(January 5, 2015 at 9:06 pm)bennyboy Wrote: Which is more important-- truth or comfort? You have to choose between the blue pill and the red one.
For me truth is ultimate. Otherwise one has to live a delusion. However, discomfort can be a driving force to find some kind of truth that does not offend other sensibilities (i.e. being scientifically minded, commitment to reason and logic, critical thinking, being systematic, etc.)
(January 5, 2015 at 9:06 pm)bennyboy Wrote: I think you could argue that cognitive dissonance-- the difference between a person's world view and reality-- is the deepest and most dangerous source of psychological pressure. Having an unreal idea too close to the core of one's personality is extremely dangerous, as when it's unreality is revealed, it can lead to a nervous breakdown or an identity crisis.
I agree.
(January 5, 2015 at 9:06 pm)bennyboy Wrote: It's possible, though, that you really think God is real, and that nothing could ever happen (death of a loved one, a virus that kills only toddlers, a Republican majority government) that would shake that world view. In that case, it's possible that you could live and die without ever having to experience that crisis.
Anyone who hasn't experienced a cognitive (or faith) crisis must have powerful psychological defense mechanisms. May or may not be beneficial but for some that is not an option.
The problem of evil is a big one. Theodicies I have seen so far are not that convincing to me. My view is that the only valid approach is to not shield God from what we call evil. Doesn't make sense otherwise. However, I also think that the mitigating circumstance comes under the rubric of "Life". The very same forces that make life possible also make "evil" possible. No "evil", no life. Question is whether that compromise is worth it or not. Some of the very things we love about life are the product of both creation and destruction. For instance, learning entails both. Those same processes are at work in both what we love about life and what we hate. Personally I hope there isn't a heaven as typically characterized where there is no pain. No pain, no growth, no joy. All would be boringly stagnant.
