One of the most difficult tasks is presenting facts to people who believe the exact opposite. Even when shown specifics, (truth and details), they will not believe differently! Why do you suppose this is$%: Would you not expect an educated and informed individual to "see clearly" that he or she is wrong$%: Yet in any light, there are those whose beliefs confront and resist evidence.
It is never more obvious, nor understandable, than in religious diversity. In my opinion, politics and social matters run a close second and third. Therefore, if you or I, who are so accepting of everyone else's beliefs can clearly see the problem and the facts, why oh WHY can't these other people just wake up! See it our way, the right way! What the heck is the matter with them$%:
For millennia it's been: my God can beat up your God, or my God gave birth to your God, or your God isn't God, and Goddess isn't even a God, for God's Sake! People believing in these Gods are good Christians or Jews or Muslims, and people not believing in those Gods are heathens, pagans, or infidels. Lines have been drawn, people hanged or burned for heresy, and one group or another has waged wars, seemingly from the beginning of time, in the name of "belief" or the lack of it.
Any patterns
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As a child I was warned never to step foot into a church of a religion other than my own. Brownie scouts met in the basement of the Presbyterian church. My little girlfriends and I sneaked upstairs and pushed each other through the doors! I'm alive today and was not struck by a bolt of lightning. Up until that time I had believed that something dire would happen to me, it did not. Without going into theological debate, that incident put the first wedge between my beliefs (that in which I had been taught to have faith) and my knowledge (what I experienced myself and found to be true).
Beliefs make our lives easier. We do not need to question, think or act differently than we "always have."
If we have strong beliefs that being a Democrat means that "our" party is for the common man, makes sure everyone is looked after, and is anti "Big Business," we probably will not believe that being a Republican could stand for the same thing. I was raised in a Republican house, by a Republican family who lived in a very Republican town. In elections, Republicans ran unopposed! (Which even now I consider un-American.) Until John F. Kennedy ran for president, Democrats had horns and hooves!
I was finishing junior high when I began to listen, question, read about and discuss politics. I became a Democrat on principle, opinion, and facts. I am certain that teenage rebellion played a part in the decision! As I came to recognize my self and my individual viewpoints and attitudes, calling myself a Democrat felt right. I replaced one set of beliefs for another and continue participation in Democratic endeavors today. Those principles continue to be my choice. Remember, it does not always mean that each and every concrete action of the Democratic Party reflects exactly what I believe, but in principle it does.
Beliefs about one another are so much more difficult to change. This is where you think, "Irishmen are drunks," he thinks, "People who are on welfare are scamming the system," and I think, "The death penalty doesn't deter people from murdering other people." Those are things we believe.
"Well," you say, "all the guys I know who are drunks are Irish." And He says, "I heard on NBC news last night that welfare fraud is taking billions of my hard earned money!" I say, "You know, it just doesn't seem right. It feels morally wrong to me." But they have taken the life of a child, or a police officer, or a doctor...
Am I able to even listen to you telling me why the death penalty is the right thing to do$%: Can I persuade you to allow that some folks want to get off welfare$%: That these people want jobs, or to return to good health$%: Will you listen to me$%: There are plenty of drunks of every culture in lots of neighborhoods, not just Irish ones. Are these beliefs that someone has told us$%: What has occurred in our past, in our knowledge or experience, that we so tightly hang onto our beliefs$%: What are our rewards$%:
Is there ever a reason to question your beliefs$%: From experience, when my beliefs made life miserable, when my thoughts were continually negative and self-destructive, when I wasn't happy on a day to day basis, I needed to question my beliefs about my self, my life, and the principles under which I lived and acted. Then with a counselor, (therapist, spiritual advisor or good friend), I examined those beliefs. What is true, what is untrue$%: What can be changed$%: What cannot$%:
There comes a moment in this personal exploration when everything becomes crystal clear! Many call it the "Great Aha!" and others call it a "moment of clarity." It is an opportunity, an instant act of free will, a soaring of spirit. Once you have been released from even one false belief, you will never see things in the old way again.
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