We need to remember that most ideologies and worldviews rest on the interdependence of their own assumptions and arguments.
Catch up on part 1 of this series
Ideologies are built on unstable foundations
For our aforementioned example, an "interdependance of arguments and assumptions" would mean:
IF the theory of biological evolution is true, the Earth cannot be 6000 years old. Were we somehow able to satisfactorily prove to ourselves that it WAS 6000 years old then the whole idea of biological evolution would go down the drain - because there hasn't been enough time for it to work as the theory requires enormous amounts of time to justify how one species evolved to another.
And while there could be many more arguments to consider, you will see that you often need to find the catch in merely a few of them - sometimes only in one of them that the whole theory rests on - and the whole worldview will fall apart all by itself, like a row of dominos.
A mighty timesaver if you want to get a decent overview about all these topics that move and intrigue you.
I also want to remind everyone that there are way more options of seeing reality than either of the two I have mentioned here and that we are constantly presented with: Falling into the trap of either being an Atheist OR a Christian is not the answer unless you really think it is. In my view these dichotomies are precisely where the people that set up these ideologies want us to get lost in once more. If you're unsure still - don't subscribe to a whole new package, no matter how shiny it is.
Finding the catch can take years, even if you look where the critics are pointing. Even the best case against something can manage to overlook essential flaws, so it can only be a starting point for your research, never the last word - especially when we are exploring complex models.
In my studies I have found both Atheism and Christianity to be gravely flawed and insufficient to explain or even describe what reality is or how it came to be, though the study of both sides gave me lots of 'aha' moments and hints to a more likely version of what might be going on.
But that's not the point of this article ;)
The point is to show you how useful it can be to listen to the opponents of an idea with an open mind and take from them what you can use, instead of blindly following anyone's preconceived systems of concepts.
Debates are exceptionally well-suited for this task because not only will you get a feel for the people involved, the people on both sides will also have to try and counter the "best arguments" of the other side live and in front of an audience! Which surprisingly fails so often that you start to wonder why anybody actually believes all this jazz uncritically if the "expert" cannot even give a single solid argument, apart from the age-old "but the majority agrees that it is so" :)
Which is a political argument at best, not a scientific one. It could merely prove that the brainwashing for the matter in question has been hugely successful, and not that the majority got it right.
It seldomly does, because the majority is pretty much always led by someone or something.
Make use of people's fanaticism which they hold to be virtuous
So today, when I want to be kept up to date with the latest 'official' news from, say, the Vatican and their shenanigans... do I go look for it? Do I read the papers? Do I search youtube aimlessly? Do i ask around in my local church?
Nope.
I check a few of my favorite channels of totally devout atheists who made it their mission to present any current developments in institutions and groups they consider to be hopelessly flawed, stupid and absolutely false - despite my having ditched atheism years ago. Most atheists laugh at the very idea of "god", magic, exorcisms, spirits and all these concepts that are frankly absurd and outrageous to them. And I have once seen it exactly like them before experience and discernment taught me otherwise. But every one of us has to make his own discoveries or else we are led by other people again, which is what got us into the confusion in the first place.
You gotta lead yourself. Nobody knows the truth, especially not the ones who claim they do. At least thats my current working dogma ;)
The same goes for many devout bible believers I have met and talked to in my life that would often disregard glaring inconsistencies within their worldview just to be able to hang on to it, and try to convert me regardless of my valid objections. Not to mention the underlying energetics and deeply rooted concepts that make a "good christian" - many of these concepts being absolutely poisonous for a good life (like the concept of "original sin" for example).
Static fronts invite you to stay in the middle to get somewhere
Ideological battles are the worst. And this is probably the only downside to sitting through hours of watching a number of people deride and ridicule something they think is outrageous: You have to deal with endless self-agrandizement and SMIRK MARATHONS of an ego-ridden human being who is deeply convinced to totally know the truth of it all.
But it's a price worth paying if you want to avoid an eternity of studying merely one field of inquiry, and you will quickly find fair and less-arrogant people who just try their best to talk about concrete arguments despite their conviction that they are right. It's not so much about what we think we know, but about learning where we can find out whether it is likely or not.
And why.
There is no need to be angry at people who hold a different truth to be reality than yourself - if you consider them your allies while remaining neutral you can not only build bridges amongst the rival factions, but you will also get to the actual truth of any matter much more quickly than the advocates of either side.
For that reason, I always bookmark the champions that I jive with who are advocating anything strongly - because they constantly act as my lookouts for any new developments in the area they have sworn to fight against. And even if I disagree with their own stance on reality and truth completely, I surely can be appreciative of all their hard work they are doing FOR me in keeping me up to date about what is going on inside their ideological battlefield.
Timesavers indeed, and they are always good for a giggle when they present their own unrecognized assumptions as "the truth" with a glorious smirk of naiveté ;) Ahahahaha
You will find out anything you need to know as long as you trust yourself and as long as you keep the connection open to those who you disagree but jive with. Among them there will be many great allies for your own search for the truth. Everyone moves at their own tempo and there is no point in criticizing them for it when we could make use of their... limited scope and tireless efforts ;)
And looking back through your own worldviews and ideas you have already left behind you you will feel genuine compassion for those who still see it that way, instead of hating them for their 'stupid beliefs'.
We all thought Santa was real... for a while.
Don't hate the kids for not knowing any better <3
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Thanks for stopping by <3