Freightliner Epistemology

Previously, I outlined several “spheres of epistemology,” and I want to think with you about one of those in this editorial: tradition. Remember, epistemology feels like a complex term, but it really just refers to what we are standing on. That is, what are the things—such as culture, philosophy, and media—that shape our beliefs?

When talking about tradition as a sphere of epistemology I have in mind “the ideas and values embedded in our history.” Tradition shapes our intuitive perception of right and wrong, of good and evil. Our basic, gut-level response to a new idea is often determined by the ideas and values implanted in us by parents, teachers, and pastors. This is traditional epistemology at work. As a result of our upbringing, we intuitively respond in certain ways—often without even realizing what we’re doing. We have learned patterns of thinking and living which we instinctively follow.

These patterns have tremendous holding power. Unless given a good reason, we will usually believe what we were taught to believe and live the way we were taught to live. Tradition acts like the packed-out shipping containers in a freightliner. It adds tremendous inertia to keep us moving in the same direction. Freightliners don’t stop quickly nor turn around easily. So tradition keeps us as individuals—and especially as communities—moving in more or less the same direction.

This is incredibly valuable if our formative influences align with Scripture. If we were taught what is right and what is wrong we can thereby navigate complex moral or ethical issues by relying on that intuitive impulse we call “common sense.” If you grew up in a Christian home and were taught the Bible, many of your basic Christian convictions are set deep within your soul because they were implanted in your formative years. This is a worthy heritage.

But this can also be a problem. If our ship drifts off course, it won’t be corrected quickly. The momentum of traditional beliefs and values pushes us ahead in whatever direction we happen to be going. And the further off course we’ve gone, the more work it takes to turn back in the right direction. Tradition is valuable when it holds us on course; it is dangerous when it pushes us away from where we need to be going.

In doctrinal discussions, I will sometimes hear that “the traditional view is…” followed by a particular view. It may be that this individual has done adequate research to know the church’s historic view, but more often this phrase is used to support ideas he was taught growing up. He has never known anything else, and therefore his view is the “traditional” view. In reality, his view may not go back more than a couple generations, but he thinks it is the only reasonable view because it is ingrained into him. It was so fundamental in the world he grew up in that he assumes everyone has always believed it. When a person is convinced that an idea is true because it’s what he grew up believing, it is incredibly difficult to persuade him to believe otherwise.

Again, this is not necessarily a bad thing. It depends on the content of the thing. Biblical beliefs ingrained into a person are incredibly valuable as a support to vital piety and lifelong convictions. We need people who were so steeped in the Bible at a young age that they remain rooted and grounded in the truth their entire lives.

But against this, unbiblical views can blind someone to the truth. The Pharisees struggled more than anyone else to see who Jesus was because they had already made up their minds about the kind of Messiah they needed (and it wasn’t one like Jesus). A wrong understanding of the Bible can be even more of an obstacle to belief than no understanding at all.

In every sphere, we need to test our views against the Bible. It seems like this is hardest to do in the traditional sphere because it affects us most acutely at the subconscious level. The ideas and values embedded in us by our formative influences (parents, teachers, pastors, etc.) shape our fundamental reflexes in ways we often don’t realize. We need to continually expose ourselves to the blazing sun of God’s word to have our sins and failings revealed—and then removed by God’s grace.

And that’s a good thought to end on. Thankfully, this isn’t a work God expects us to go at on our own. His Word is living and active, and it pierces like a razor to the core of our being. His Spirit illuminates, convicts, and cleanses. His Son died to atone for our sins and resurrected to secure victory over all of sin’s effects in our lives—including the erroneous thoughts we don’t recognize in ourselves. God is at work to transform us by the renewing of our minds so we can think His thoughts after Him. He will help us overcome every sin that distorts our vision of Him.