Why I believe - Introduction

No one can make anyone believe anything they don't want to, short of outright brainwashing. This could not be more evident as I look at how we exchange ideas today, and how resistant we are to information that might indicate we've been wrong. Hearing information that reinforces what we already think, or that makes us feel included in a group - tribalism - can be much more potent than actual evidence. I, however, have a profound flaw. I like to be RIGHT.  Not that I always (or maybe even often) am, but I always want to be.

My family would say things like "you can't argue with Shane" or "you can never change Shane's mind about anything." While I might disagree with those statements and provide evidence to the contrary, on one level, they've got a point. There are many topics on which I really have no strong opinion (difficult as that might be to believe). However, once I have formed one, it means I have done what satisfies me as due-diligence research and assessed the best evidence available to me. This includes preponderance and consensus of evidence, quality of data, reliability of source, soundness of logic, etc. But once I do that, it requires additional/counter evidence at least as strong as the original, preferably stronger, for me to adjust my opinion. When that evidence presents, I do my best to adjust accordingly. It is not easy, and sometimes takes me a long time, but I seriously make the effort. It's rare that I'm going to just believe something because someone told me.

I think this is a side-effect of a two-edged sword in my personality. I really, really want to be right. It matters much more to me that my position represents the truth than if it serves my interests. While this is a worthy goal to which to aspire (at least in my opinion), it can certainly be messy and lonely. In many things, especially politics, I'm a man without a country, not aligning well or consistently with any major faction. This puts me in an awkward position in many respects. Generally speaking, I have found few like-minded people in my personal circles, with the exception of my wife (for whatever reason, we seem to generally align on most things).

This striving to be on the side of truth, for me, is derived through my faith. As Christians, we are told not to swallow whatever we are fed - even information from our spiritual leaders. We are instructed to know what we believe, WHY we believe it, be ready to answer questions to defend it and explain it. And to verify that what others tell us about it and what we might tell them, is consistent with other biblical teaching. As one author I read puts it, "we don't get brownie points for being stupid."

That drive to be right, to be on the side of truth, means that I must follow the evidence and logic wherever it leads. This does not mean there is no room for faith. In fact, It is sort of baked into the definition of faith the way I think about it. "Faith" is what fills the gap between the evidence and the conclusion to which it points. It should not be confused with "blind faith", unfounded belief.

The Bible emphasizes “faith like a child” and faith in spite of circumstances, so I am certainly not saying that only faith bolstered by evidence is superior. I’m simply saying that’s the way I’m wired, and that is a primary drive for me, however good or bad I might be at it. And while I do think holding to truth is a critical attribute for living life, I do not want to give the impression that other values are less important.

Here in this series of posts, in what I once described to my family as "bite-sized pieces" (to no end of ridicule), I hope to describe the foundation of my own faith, the evidence that convinces me that Christianity is true and other belief systems are not. I will not have all answers, just as an atheist will also not have them. But this will represent why I believe what I do as best I can. Hopefully it will be useful.

I mention "truth" a lot, so it seems reasonable to start there. Part 1 coming up will discuss what we mean by a word that has taken up whole new paradoxical definitions in the last several years.