them… instead of just being shut out.
your absolutely right….the crusades, jihad, and many more conflicts have been based upon dominating a group with different ideas, especially when religion is involved…
Shouldn’t our identity be wholly ours alone? (pf)
I’m not convinced we can ever be “wholly ourselves,” because I think we are influenced by people around us — our friends and family, you know? Can you honestly say you are the same person you’d be without knowing certain people, or having certain experiences? While I think there is much truth in not being chained to an institutional belief, I also think that we are influenced by anything we experience (Ann Rayn?), true? But, to what extent we allow people to influence us — who and what we give ourselves over to — I think that’s totally within our will and ability and responsibility.
Good post. Glad you’re writing again!