Faith versus logic is an ancient battleground of ideologies. Religion uses divine inspiration for its authority, while logic uses reason. It seems like this battle should be over by now, but it continues to rage. Why does it continue? Come and learn the differences in these worldviews.
We conduct training sessions to teach spiritual exploration methods, and our participants come from diverse backgrounds. We discovered some people are more prone to learning roadblocks than others, and people with strong Western religious beliefs are more likely to have difficulties. This led us to discover an inverse relationship between faith and logical thinking. Let me take you on the journey of this important discovery.
What is an Inverse Relationship?
With a subject like this, it helps to define terms. Then, we will show an overview of our research. (1)
An inverse relationship is a tug-of-war between two variables. As one increases, the other decreases. The variables respond in opposition to one another. As variable “A” increases, variable “B” decreases. If variable “B” increases, variable “A” decreases. Here are some practical examples to help you understand this principle.
— If more people work on the task, the less time it will take less time to complete. If there are fewer people, the job will take longer.
Traveling at a faster rate will decrease the time to reach your destination. If you go slower, it will take longer.
— In the proper operation of a seesaw, one side goes up, and the other goes down. Balance scales and elevator counterweights operate the same way.
Let’s look at the elements of this equation between faith and reason.
What is Logic?
To think logically is to use guiding principles based on reason, evidence, and facts. It is an analytical way of thinking that produces the most accurate results. It is a way of thinking for solving problems and planning, as well as abstract thinking. This mindset helps us understand complex ideas and learn from experience. Logic is an essential cognitive ability for survival (2).
Your general mental health is one of the critical factors that affect thinking. You can find several online tests (3) that measure your reasoning and cognitive skills. Mental health professionals use similar tools to assess their clients. For example, The Intelligence Quotient Test measures intelligence with a high degree of accuracy.
What is faith?
Faith is the trust in things for which there is no proof. Believing in something for which there is no proof is a slippery slope. The more you accept unproven ideas, the more susceptible you become. Organized religion is the champion of groupthink manipulation tactics. It programs beliefs about reality based on mythology and superstition.
The Interplay Between Faith and Logic
Many people confuse faith and confidence. Faith is believing without evidence. Confidence is believing with specified certainty. We have a high level of certainty that the sun will rise and set every day, based on the history of sunrises and sunsets.
Our level of certainty for future occurrence increases with the number of times something occurs. Our certainty diminishes as the number of past events reduces. We trust people because we have evidence they are trustworthy or because we want to believe in them. When we trust without evidence, our confidence is really faith because we do not have any evidence.
The dominant cultural narrative complicates the interplay between faith and logic. Western organized religion’s brainwashing affects most of the modern world. It has engaged in a campaign to confuse belief and faith with reason. Organized religion has controlled much of the cultural narrative for generations. This social mass affects even those in the community who are not followers. In the conflict of faith versus logic, social pressure to conform makes all the difference.
The Abrahamic religions of Christianity, Islam, and Judaism are based on faith. They are not new systems. These religions are a rebranding of the ancient dying-God mystery religions. These religions are the cults from ancient Assyria, Babylon, Egypt, and Persia. They are the true creators of all the myths and brainwashing tactics found in the Abrahamic family.
The Inverse Relationship Between Faith and Reason
The relationship between faith, belief, and reasoning is a significant finding. It doesn’t matter how healthy your mind is or how intelligent you are. If you expose yourself to groupthink manipulation tactics long enough, it will overcome your ability to use reason and logic.
The more rigid and extreme religious beliefs, the less one uses critical thinking skills. The mind shuts off the ability to consider ideas beyond the boundaries, restrictions, and paradigms. So, as the level of extreme religious beliefs increases, the ability to think critically decreases.
Who Wins The Battle Between Faith Versus Logic?
When you buy into religious ideology, you put yourself on a slippery slope. You are open to the power of suggestion, which overwrites your values. You fail to recognize illogical arguments and so accept illogical conclusions. Thus, you can think and behave in ways you would not usually contemplate. The inverse function of belief and faith creates blinders programming people to commit acts of violence.
Thankfully, this condition is not terminal. We can reduce the effects of harmful religious ideology. The more you use critical thinking skills, the less likely you will adopt extreme religious beliefs. And conversely, the greater your ability to consider new ideas and new ways of thinking.
Where do you stand on the interplay between faith and logic? Which do you consider more important in making decisions?
