Epistemology

The study or a theory of the nature and grounds of knowledge especially with reference to its limits and validity. https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/epistemology

The following questions, all centered on epistemology, can help us know if we should believe what we think we know. We shouldn’t ever be afraid to question our beliefs.

If we have the truth, it cannot be harmed by investigation. If we have not the truth, it ought to be harmed. — J Reuben Clark, Ironically, a Mormon apostle

1. Have I always thought this way?

We have good reason for believing what our parents teach us, after all, they only want what is best for us (in most cases). According to many studies, people tend to stick with the religion their parents brought them up in. For example, according to Pewforum’s research, 8 in 10 people raised by protestants stay protestant:

If most people stick with the religion of their parents, and there are many different religions to which parents can belong, wouldn’t it be reasonable to conclude that using parents as a guide is an inherently flawed epistemological approach?

2. Do I have skin in the game?

When scientists conduct experiments, they often are susceptible to confirmation bias. This bias occurs when the researcher in question desires a specific outcome, perhaps for money, fame, or some other reason. Because all humans are prone to these types of biases, science requires peer review and verification of results.

When we believe something, we must always ask ourselves, “Do I want this to be true?” When we want something to be true, we tend to give it the benefit of the doubt, and dismiss good evidence for the opposing side. For example, you may wish for your family’s religion to be the true one, because if it isn’t, you may lose friends or family, or you may not get that eternity in paradise. However, truth has absolutely nothing to do with whether the results of a claim are beneficial to us, we must be aware of this ever present logical fallacy.

3. Can the same methods lead to different results?

Growing up Mormon, I was taught that the only way to know if the church is true is to ask god in prayer, which seems reasonable enough. The problem is that the expected answer from god is extremely vague. In fact, the answer is so vague that the exact same method is employed by virtually every religion.

Here is a link to the Mormon church’s website describing what the spirit might feel like:

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/youth/article/what-does-the-spirit-feel-like?lang=eng

And here is a great video demonstrating that many people of different beliefs think that god has revealed the truth to them. The epistemological flaw here is obvious: if many people can follow the same instructions and get different results, the experiment can not be considered reliable.

4. How has my belief system changed when confronted with new evidence?

Generally speaking, religious positions are asserted and then justified later in order to fit within the current scientific view of reality. Scientific findings on the other hand are considered hypotheses or theories until enough evidence can be gathered to form a justified true belief. For example, religions have historically claimed to know:

The Earth is the center of the solar system/universe

Evolution isn’t a thing

Lightning means Zeus is angry

Black magic and sorcery are real (as opposed to being the cheap parlor tricks we now know them to be thanks to modern magicians)

The nice thing about being a skeptic, is that we only believe things that we have sufficient evidence for. There is no need to shoehorn old conclusions into new processes, because “I don’t know” is a perfectly respectable answer. When new evidence was found that showed that Newtonian physics doesn’t fully explain the physical world, we can shrug and say, “great, time to dig a bit deeper”.

Examples of religions justifying beliefs to fit new evidence:

Final Note: Cognitive Dissonance

Learning more about why we believe the things we believe can help us better understand what we should believe. Epistemology is hard for a lot of people, because it often results in cognitive dissonance, that is, an uncomfortable feeling that arises when we hold conflicting beliefs.

I think that the truth is worth finding, and I’m always open to hearing back about my reader’s thoughts and opinions.

Twitter: wagslane