Found this preacher in the book of faces
Dear absolutist,
Please know that we all don’t have the same extreme either/or, cut and dry, “black and white” view of the world as you do. It makes conversations with you nearly impossible when you assume this to be true about everyone.
For example, simply because we disagree with you about one particular thing does not immediately mean that we hold the exact opposite belief to be true. It only means that we disagree with that one particular thing.
Likewise, simply because you find one of our beliefs disagreeable does not automatically mean that we also align with everything else with which you also disagree. It simply means that you have just discovered one single area with which you do not agree with us.
Simply because we don’t hold extreme either/or perspectives about religion or politics or what have you, this does not mean we are not “convicted” people, or that we don’t believe in “absolute truth.” It means we are convicted about navigating our beliefs in a way that is different from the way you navigate yours.
We have discovered that life is deeply nuanced and complex. We have found that wisdom takes time to cultivate and requires a lot of humility. Truth is deeply profound and infinite. We have discovered a lot of things we hold to be true, but we are also very aware that there is always something we don’t know.
There are always things yet to discover and yet to be understood. We have discovered that great harm comes when we assume to know all there is to know. In fact, we have really been hurt by others who have assumed they know it all.
Within our framework of belief, we have become very comfortable with mystery, nuance, and complexity. We deeply value curiosity and we like to take time before coming to a conclusion about things.
We work really hard to be patient with not knowing what we believe about something for a long while. We take our time to make up our minds about something, but we also leave room for those beliefs to develop, mature, expand, and yes, even change when we discover and understand more.
It also isn't just about knowledge for us either. We want our knowledge to also be shaped by love, kindness, and compassion.
All this to say, the next time you encounter someone who doesn’t see the world in the same cut and dry, extreme either/or metrics that you do and you are tempted to condemn them as “wishy washy,” “lacking conviction,” or “not believing in absolute truth,” perhaps take a moment to consider that not everyone sees the world the same way you do.
This doesn’t make them “wrong” and it certainly doesn’t make you “right.” It just means that you think you’ve somehow achieved absolute truth and there is now nothing left for you to discover, learn, or understand about the world and you are just talking to someone who refuses to think they already know it all.
We don’t deserve to be condemned simply because we are comfortable with mystery and the reality that there are things we don’t yet know and you are not.
We hope you remember that in your future conversations.
Sincerely,
The Curious.
Dear absolutist,
Please know that we all don’t have the same extreme either/or, cut and dry, “black and white” view of the world as you do. It makes conversations with you nearly impossible when you assume this to be true about everyone.
For example, simply because we disagree with you about one particular thing does not immediately mean that we hold the exact opposite belief to be true. It only means that we disagree with that one particular thing.
Likewise, simply because you find one of our beliefs disagreeable does not automatically mean that we also align with everything else with which you also disagree. It simply means that you have just discovered one single area with which you do not agree with us.
Simply because we don’t hold extreme either/or perspectives about religion or politics or what have you, this does not mean we are not “convicted” people, or that we don’t believe in “absolute truth.” It means we are convicted about navigating our beliefs in a way that is different from the way you navigate yours.
We have discovered that life is deeply nuanced and complex. We have found that wisdom takes time to cultivate and requires a lot of humility. Truth is deeply profound and infinite. We have discovered a lot of things we hold to be true, but we are also very aware that there is always something we don’t know.
There are always things yet to discover and yet to be understood. We have discovered that great harm comes when we assume to know all there is to know. In fact, we have really been hurt by others who have assumed they know it all.
Within our framework of belief, we have become very comfortable with mystery, nuance, and complexity. We deeply value curiosity and we like to take time before coming to a conclusion about things.
We work really hard to be patient with not knowing what we believe about something for a long while. We take our time to make up our minds about something, but we also leave room for those beliefs to develop, mature, expand, and yes, even change when we discover and understand more.
It also isn't just about knowledge for us either. We want our knowledge to also be shaped by love, kindness, and compassion.
All this to say, the next time you encounter someone who doesn’t see the world in the same cut and dry, extreme either/or metrics that you do and you are tempted to condemn them as “wishy washy,” “lacking conviction,” or “not believing in absolute truth,” perhaps take a moment to consider that not everyone sees the world the same way you do.
This doesn’t make them “wrong” and it certainly doesn’t make you “right.” It just means that you think you’ve somehow achieved absolute truth and there is now nothing left for you to discover, learn, or understand about the world and you are just talking to someone who refuses to think they already know it all.
We don’t deserve to be condemned simply because we are comfortable with mystery and the reality that there are things we don’t yet know and you are not.
We hope you remember that in your future conversations.
Sincerely,
The Curious.