What do you believe about worldviews?

[RegGuheert]

This is a MULTISELECT poll about your beliefs about worldviews. In other words, select as many answers as you want. For the purpose of this poll, let's use the following portion of this definition from Wikipedia:

Additionally, it refers to the framework of ideas and beliefs through which an individual interprets the world and interacts with it.

Most polls are easy to answer. I expect this one may be a little more challenging. Please read each statement carefully and mark it if you agree with it.

 

Oh, and of course discuss your answers here! (As if I could stop you! ;))

[Jean in Newcastle]

I believe that there is exactly one correct worldview - that of God's. I do not think that any one person or group of people can completely and perfectly line up with that correct worldview, though I think we can with God's help be transformed into His way of thinking.

[Truscifi]

We can't possibly know enough to know which worldviews are correct, if any are.

[pooh bear]

All worldviews have equal value. Until it is proven or dis-proven one way or the other, everyone is correct.

[Merry]

I believe that there is exactly one correct worldview - that of God's. I do not think that any one person or group of people can completely and perfectly line up with that correct worldview, though I think we can with God's help be transformed into His way of thinking.

 

I agree with the above. I also add that though it is not possible to come up with proof to support all of God's worldview according to what the Bible says about it, there is more proof for it than there is for any other worldview.

[Jean in Newcastle]

All worldviews have equal value. Until it is proven or dis-proven one way or the other, everyone is correct.

 

While I have no problem with you having this worldview (even if I disagree with it), there is a logical problem with you accepting my worldview as being correct along with everyone else's.

[Mimm]

I believe that there is one objective truth but a "worldview" has so many elements to it. I doubt any human or group of humans has it exactly right, but many worldviews probably have elements of truth to them. I voted that one is correct and all others incorrect and I voted that we can't know for sure. :) I think, as humans, we can just do our best to try to get it as right as possible but I think it's wise to form our opinions with a heavy dose of humility.

 

Oh and I think we can prove a worldview incorrect, at least beyond all reasonable doubt. If a person is believing something really crazy. :) For instance, the world didn't end in May. Those people who believed it would were proven wrong. Though Camping would disagree since he's already rescheduled the apocalypse for, what, October?

Edited September 23, 2011 by Mimm

[Gailmegan]

Maybe my brain is tired, but by that definition, all worldviews have to be valid. Isn't that a no-brainer? A worldview is the framework through which one views the world. It is shaped by religion, education and personal experiences, along with other factors - it's the lens through which one interprets the world. No two worldviews are exactly the same.

 

I have a problem using this definition to declare the ability to prove or disprove any one worldview as "correct" since we all have different experiences. As for religion/faith, yes, I believe there is one and only one truth about God, who he is and what his plans for us are. And no humans have the corner on the market on God's truth, although some are closer than others.

[SKL]

I voted other.

 

I don't think I have a "world view."

 

Mostly I just try to figure it out as I go along.

 

If world view means people's individual view at the present moment of reality, it's neither correct nor incorrect. The other day one DD1 complained that it was cold outdoors, but nobody else felt that way. An hour later, it was cooler outdoors, but DD1 was feeling fine. What was the reality?

 

Does it matter?

 

Maybe my world view is that it doesn't matter.

[twoforjoy]

Other. I would say that most likely none are completely correct, but all aren't equally wrong. Some worldviews are more valid than others, but all likely contain some truth and some error.

[twoforjoy]

Well sort of. I don't believe your world view because for one I'm an atheist. But I have no proof. Just like you don't either. So I accept that your world view is as valid as mine.

 

Please don't make me explain that further (because my head will explode). :lol:

 

I totally get what you mean.

 

I do not think I'm right about everything. Or most things. So, while I do have a particular understanding of the world that, to me, seems more right than the others, I accept that I might be wrong. So it doesn't pose a logical problem for me to accept that other worldviews could be equally valid, even if those worldviews claim exclusive truth, because I know I might be wrong.

 

That said, I don't think all worldviews are equal. If somebody's worldview rests in the universe being 10,000 years old or the earth being flat, I will consider it to be not particularly viable. That doesn't mean there might not be some truth in their worldview, but it's not one I'd rank very high on my scale of how well it reflects reality.

[SailorMom]

My worldview is:

 

Follow the Golden Rule

 

It is amazingly fitting to any circumstance, and can be applied to all aspects of life with no confusion. I do not condemn any worldview as a whole, but I will absolutely condemn any aspect of a worldview that does not fit my very simple, basic one...

