Sunday, October 12, 2008

Creating a Crisis

Reading `Crisis of Faith' (see my shared items) seemed more the start of a course than just a single post.

There is a lot to digest.

The post identifies warning signs for when you genuinely need to challenge one of your beliefs
  • A belief has long remained in your mind
  • It is surrounded by a cloud of known arguments and refutations
  • You have sunk costs in it (time, money, public declarations)
  • The belief has emotional consequences (note this does not make it wrong)
  • It has gotten mixed up in your personality generally.
An important point is also that seriously, and honestly looking at the opposing side doesn't mean you have to believe you are wrong. It does mean that you have to truly empathise with the possibility of a world in which you are wrong.

Add a sprinkle of bravery, and put in the oven for a lifetime, or till golden brown.

1 comment:

Stuart said...

"An important point is also that seriously, and honestly looking at the opposing side doesn't mean you have to believe you are wrong."

That's true, but I think the emphasis is on trying to get to the point where emotionally you actually FEEL uncertain about what you'll believe later.

Like he says, believing you are wrong is to already have changed your mind.