Can you control what you believe?

[AFallingStar]

Can you control what you believe or do you think the very core of your beliefs are determined by outside/other factors?

 

[elman]

Can you control what you believe or do you think the very core of your beliefs are determined by outside/other factors?

We can control what we believe. We can control if we will be loving or unloving.

 

[Spinrad]

Absolutely not. I can control what I learn, but hwo that effects my beliefs are, obviously, beyond my control.

 

[DailyBlessings]

Insofar as beliefs are determined in part by our chosen actions, yes.

 

[TeddyKGB]

I do not believe that we ultimately "choose" anything. Libertarian free will is a non-starter.

 

[Lynden1000]

Can you control what you believe or do you think the very core of your beliefs are determined by outside/other factors?

I'm not convinced that we can choose what to believe. Can I choose to like mayonnaise? I'd certainly prefer to, because it would make it so much easier at parties to find something to eat, when the only thing available is mayonnaise-laden finger sandwiches. But, sadly, I can't seem to find it appealing even if I want to.

I'm sure lots of women in abusive relationships would LOVE to be able to freely choose to just not be attracted to someone; but alas, it doesn't seem to work that way.

I can't "choose" to find something believable if I don't find it believable, any more than I could choose to find mayonnaise delicious or my husband unattractive.

 

[Moros]

Yes. Basing your beliefs solely on your emotions, or how you "feel" about an issue is not a sign of intellectual maturity since there is no rationalization.

 

[Spinrad]

To anyone who has chosen a belief: I doubt it, but let's hear the details. I never have, and don't see how I possibly could. Educate me.

 

[elman]

I'm not convinced that we can choose what to believe. Can I choose to like mayonnaise? I'd certainly prefer to, because it would make it so much easier at parties to find something to eat, when the only thing available is mayonnaise-laden finger sandwiches. But, sadly, I can't seem to find it appealing even if I want to.

I'm sure lots of women in abusive relationships would LOVE to be able to freely choose to just not be attracted to someone; but alas, it doesn't seem to work that way.

I can't "choose" to find something believable if I don't find it believable, any more than I could choose to find mayonnaise delicious or my husband unattractive.

A woman can chose to leave. Liking mayonnaise or liver is not the same as acting in a loving way to someone. We can chose to be loving and we can chose to be unloving.

 

[TeddyKGB]

A woman can chose to leave.

Randomly? Or does she finally get the "nerve" or "confidence," whatever those may mean?

Liking mayonnaise or liver is not the same as acting in a loving way to someone. We can chose to be loving and we can chose to be unloving.

Arbitrarily? Or do we act lovingly because we love?

 

[FreezBee]

Can you control what you believe or do you think the very core of your beliefs are determined by outside/other factors?

What is it exactly you're asking about?

Why would I want to control what I believe? You only want to control that which you do not believe.


cheers

- FreezBee

 

[Lynden1000]

A woman can chose to leave. Liking mayonnaise or liver is not the same as acting in a loving way to someone. We can chose to be loving and we can chose to be unloving.

Yes, but that's not what I'm saying. Sure, you can choose the behavior, but can you choose the underlying feeling or belief? Sure I can choose to not eat mayonnaise but can I freely choose to find it tasty if it's more convenient to do so? A woman can choose to leave an abusive husband, but can she choose to stop feeling in love with him?

I think it's the same with religious belief. I don't think I could say to myself "hmmm..religion X tells me bad things will happen to me if I don't believe its central tenets, and I don't want bad things to happen so I'm going to choose to start believing they're true."

 

[Verv]

Can you control what you believe or do you think the very core of your beliefs are determined by outside/other factors?

I think that your views are molded partially by your surroundings and the events that affect you, but overall the fact remains that we can think independently and weight reason. Sometimes, though, we are influenced deeply by events that happened to us. One would be more inclined to be left wing if they lived a life that they felt was without opportunity due to a capitalist system, and others would be more inclined to be right wing if perhaps they lived a very good, middle class life.

Certain factors influence them, but when it comes to the most abstract and philosophical concepts about God and about life, then people must rely on themselves to come to the conclusions. There are no answers there written on the walls for us.

 

[Patzak]

Can you control what you believe or do you think the very core of your beliefs are determined by outside/other factors?

I don't think we can. We can choose to expose ourselves to particular beliefs (and I guess that makes it a little more likely that we start believing the same), but not the beliefs themselves. These are determined by our upbringing, by the society we live in, by the general course of our lives, by significant things that happen to us, etc., not by conscious decisions.

 

[TrueQ]

I say yes, if you genuinely want to believe something that you don't, then you can. Sometimes you'll have to disregard the truth a little bit, but that seems to be standard practice among fanatics on all sides of the fence. If you really think about something, you often can't help but come to a conclusion, its all a matter of carefully guiding and controlling the conclusions you make. Its true that your beliefs are molded by your upbringing and the things that happen in life. However, its not like you don't have at least a little control over those things, when you were little, how often did you disobey your parents, how often have you gone out of your way to strike up a conversation with an interesting-looking person.

Of course, doing this takes a good bit of objectivity, you have to believe that things you don't believe in can still have an effect on your life. This is a problem some people don't get over. Fortunately, your subconscious is always worrying itself sick over the things you don't consciously believe in, so you ought to get some help from that.

 

[jamesMarion]

The very core of my beliefs are not determined by outside factors. I control what I believe. It is as simple as making any choice. Do I use a black ink pen or a blue ink pen. The very core of my beliefs have eternal consequences. At age 9 I realized I wanted more info about my creator than the Catholics were providing. I got the gospel.
You see, hear, or read info and you accept or reject. I possess explicit free will. I was not predestined to believe. I understand the difference between genuine and enforced humility.

 

[Chrono Traveler]

the decisions you make every day will most likely effect some of your beliefs. So I say yes, in a way we do choose.

 

[TeddyKGB]

The very core of my beliefs are not determined by outside factors. I control what I believe. It is as simple as making any choice. Do I use a black ink pen or a blue ink pen. The very core of my beliefs have eternal consequences. At age 9 I realized I wanted more info about my creator than the Catholics were providing. I got the gospel.
You see, hear, or read info and you accept or reject. I possess explicit free will. I was not predestined to believe. I understand the difference between genuine and enforced humility.

Do you make any of these choices randomly, or is there some reasoning occurring?

 

[rstrats]

jamesMarion,

re: " I control what I believe...You see, hear, or read info and you accept or reject."

Are you saying that you can consciously CHOOSE to believe that someone or something does or doesn’t exist or that a certain proposition is or isn’t true?

 

[jamesMarion]

Hello
My choices are made after conscious thought. The more I know the more accurate the choice. I can choose to accept whether something is true or not to me. I believe their is always an ultimate truth that is either accepted or rejected.