Summary

The author reflects on the nature of belief, questioning whether people can truly believe whatever they want, especially in the face of uncertainty and the appeal of comforting afterlife beliefs.

Abstract

The article delves into the complexities of personal belief systems, prompted by a conversation where the author was told they could believe in anything they wished. The author grapples with the idea that people have the freedom to choose their beliefs, particularly concerning the afterlife and a higher power. While acknowledging the existence of a higher power or universal consciousness, the author struggles with the lack of evidence for more specific beliefs like angels or reunion with lost loved ones. The piece also touches on the potential dangers of conviction in one's beliefs, the presence of atheism and doubt in society, and the role of nature in shaping our understanding of the universe. The author concludes by inviting readers to consider the malleability of their own beliefs and whether they can truly choose to believe in comforting but unproven ideas.

Opinions

The author is skeptical about the ability to believe in anything one wants, especially when it comes to specific afterlife scenarios.
There is a distinction made between a general belief in a higher power and more detailed beliefs that lack empirical evidence.
The author views the idea of choosing one's beliefs as a form of denial or wishful thinking, potentially leading to dangerous convictions.
Atheism, doubt, and fear are seen as natural parts of the human experience that challenge the notion of freely chosen beliefs.
The author acknowledges a belief in nature and the reliability of natural laws, which seems at odds with the concept of choosing supernatural beliefs.
The article suggests that some individuals, like sociopaths, may hold beliefs that are self-aggrandizing and require external validation.
The author expresses a desire to believe in comforting ideas but is constrained by a reliance on empirical evidence and natural laws.

Do You Believe What You Want To Believe?

What we believe about what we believe

The persistence of uncertainty

The other day I was lamenting to a friend of mine that I wish I could believe in the certainty of an afterlife.

I wish, as many people do, that we could be reunited with lost loved ones, feel a “presence” of a guardian angel, or be comforted in knowing my miscarriages could be resolved, or, perhaps that fond hugs and incomplete conversations could still happen.

Maybe on some other, paradisiacal, mystical plane. Many people believe in some version of heaven, or ghosts, for example.

For almost a week now, I have been struggling with what she replied to me:

“Well, you can still believe that! We can all believe whatever we want!”

Is this really true for most people? It was extraordinarily eye-opening to me. Do people, I keep asking myself, believe that we can believe whatever we want?

To be clear, I am certain there is a higher power, more than just ourselves, perhaps panpsychism, or universal consciousness. Who knows!?

There is nothing in such theories to suggest angels, or reunion evidence, however.

The dangerous conviction of our beliefs

We have all heard others say some variation of “believe whatever you want, Dude, I am right about A.B. or C.” Yet, in all the years and conversations that include this type of phrase, I have always taken it to mean that “You believe what you want to hear” a kind of wishful thinking, a sort of acceptance that people live in denial.

A fool’s paradise, or the generalized idea that something like a pandemic is influenced not so much by pathogens and contagion, but by human will, and government, or other control.

Conspiracy and fanatic territory.

I have never taken the time to realize that some people might actively choose their beliefs. This idea, like almost any new idea, is earth-shattering to me.

If we can believe what we want, I wonder, why do we have atheism, doubt, and so much fear? Or, why don’t we all believe in fairies, Santa Claus, or any positive thing such as “I am the king of the world, I am worshipped, adored, infallible, rich, powerful,” and so on?

Then, I realized with a shudder, that some sociopaths believe something very close to that. Typically, such a narcissistic person requires input from others to support such beliefs. But why, if we can choose, really, would we need the input of the faith of others?

I thoroughly understand that some people believe in positive thinking, or rote affirmations, or any number of religious ideas. But this goes beyond those normal human needs for affiliation and faith.

I believe in nature, that we share our origins and DNA. That we belong, but that we do not see it.

To believe whatever you want, for me, would require that I suspend almost everything that I know. And, although I know that I know very little, what I do know — that the universe is largely reliable and run by natural laws — is very challenged by the idea that we can choose whatever supernatural laws appeal to us.

Atheists, for example, might want to believe that there is a flying spaghetti monster who really just wants to end all religious strife forever and ever.

I really want to know what you believe

What do you think? Do you believe that consciously, unconsciously, or other, we are all so malleable that we can believe whatever we want? We can choose to believe our dead grandmothers and grandfathers are waiting for us with plates of warm cookies?

Or, that, we can choose to know that our tiny, pale blue dot is special among the limitless worlds and swirling galaxies out there?

Some days, we come face to face with the possibility that what we think we know is all wrong. Beliefs about beliefs seem to fall into this category.

I guess I really want to believe this is not true.