You’ve got to believe first. That’s what they say.
Our non-believers group sets up in public places from time to time to let people know we exist. It is a way to encourage other non-believers and let them know they are not alone. It also attracts discussion from believers who often see our existence as some sort of contradiction to the very laws of nature.
Last week, I spoke to a woman who was trying to argue that, because she had personally worked many miracles of healing, I somehow had to account for that. I told her that I hadn’t seen any evidence that she had worked any miracles, and that I wasn’t even sure I could trust her observations. She could be mistaken about what happened. I said that without a whole lot of verifiable documentation, there was no reason for me to waste my time trying to come up with explanations.
She said, “I see your problem. You think you need to have evidence, and then you’ll believe. God didn’t set things up that way. You need to believe first, and then you’ll see all of the evidence you need.”
That’s it, isn’t it? That’s the root of all religion. I’ve had many discussions with believers over the years, and when the smoke clears, they are almost always left with nothing but this little nugget—that faith is a way to know the truth and, that if a person has faith, they become privy to all kinds of knowledge that eliminates the need for questioning. Unfortunately, it also describes everything that’s wrong with faith.
I told the woman that her formula certainly works, but it is also the perfect recipe for error. I explained that many, many people destroy their lives with exactly that formula.
We all know them—the people around us who are slowly ruining their lives through addictions, bad habits and denial. You can see the evidence as plain as day, but somehow they never do. They first believe that there is no problem—then they “discover” all the evidence they need to convince themselves that their belief is true. In this way they continue with their problems. They stay in their error. It doesn’t matter how much actual evidence there is against their beliefs, they can’t see it because it first gets filtered through their commitment to the belief.
Consider all of the other religions in the world. It would be fair to say that even the most devout among us reject 99% of the available choices. Clearly, there isn’t enough evidence to convince even a simple majority of people that any one of them is true. Yet, for every adherent, the universe is teeming with proof that their personal religious choice is the only one.
How does this happen?
It’s the formula. Believe first, then you’ll see evidence. If you believe that the gods care for you, finding money on the street becomes proof of that care. Believe that Big Pharma will do anything to make a buck and suddenly every medical advance becomes a trap. Believe that the slot machine is about to pay off and hitting the ATM for more money looks like a good idea. Believe that NASA has a dishonest agenda and suddenly the flat-earth idea doesn’t sound so kooky.
How do you determine truth from error? That’s a really important question. Without a robust BS detector, you become easy prey for every bad idea out there. It is a problem shared by every gambling addict, meth-head, terrorist, conspiracy theorist, and—need I remind you—every religious believer (except the few lucky ones that happen to have been born in a region where they follow the one true religion).
Clearly, the only way to filter out truth from untruth is to follow the evidence. Yes, the evidence may be flawed and incomplete, but it is all we have. Reject any claim that isn’t backed up by evidence. Not because it is wrong—it may not be—but because without evidence we can never be sure. Naturally, this means you might have to change your mind if new evidence comes up. So be it. That’s how this works. Look at the evidence, figure out what is most probably true and run with that until new evidence is found.
Faith shuts off your truth detector. “Believe first, then you’ll receive proof,” filters out contradicting evidence before you even have a chance to evaluate it. It can also certify falsehoods as being true before they’ve been verified. With the “Believe First” program in place, the only test is whether the evidence supports the belief. There is no remaining test for actual truth.
You want to know the saddest part? Those who follow the, “Believe, then see” formula can never know the truth. Their beliefs might actually be true but they will never be able to confirm it. Nothing can be known to be true unless it has passed the tests. By shutting off their truth testers, the “Believe First” people opt out of knowing.
Look, if you’re happy with your beliefs, if they are “working” for you, there is nothing I can say that will persuade you to try a different approach. But if you care that what you believe is true, you owe it to yourself to fire up the truth detector. And frankly, you owe it to the rest of us too. What good is truth if it isn’t shared with people who need it?
What do you care about more—beliefs or truth? They are not the same thing.