[Jean in Newcastle]

Perhaps it might help if I explain that my world view includes the belief that there is a Reality (with a capital R) that is synonymous with Truth. All worldviews are valid in the sense that they are views that people have of the view and that people have the right to think what they want, but some match up closer to that Reality than others. I base my belief in Reality and Truth on the Bible which I believe is God's message of his Reality to man. I measure my own reality against that message. Obviously if the Bible is not Reality, then by my own belief system, I'm screwed. (I'm not going to get into the whole interpretation of the Bible debate because I don't want to, so there.)

[ScoutTN]

I believe that there is exactly one correct worldview - that of God's. I do not think that any one person or group of people can completely and perfectly line up with that correct worldview, though I think we can with God's help be transformed into His way of thinking.

 

Well said, Jean. :iagree:

 

Also I marked the "impossible to prove" selection because worldview is a faith commitment. All worldviews involve belief. A worldview is not merely an intellectual framework or a select set of "facts" to be epoused. It is a commitment of oneself to a theology, a "meta-narrative" and to its implications. Worldview is not essentially about information.

 

As a Christian of the reformed variety, I think that only God can enable one to believe the gospel and so no one can be convinced or argued into belief. It cannot be proven because it is supra-rational and goes far beyond "just the facts". A hardened heart cannot, will not, believe, no matter how well anything is "proven".

[PinkInTheBlue]

Other. I would say that most likely none are completely correct, but all aren't equally wrong. Some worldviews are more valid than others, but all likely contain some truth and some error.

 

:iagree: This is a perfect description of my opinion. Thank you for saying it much better than I could think of. :)

[Ria]

I got dizzy just reading all the options in the poll. :tongue_smilie:

[Mrs Mungo]

I voted for seemingly conflicting answers. I believe that I'm correct, but I believe people have a right to believe what they want, and many of them believe just as passionately that I am wrong and they are correct. My belief is not more *morally* valid.

[Just Robyn]

I voted that there is exactly one correct worldview and no one's world view is correct. There must be some combination of correct beliefs, but no one has it exactly right; it is probably very complicated and detailed and more than one person can figure out in a lifetime.

 

I also voted that it is impossible to prove or disprove a worldview.

[Jenny in Florida]

My feeling is that all "worldviews" probably get some things right and miss the mark on others.

 

I also think it's impossible to "prove" anything about right and wrong with regards to this question and that I object to the framing of the question as "correct" vs. "incorrect."

 

I think there are far too many subtleties for this to be boiled down into those terms.

[Parrothead]

I got dizzy just reading all the options in the poll. :tongue_smilie:

Me too. I think I picked the correct answers from my POV. I did not limit my choices to a religious POV.

[LidiyaDawn]

I think maybe everyone is right..all the religions, all the secular views, all the different ways of looking at the world, all the expectations for the future/beyond/after death… they're all true for the people on those paths - as long as people are on the path they were meant to be on, that is. You can wander along someone else's path, but sooner or later you'll realize it isn't yours… it doesn't feel right, it doesn't make sense, it just isn't real for you.

 

I'm really not explaining myself very well. These are thoughts that are very difficult to put into words…

[Rosie_0801]

While I have no problem with you having this worldview (even if I disagree with it), there is a logical problem with you accepting my worldview as being correct along with everyone else's.

 

No there isn't. There is a logical problem if I claim that both of us hold the entirety of the truth of reality. Each of those blind guys was entirely correct about the bit of the elephant they were groping, yes?

 

All worldviews are equally valid. (IOW, a person's worldview is their reality.) No one's worldview is correct. (Or it is impossible for any person to know enough.)

 

 

All world views are not equally valid, because some are just plain destructive. But yes, a person's worldview is their reality.

 

Everyone's worldview is a part of the reality of what is believed and acted on, but no one's beliefs can encompass everything that is believed and acted on. Therefore no one can be 100% correct. Each of holds only a fraction of the correctness potential.

 

That is the clumsiest sentence I've written in a long time. A pox on philosophy!

 

But anyway, I could care less how much of the correctness potential we have because The Ultimate Truth isn't terribly important to me, seeing how I don't believe in a god. To me, the purpose of religion is to comfort us and inspire us to do and be better. To me, if your religion or lack thereof is doing that for you, you're in the right place. If your religion has you feeling like a square peg being jammed into a round hole, I'll be quietly hoping you toss it and go elsewhere. Talking about proving and disproving feels to me like we're asking the wrong questions. But I don't dispute anyone's right to think think they are jolly fun questions. :p

 

Obviously if the Bible is not Reality, then by my own belief system, I'm screwed. (I'm not going to get into the whole interpretation of the Bible debate because I don't want to, so there.)

 

Well by mine you wouldn't be. Does that help? :lol:

 

Rosie

[DawnM]

I know worldview encompasses believe systems (ie: religion), but it is more than that. It also deals with sociological aspects, including culture. I think as a whole, we Americans tend to be very ethnocentric. We are right, everyone else is wrong. It becomes dangerous when we mix that with Christianity, but that is the way I see things a lot of times.....culture touted as "God's way" when really it is just American or Western ideology.