Spiritual Exploration and Assessing Readiness to Learn
The readiness to learn assessment helps teachers and participants. It predicts the likelihood of learning success. This tool shows the roadblocks to learning so that we can develop a plan to overcome them.
We have been using and refining this survey since the late 1980s and have obtained data from well over 1,000 participants. The data reveals an inverse relationship between faith and reason. The greater their confidence in religious views, the less likely they are to meet their learning goals.
Because they reject ideas that do not fit with their current worldview, they have a hard time learning new tools. Their beliefs not only affect their ability to learn. As group participants, their mindset has a detrimental effect on others in the learning process.
Not All Religions are the Same
The memorization of dogma and the misuse of logic deter learning. People with strong religious beliefs score lower on primary cognitive abilities. Mythology and superstitions are roadblocks. They prevent people from considering new ideas.
Those with inflexible religious beliefs were more likely to lose emotional equilibrium. When they encounter something that conflicts with their beliefs, they experience cognitive dissonance. This dilemma causes psychological stress, which can cause everything from headaches to rashes. Nearly 20% of those with strong religious beliefs could not complete the survey because of this distress. This shows their inability to consider ideas that challenge their worldview. In this personal battle of faith versus logic, faith wins.
Having religious beliefs isn’t the problem. It depends on the health of your beliefs. If your beliefs contain bias and prejudice, they are unhealthy. Systems that use systematic forms of indoctrination often program discrimination and prejudice. If you get your beliefs through this kind of brainwashing, you will run into conflicts with modern science and logic.
The interplay between faith and logic always leads to a dilemma. To solve this conflict, you have two choices: You can reject and ignore the conflicting information or change your beliefs. To do this, they must be able to change what they believe.
Thankfully, not all religions are the same. You can group religions on a continuum depending on the number of boundaries and restrictions. It’s important to understand that not all religions program you to control your thoughts and values. Look at the systems which have the fewest boundaries. Many forms of paganism have few constraints. Taoism is another philosophy with very few limits on what you can believe.
How To Test Your Vulnerability
It’s easy to test your readiness to learn and vulnerability to an extremist ideology. Your reaction to pictures of people from different cultures and lifestyles shows the nature of your worldview. The Cultural Assessment Questionnaire provides you with a snapshot of your worldview.
Your reaction to this discussion is yet another way to test the filter of your paradigm. We’ll pose some questions that will give you an indication if you are affected by the inverse relationship of faith and logic.
— Does the discussion of the Abrahamic religions prompt emotional feelings of anger? If so, it’s a sign your worldview is affected by their programming.
— Do ideas that contradict your beliefs cause you physical discomfort? If so, it’s also a good sign.
— A significant sign is a belief that specific ideas and resources (books) are off-limits for others.
— Do you attend religious functions or consume religious-based programming at least once a week? Frequent exposure to groupthink manipulation makes you vulnerable to the chosen one mentality. Do you feel special? Do you belong to an exclusive religious group? If this is the case, chances are groupthink manipulation tactics dictate your beliefs and values.
— In the conflict of faith versus logic, do you choose faith over rational thought?
As your religious beliefs become more inflexible, your ability to use reason diminishes. You will be less likely to explore other ideas or processes which conflict with your current boundaries. Religions are control mechanisms. They program people to reject anything that threatens religion.
Logic is The Antidote to the Effects of Religion
Thankfully, this condition is reversible. However, it requires some work, but the results will be worth it. Eliminating limiting beliefs increases cognitive ability. The fewer limitations and restrictions on thinking, the greater your ability to reason. The more you research and study ideas outside your paradigm, the more you appreciate freedom of thought.
So, here’s the antidote to the effects of religion. Begin studying critical thinking. Here are some links to our essential “critical thinking toolkit.” This series includes logical reasoning, truth-seeker axioms, and tools for spotting logical fallacies. These can reduce or eliminate the harmful effects of religious extremism. Conduct independent research using sources from outside the worldview you are investigating.
In Conclusion
Our research shows that religious beliefs and logical reasoning are at odds. Belief and reason are opposites. The inverse relationship between faith and reason is scary. However, we can control the interplay between faith and logic. We must decide we want a healthy worldview, then take the steps to change what we believe.
References
(1) Inverse Function, bigthink.com
(2) Causes and Consequences of Cognitive Functioning Across the Life Course. National Library of Medicine.
(3) Seven online tests to measure cognitive abilities.bigthink.com