It’s been a while since I’ve posted an entry that was more than a mere “update” on our lives. Something more substantial, which is what I originally began when starting this blog, has been rather difficult. For several reasons, I have not been prolific in my latest ramblings, rants, ideals, opinions, and theories. This is in part due to lack of time to develop my thoughts in written form, and in part due to my naiveté on certain issues that I am beginning to research and study and craft my own opinions and thoughts on. Some of these topics include things like universal health care, global warming, emergent church and theories of ministry, the 2008 election, social justice, Calvinism, and other theological and political thoughts.
Simply stated, I’m inundated with rational (and some pretty irrational) politically liberal comments in my life, some of which sound intriguing, but which I have no well-reasoned way of determining whether or not my initial thoughts are correct or if they should take some rethinking. In other ways, much of this can be contributed to lack of research, and I want to be well versed in the field in which I’m commenting.
All in all, it’s about knowing my own world view makes sense of the world. For instance, if I want to be a compassionate person and an advocate for social justice in the world, why would I or why would I not want to embrace universal health care? If I don’t (which is wildly unpopular where I work), then what is my alternative for being an advocate for those who cannot afford health care? Or, to take another example, if I want to fight the bias against the skeptics of human-caused global warming, how will I positively fight the need for proper stewardship of our environment without jumping on the Al Gore bandwagon of fear?
You see, as I sat down with a friend during our lunch break, we began discussing/arguing/debating/chatting about political issues. My friend is an avid George Bush hater, while I’m disappointed-yet-sympathetic (to put us in the proper categories). We both agree there’s a health care problem. We both agree there’s problems with the Middle East War. We both agree there are problems with the border. We both agree there are problems with [fill in the blank here].
As we keep talking about the issues, it becomes very clear to me that it doesn’t matter whether or not each of us has the best argument for/against abortion rights, health care, economics, or government surveillance of those with terrorist connections without a warrant. We have differing world views. We understand the world differently. I will look at the “health care crisis” in our nation through the lens of personal responsibility, which translates into not buying an iPod/iPhone, Cable TV, eating out often, and buying expensive items so I can buy affordable health care for my family. My friend, on the other hand, would have other things to say (I won’t put words in his mouth, tempted as I am to caricature his views) about the issue. And both of us have valid points.
But again… world views are different, and you can’t look “at” a world view, you must look through it. I like to say that I’m “borrowing” a view for a while to see if it pans out. So for now it behooves me to “borrow” other world views, not in terms of necessarily wanting to embrace them, but in terms of wanting to understand what life would be like “in a different light.”
Hence the scattered and rare posts on my own thoughts.
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