How do you form a belief in something? I don’t mean the neuroscience of how an idea becomes an embedded position in our brain, but more critically, “what does it take for some opinion to become something you believe to be true when you cannot yourself prove it?”
Outside of pure mathematics, proof is an illusion.
In science, we do not prove things. We disprove things. We show things to be false because they are contradicted by things we empirically observe. If a physicist tells you that he or she has proven something, you had better hope that they have proven a hypothesis to be wrong. This is subtle but important. We believe things to be true. We can prove some things to be false. There are few things that we can prove to be true.
I cannot prove that I slept last night or that I existed a moment earlier. I believe that I did and do exist and that my mind is rational and that my thoughts are coherent. I believe that you, my reader, do exist and that you are able to reason about what I write and make your own conclusions and that those conclusions will be your own because I believe you have the ability to choose. These are beliefs. I cannot prove them.
How is more important than what. How you believe defines how your beliefs can change, and therefore how what you believe tomorrow might be different than what you believe now. What do you believe now? What reason can you give for how you came to believe what you believe? Did it seem “just right”? Did others tell you it was true, your teachers perhaps or maybe your parents? Was it because others told you it was false and you felt attacked and retreated to a position that you don’t hold for any other reason than you feel you must?
Belief is a deep thing. What we believe defines how we behave, how we live, how we teach our children about the world, the value we put into life and death, how we vote and how we war.
How do you believe?
In our time, what once seemed to be obviously true is challenged. We are bombarded with many different versions of “truth”. Should I give my child this vaccine? Is the world flat? Have aliens visited our planet already? Is Donald Trump a brilliant leader freeing America from unjust trade deals and immigration, or is he someone tearing down the establishment in his own pursuit for power and fame? Is Brexit a freeing of Britian from the shackles of the EU, or is it a retreat from multiculturalism and a response to populism and lies?
We’re often asked “who will you believe?” and the opposing positions are put out as equally valid. “This is my truth tell me yours” as the Manic Street Preachers put it.
You have a choice.
How you believe is something you can decide.
If you want to know if someone is worth following, get to know their character. If they are filled with hate, violence won’t be far behind. If they are filled with love for people, for society, for the world, then there’s something to follow.
We can’t always find out the truth of an argument or a situation, but we can often see clues to the character of those purporting a position. Sometimes, sadly, we can’t see much difference between the character of either proponent. We need leaders of character, not leaders who can evoke a frenzy.
I believe that Jesus is the Son of the Living God, that He is the Saviour of the world and the only hope for salvation, for belonging, for remedy.
I believe that because the claims stand up to inspection. I believe that because historical documents, tested by secular and opposing historians, have shown the legitimacy of the historical record.
I believe that because I find it unimaginable that Roman soldiers would forgo their duty of guarding the tomb in which Jesus was placed. Perhaps you won’t believe that there were any Roman guards. That’s a choice you can make.
I believe that because the birth and life of Jesus matches with historical Jewish predictions of the promised Messiah.
I believe that because of the character of Jesus.
I believe that because of the expansion of Christianity in the face of martyrdom makes little sense otherwise.
I believe that because during my life as a Christian I have seen God work time and time again.
I believe that because I have a personal relationship with my God.
But that’s how I believe.
How do you believe?
How will you test your beliefs?
How will you identify those beliefs that you’d be willing to live for?
Steve Horsfield 