Sunday, April 26, 2009

What Do I Believe?

"There is a deep hunger for wisdom in our time, but the church offers up little more than sugary nostalgia with a dash of fear." - Saving Jesus from the Church, by Robin R. Meyers (2009)

A year or so ago an evangelical purveyor of coffee asked me what I believed. Having no creed to recite, I promised to think about that question. And here I am. This post isn't a definitive statement of what I believe, but rather a 'Hello! Here's what you should know about me before we get started."

1) I'm not a card-carrying humanist, nor am I particularly well-read in humanist literature. But, as I've said elsewhere, I believe that we are our only hope for a better world. I also believe that we have the keys to unlocking our highest potential as human beings. I think those are fundamental aspects of humanism.

2) I'm appalled that 'humanism' is frequently made to seem synonymous with 'atheism' - usually by atheists who more interested in attacking religion than in advancing a positive, human-based philosophy. I don't automatically defer to religious ideas/ideals as being superior examples of morality or virtue, nor do I exclude them all from discussion simply because of their origins. I have no interest in debating the existence of god, the evils of religion, or the ultimate 'source' of such ideas unless such information is relevant to a specific instance of moral reasoning.

3) I have a background in psychology. Perhaps I'm biased by my education, but I think that many of our worst tendencies as human beings could be avoided if we were simply more aware of our motivations and how they drive our behaviors.

4) I am inclined to believe that Jesus and Buddha were human beings in the same sense that we are human beings. I like to view them as men who observed and learned a great deal about human nature and human potential. Therefore whatever 'miracles' may be attributed to them are either a) attainable by any of us with sufficient study, or b) an erroneous recording of actual events. (I don't dwell on this idea much, but it does explain why I'm reading the book quoted above.)

5) I am interested in how the human condition is changing as the result of advances in science and technology. I'm particularly interested in how such advances will change human cognition. To that extent, I may discuss or reference transhumanist writings, but that should not be construed as an unconditional acceptance of transhumanist goals or philosophies.

6) While I like to think that I spend a lot of time thinking, I haven't spent a lot of time studying systematic ways of thinking. Rationalism, empiricism, etc. (Sometimes I think I blog just so I have an excuse to do research.) You may spot biases in my thinking of which I am unaware. Please feel free to counter me with relevant examples or reasoning.

I hope that this blog will serve the purpose of forcing me to identify and examine my beliefs. If they meet with intelligent criticism, so much the better.

Comments are moderated to maintain a civil atmosphere and idea-centered discourse.