 

At first I thought, "Well, all cultures and sociological structures have validity, so sure, I believe all are right in their own rite" if that makes sense.

 

But then I started thinking of genocide (Hitler, Rwanda, Sudan, etc....) and realized that no, I do not believe that at all.

 

However, if we are talking about cultural differences as a whole, then yes, there is validity to those cultural differences that are different than mine.

 

Dawn

[thescrappyhomeschooler]

We can't possibly know enough to know which worldviews are correct, if any are.

 

:iagree:

 

I'm really surprised, too, by the number of people who think there is only one correct world view. That number has just changed my world view! :D

[kalanamak]

It depends on the definition of correct.

 

ETA: I much prefer "basic beliefs". I have come to loathe the term worldview. It gets twisted about and aggrandizes things, to me.

Edited September 24, 2011 by kalanamak

[PIE!]

I have nothing of substance to add - only that every time I glance through the threads I accidently read this as, "What do you believe about werewolves." I was wondering why someone would want to know...

 

sorry - you can all get back on topic now.

[SonshineLearner]

I believe that there is exactly one correct worldview - that of God's. I do not think that any one person or group of people can completely and perfectly line up with that correct worldview, though I think we can with God's help be transformed into His way of thinking.

:iagree:

[twoforjoy]

I have nothing of substance to add - only that every time I glance through the threads I accidently read this as, "What do you believe about werewolves." I was wondering why someone would want to know...

 

sorry - you can all get back on topic now.

 

That's how I read it at first, too! I was wondering if werewolves were a topic up for debate now. ;)

[Jean in Newcastle]

That's how I read it at first, too! I was wondering if werewolves were a topic up for debate now. ;)

 

I'm not for werewolves. I don't care if they are correct or not.

[Audrey]

Other. "Worldview" is a marginalizing code used by a specific subset of Christians.

[LibraryLover]

I haven't checked out the poll yet, but your question immediately brought Joseph Campbell to my mind.

[leeannpal]

I think everyone has a worldview shaped by many,many things. Each worldview is slightly different based on past experiences, people we know, education, etc. I really don't see the need to compare worldviews.

[twoforjoy]

Other. "Worldview" is a marginalizing code used by a specific subset of Christians.

 

I think it can be used that way, but I don't think it has to be. I wasn't aware of "worldview" used in that way until I started homeschooling, but it's a term I was familiar with from reading theory in college (although not used in exactly the same way).

[RegGuheert]

Other. "Worldview" is a marginalizing code used by a specific subset of Christians.

Actually, I think the word is used because some atheists and others object to their belief system being referred to as a religion.

[WishboneDawn]

I think I'm right and you're all wrong.

 

ETA: :D (smiley was essential with that kind of comment)

Edited September 24, 2011 by WishboneDawn

[nmoira]

Actually, I think the word is used because some atheists and others object to their belief system being referred to as a religion.

If that is the case, then "worldview" is no better. Atheism is nothing more than disbelief in a god or gods. Atheism may be a characteristic of a particular "worldview," if you insist on using the term, but it is not one in and of itself.

[RegGuheert]

If that is the case, then "worldview" is no better. Atheism is nothing more than disbelief in a god or gods. Atheism may be a characteristic of a particular "worldview," if you insist on using the term, but it is not one in and of itself.

I didn't say it was.

[Ipsey]

Other. "Worldview" is a marginalizing code used by a specific subset of Christians.

 

This is certainly the way I learned it. There are entire Worldview Training Courses and camps and organizations among the Evangelical system I was a part of. I never knew it was a broader term. By the time I learned it, it was basically co-opted entirely to mean "Christianity is the Truth, the One Worldview, everything else is a confused worldview".

 

I've been amazed to learn its broader, and original meaning. For the most part, I can't disassociate it with Christian Evangelism.

 

Whenever I hear it, I assume I'm speaking with a Christian. I've yet to be wrong.

[Rosie_0801]

Whenever I hear it, I assume I'm speaking with a Christian. I've yet to be wrong.

 

You don't spend enough time with Australian anthropology students. :tongue_smilie:

 

Rosie

[iamrachelle]

I believe that there is exactly one correct worldview - that of God's. QUOTE]

:iagree:

[Jean in Newcastle]

You don't spend enough time with Australian anthropology students. :tongue_smilie:

 

Rosie

 

Or with American anthropology students. I heard the word in my graduate level anthropology class long before I ever heard it in Christian circles.

[Audrey]

I believe that there is exactly one correct worldview - that of God's. I do not think that any one person or group of people can completely and perfectly line up with that correct worldview, though I think we can with God's help be transformed into His way of thinking.

