Peer-Reviewed Research

This article on peer-reviewed research methods caught my eye. This quote from the article sums up the subjectivity of the claim to validity based on a "peer-reviewed" status:

Couldn't a group of individuals committed to promoting their own research -- which may or may not be well-founded -- get together to form their own "journal," which they could legitimately claim publishes "peer-reviewed research"?

They can, and they do.

Chesterton

I love this quote:

But the new rebel is a skeptic, and will not entirely trust anything. He has no loyalty; therefore he can never be really a revolutionist. And the fact that he doubts everything really gets in his way when he wants to denounce anything. For all denunciation implies a moral doctrine of some kind; and the modern revolutionist doubts not only the institution he denounces, but the doctrine by which he denounces it. Thus he writes one book complaining that imperial oppression insults the purity of women, and then he writes another book in which he insults it himself. He curses the Sultan because Christian girls lose their virginity, and then curses Mrs. Grundy because they keep it. As a politician, he will cry out that war is a waste of life, and then, as a philosopher, that all life is waste of time. A Russian pessimist will denounce a policeman for killing a peasant, and then prove by the highest philosophical principles that the peasant ought to have killed himself. A man denounces marriage as a lie, and then denounces aristocratic profligates for treating it as a lie. He calls a flag a bauble, and then blames the oppressors of Poland or Ireland because they take away that bauble. The man of this school goes first to a political meeting, where he complains that savages are treated as if they were beasts; then he takes his hat and umbrella and goes on to a scientific meeting, where he proves that they practically are beasts. In short, the modern revolutionist, being an infinite skeptic, is always engaged in undermining his own mines. In his book on politics he attacks men for trampling on morality; in his book on ethics he attacks morality for trampling on men. Therefore the modern man in revolt has become practically useless for all purposes of revolt. By rebelling against everything he has lost his right to rebel against anything. (from G.K. Chesterton, Orthodoxy)

Credit Bail Out

I agree with writer of this article. I will go further and say that it is not the job of the government to save people when they make poor decisions. Actions have consequences. Sometimes those consequences are not pleasant. But that is part of life. This attitude that the government will/should take care of me is simply wrong. You are responsible for your own life. Be responsible!

Discernment

Discerning what is true can be very difficult at times. I have so many "voices" that speak when I think about my wants, needs, or desires. There are many sources of these "voices": fear, pride, masks, false selves, lies, wounds, selfishness, and the "real self". How does one discern which voice is "real"? How do I cut through all the lies, masks, falsehood, and sin and discover the "truth"? I do not mean that I am searching for some truth that applies to everyone, but finding what is really true about what I want or need. This is not an easy thing.

I am not an expert on this and in fact struggle greatly with finding my real wants and needs. I tend to overanalyze everything and in doing so, the "voices" are all clamoring to be heard and acted upon. I want to think about some practical ways that I can go about filtering through these voices to find the real me.

Pray

Ask for the Holy Spirit to guide me in discerning what is true and what is false. Ask for wisdom and strength as I dig through and sift through the voices to find what is true.

Identify what is false

What do I know is false? What have I in the past identified as false? Statements that are or have been identified as false can be discarded. In order to do so, it is helpful to create rational responses that can quickly address the falsehood. For example, there is a statement that frequently speaks that says, "You don't like to travel." My response is: "I don't like certain aspects about travel, but it does not mean I don't like the entire thing."

Talk to others

There is nothing like talking to someone else to get their point of view. So many times I find I am blind and can't see from a different angle and an outside point of view is so helpful for me to discover what I am searching for. This person is one that I trust completely and is familiar with my situation or struggle.

Write it down

Sometimes there are so many different voices that it is helpful to write it all out. I have been shocked to actually see in writing what my mind was thinking. Many times the lies and falsehood are very evident when they are seen (when brought to sunlight).

Carefully ask questions

I have learned through therapy that when trying to identify what I want or need, I ask the voices questions and keep asking to discover their source. Is the voice speaking from who I am or is it a mask? Is it what I really want, or is it only a wounded cry? In my travel example, I might ask: "Why do you make the statement you do not like travel?", "What aspects of travel do you like, if any?", "What travel experiences have been positive for you?", "Do you really dislike travel, or is there something else here -- a mask or false self that is presenting itself?", "When did your travel 'preference' change?"

Act

This is my least favorite. How can I act until I am sure? I am discovering that sometimes, I have to act on what I know now, so that I can have the new perspective on the other side of the action. I've struggled greatly with decisions before, some especially very recent, and it hasn't been until I've been on the other side that I was able to see what I could not see.

Light and Darkness

I have a quote by C.S. Lewis on my wall at home that says:

I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen: not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else.

John writes in 1:4 that "In Christ was life and the life was the light of men." The picture I would like for you to imagine is that of a man (or woman) walking around without any light. How is this person going to know where he or she is going? How can they give directions to other people who exist in the darkness too? How is this person going to understand what certain objects look like if they have never seen before? This is the state of an individual before Christ enters his or her life.

"The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness does not understand it." (John 1:5) I forget the following all the time: How can a non-Christian person be expected to live like a Christian? How can someone who exists in darkness be expected to see anything? I can point out all day long what I see, but without the light of Christ in the other person's life, they simply won't be able to see it.

Now, this on the surface seems very arrogant, but please understand this next point. Your world view will determine not only what you see but how you see it. Let's go back to our darkness example and pretend there is a lion in the room. Our person finds this lion and thinks it is a soft, warm animal. But if the light is turned on, the person might find the lion preparing for dinner! What was thought to be safe and good is now perceived to be dangerous! This is true for any world view, be it Christianity, humanism, evolution, etc. And don't misunderstand: Christianity is not just a religion. A relationship with Jesus Christ will change everything!

I do believe that the analogy Lewis suggests above is exactly correct and I have found that to be so in my life. There have been many things that before coming to Christ didn't make a whole lot of sense, but now that I am in a relationship with Him, I can see what I missed before. Until given sight, I wasn't able to see. Not that life with Christ makes everything clear -- there are still a great many things I don't understand, nor do I think I will understand. What I have found is that sometimes understanding is not what is important, but simply loving. I suspect many husbands would tell you they have found this to be true with their wives -- they don't understand them, but it doesn't matter, they love them. I think Lewis talks about this in Mere Christianity.

A person living in darkness may have decided to wear armor because of the bumps, scrapes, and pain that has been experienced without light. And this person may think someone crazy who comes up and says the armor isn't needed! Of course it's crazy -- if you can't see anything. But when light fills your world, when you are given sight, what a difference it makes!

Thus, and this is more for me than anyone else, I need to remember what darkness was like. I need to remember my former state and consider the impossibility of expecting a blind person to see. Unless Christ turns the light on in their heart, they won't. Screaming at them (figuratively or literally), trying to stop them, trying to explain things to them simply won't work. It is Christ, the light of men, who gives life and makes a blind man see.

Enchanted

I saw the movie Enchanted twice this weekend. Yes, it was that good! Fantastic movie! I highly recommend going to see it. I think it will be up for several nominations, including film score, screenplay, and perhaps actress.

One thing that I noticed was how innocent fairy tales are. It made me wonder what exactly the fairy tale women do on the night of their marriage to Prince Charming. I mean, the entire romantic ideal is leading up to this perfect kiss and dance. And let me tell you, there's a whole lot more than that going to happen on the wedding night! The thought made me laugh. Can you imagine how shocked Cinderella and Snow White were? Happily ever after might just be preceded by "You want me to WHAT?!"