Recently, a few books and these quotes got me thinking about why I should clarify my own world view. I hope it's a topic that might get you thinking too...
"How we understand ourselves and the world around us determines the kind of life we make."
"If we don't know what we believe...how can we live it and defend it? Our ignorance is crippling us."
So, what's your world view? Is your view mostly based on faith or religion, is it based on the subjects you've studied, based on someone else's view (agreeing or disagreeing with them), based on your life experiences?
Rachel (my two-year-old) is just learning to ask - "why?" But the only answer that she knows to give yet is - "Because." Our conversations go something like this: "Why Mommy?" "I don't know, what do you think Rachel?" "Because!"
I want to work at going a little further than that - not only being unafraid to ask "why?" and "who?", but also having more to answer than "I don't really know, just because." Today, I've only got my own questions to share (answers and ideas are swirling!). I hope these questions get you thinking too, about what your world view is, and why it matters.
Who is god? One being, creator, in everything, near or distant, constant or changing?
Who are you, and who are the other 6 billion people on the earth? Immortals, reincarnations from another life, equal or inequal beings, responsible for each other or not, connected to people in current, past and/or future generations?
What is your view of time? Is time cyclical or linear, with beginning and end or not?
What do these things mean - forever, love, purpose, justice, good?
They're hard and defining questions, if you stop and think about them... Do you have a question to add? I'm not ready to give you a pat list of good Christian answers, but I'll share more of my big and small thoughts in the days to come.
2 comments:
As one who has contemplated world-views (paradigms) for a while, it's fun to see you doing the same. Sometimes I try to see the world (as I imagine it) through your eyes: Joanna the chemist.
Once one discovers world-views, one can shop around and try some on, like a new set of goggles. (Not beer-goggles, but that's a world-view too.)
Back in October I wrote something a bit similar to your first quote:
Psychologists often speak of the role of self-image and who we become. I’d suggest that the role of God-image does the same.
I think we're on a similar page.
On time: I think of time as a path around a cone: circular (seasonal) but ascending (purposeful). An inclined plane wrapped around a cone.
On time 2: I gave an incomplete answer. I see the inclined plane, but not around a single cone, but a cone with another cone on top (point to point). Death is that single point where they touch, life after death is where the new cycles and broadening begins. If I can imagine it, it's probably not accurate, but it's my view of time. ;-)
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