Sunday, October 22, 2006

"When Not Seeing Is Believing"

Ok, so I was reading this article in the Time Magazine from October 9 titled “When Not Seeing is Believing” and it just screamed TOK! to me. I thought this article presented such an accurate interpretation on the power of fundamentalist thought and its effects. The article began by noting the smile of certainty present on Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadienjad’s face during his visit to the U.N. This smile reflected his trust in the arms of God and the power of his faith. The need to submit to the beneficent, omnipotent will of God has been present throughout all religions throughout time. The article stresses the point that the resurgence of religious certainty has deepened our cultural divisions and caused more polarized political discoures.
I found it really interesting when the article mentioned the impossibility of proclaiming truth with a capital T when it comes to faith. There is always a sense of uncertainty that humans will never grasp. At the heart of religion is humanness marked by imperfection and uncertainty that was even seen in Jesus.
So, as humans strive towards an absolute truth, it is real doubt that teaches people to believe. Faith does not come from sense perception. So I don’t think it can be close to absolute
This is why I see certainty of faith as a paradox. Faith incorporates doubt, so religion cannot be used as a certainty in any kind of political decision. Political divisions then arise so strongly.
What does everyone think about this? It’s a really good article that gives a much better account of what I just said, so you should really read it.
-anya

2 comments:

ELanciotti said...

I do agree faith is hard to come by. It is absolute trust in something that others may or may not see. One thing I would argue though is that it can be sense perception because I know from personal experience that I do see my faith reassured through the world around me. But of course that is my experience and has nothing to do with absolute truth. I can see though how faith, though not absolute truth, can be used to influence political decisions. I may feel personally that some things are very wrong because of the influence my faith has on me. Certainty of faith IS a paradox, because no matter how sure you are what you believe is right you can never know; but thats what faith is, the absence of evidence and truth in the face of obstacles, and still believing.

I would be interested as well to see what others say; because religious beliefs do often strongly influence political decisions; so how can they be separate? We have been learning about how one's personal bias affects what that person thinks and therefore does and argues, so how do you separate your own bias from politics?

eyes like tar said...

Yes, I agree with elanciotti (interesting name, btw). Faith is something not many people come by in life, whether it be religious or otherwise. You could have faith the sun will rise tomorrow or have faith in God. Through sense perception and knowledge (properly justified true beliefs), I'm sure many people think the "signs" that their religion gives them are true and actual proof that a God exists. Through sense perception, people use what the world gives us to our advantage, creating our own beliefs and proofs.