 

This is exactly what I mean when I say that the term "worldview" is a "marginalizing code word."

 

This is certainly the way I learned it. There are entire Worldview Training Courses and camps and organizations among the Evangelical system I was a part of. I never knew it was a broader term. By the time I learned it, it was basically co-opted entirely to mean "Christianity is the Truth, the One Worldview, everything else is a confused worldview".

 

I've been amazed to learn its broader, and original meaning. For the most part, I can't disassociate it with Christian Evangelism.

 

Whenever I hear it, I assume I'm speaking with a Christian. I've yet to be wrong.

 

I have had the same experience.

 

Or with American anthropology students. I heard the word in my graduate level anthropology class long before I ever heard it in Christian circles.

 

But you use it in the same manner of the marginalizing coded phraseology of which I was speaking. From whence the word originates is irrelevant. It is the dominant use of the word that affects the interpretation of the word.

[Meriwether]

I believe that there is exactly one correct worldview - that of God's. I do not think that any one person or group of people can completely and perfectly line up with that correct worldview, though I think we can with God's help be transformed into His way of thinking.

 

 

That is exactly what I was thinking. I don't think anyone gets it all right. I do think some worldviews are closer to right than others.

[Jean in Newcastle]

Perhaps it might help if I explain that my world view includes the belief that there is a Reality (with a capital R) that is synonymous with Truth. All worldviews are valid in the sense that they are views that people have of the view and that people have the right to think what they want, but some match up closer to that Reality than others. I base my belief in Reality and Truth on the Bible which I believe is God's message of his Reality to man. I measure my own reality against that message. Obviously if the Bible is not Reality, then by my own belief system, I'm screwed. (I'm not going to get into the whole interpretation of the Bible debate because I don't want to, so there.)

 

This is exactly what I mean when I say that the term "worldview" is a "marginalizing code word."

 

 

 

But you use it in the same manner of the marginalizing coded phraseology of which I was speaking. From whence the word originates is irrelevant. It is the dominant use of the word that affects the interpretation of the word.

 

If you had also quoted my later post (quoted first here), you would see that I was only stating my own belief of what is Truth while saying that all worldviews are valid. You might not agree with my belief, thus saying that you believe that at least one worldview is incorrect (mine) but I don't think it is fair to say that mine is marginalizing other people's worldviews by saying that they are wrong when you are in essence marginalizing my worldview by saying that I'm wrong (at least by your definition).

 

ETA: I don't think that disagreement is synonymous with marginalization.

Edited September 25, 2011 by Jean in Newcastle

[JenniferB]

I couldn't figure out how to answer anything but "Other." Based on the definition of the word, correct and incorrect seem irrelevant.

[Runningmom80]

I got dizzy just reading all the options in the poll. :tongue_smilie:

 

:auto: me too.

[Dustybug]

I believe that there is exactly one correct worldview - that of God's. I do not think that any one person or group of people can completely and perfectly line up with that correct worldview, though I think we can with God's help be transformed into His way of thinking.

 

 

:iagree:

[Garga]

...it refers to the framework of ideas and beliefs through which an individual interprets the world and interacts with it....

 

 

If worldview means the above...your ideas and beliefs, then I guess the question isn't "What do you believe about worldviews?" It's really, "What do you believe about everyone else's ideas and beliefs?" Then you can go to the poll and click on which you believe about everyone else's ideas and beliefs.

 

(My head is spinning now, too.)

 

With that in mind, you'd have to base your opinion on whether or not there is a single truth, multiple truths, or no truth. And then you can judge whether everyone's ideas and beliefs uphold that truth/s/no truth. Then the answer to the poll is clear! (har har.)

[Ipsey]

You don't spend enough time with Australian anthropology students. :tongue_smilie:

 

Rosie

 

This is a fact! :)

[Audrey]

If you had also quoted my later post (quoted first here), you would see that I was only stating my own belief of what is Truth while saying that all worldviews are valid. You might not agree with my belief, thus saying that you believe that at least one worldview is incorrect (mine) but I don't think it is fair to say that mine is marginalizing other people's worldviews by saying that they are wrong when you are in essence marginalizing my worldview by saying that I'm wrong (at least by your definition).

 

ETA: I don't think that disagreement is synonymous with marginalization.

 

 

No. Disagrement isn't the same as marginalization, but you didn't say you disagreed. You make contradictory statements by saying that you believe your worldview is the One Truth, and yet also seeming to say that you think all worldviews are valid. There is a logical flaw in the 2 statements taken together.

 

FWIW, I don't necessarily think your worldview, or anyone's worldview, is wrong. All have an equal chance of being valid or invalid. I do not pretend to know which is valid or invalid, though. Saying that one is the Truth, however, is marginalizing all the other possibilities.