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Pt. II Originally published in the PABIA News, December 15, 2003

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How do we choose between our current beliefs, opinions or judgments and new evidence? How can we know with certainty that the new evidence is accurate? Truly, there are times when, as in the weather forecast example that I used in the Nov. 4, message, the evidence clearly proves which idea is accurate without much difficulty. When the new evidence is plainly accurate, our belief is incorrect, inaccurate, false or mistaken. However, we are oftentimes fighting unseen devils of conditioned thoughts and prejudices which are not easily unmasked and revealed.

How do we deal with this dilemma? I propose to help the readers of this message to ask the questions of themselves which can help unlock the answers which can enrich understanding of the solution.

The first question I have asked myself is this:

After establishing the fact that it is my mind, I can accept ownership of the thoughts, beliefs, ideas and judgments that I hold dear. When our mind is troubled by the challenge of our current belief or outlook on anything, we need to ask ourselves, "Which position or belief is accurate or correct, indeed, what is the truth of the matter?" This simple questioning stimulates our mind to search for the answer. When visible information undermines our opinion or belief, we need to ‘‘solve’’ the problem.

We face a very real threat to our personal sense of security by disharmony in our thinking. Therefore, our mind must deal with the threat to satisfy our own need for peace in thought. That is an objective reality. It requires objective thinking in real terms. We must be careful to not fall into the trap of subjective thinking. It can kill any chance we might have for true resolution.

I believe it is unfortunate that our society has become entrenched in subjective reasoning. Truth has been reduced to a point where people believe that they hold the key to it. In the popular opinion, truth has become subjective, as if by believing something makes it true. The mantra seems to be, If it is true for me, it is true. Our prisons, hospitals and cemeteries are full of people who have flung themselves down this path of reasoning.

Standing at the intersection of two streets waiting to cross, I must wait to cross until traffic stops flowing. Every sane person alive knows this. I can choose to believe differently. I can even be taught to believe differently. For me, in my mind, the truth might be that no harm would or could come to me if I step in front of moving traffic. Nevertheless, the moment that I step in front of the very real moving machines that weigh thousands of pounds, I cannot change the laws of nature, they still apply. The vehicles have an objective amount of stopping distance. They are also composed of tangible mass which will not simply dissolve upon impact with my body. I am human. My body is destructible. In the end, no amount of belief contrary to the objective reality will keep me from being hit and undoubtedly crushed by the automobiles if I choose to step in front of them. Unfortunately for the person who subjectively believes that the moving machines would have no effect upon them, the moment of objective impact would be one of cognitive dissonance from which they might not recover. It could be a fatal belief or opinion.

We are continually facing objective reality in our lives. Evidence that gives us grounds for believing the existence or presence of something contrary to our accepted position can be subjectively or objectively refuted or substantiated. However, as in the example of the moving vehicular traffic, objective truth cannot be refuted. We move from moment to moment choosing every step of the way. We have the power to analyze our choices, yet, the process is usually automatic. We just ‘‘do it.’’

That leads me to pose another question, "Who is in control of my mind?"

Is it my deliberate application of knowledge or is it conditioning?

Sometimes we are unwilling to see or believe that we are in error. Or we might consciously choose to continue in our erroneous path of beliefs, judgments and thoughts, even though we are aware of our error. Oftentimes, we cannot see that we will suffer consequences for our choices. If our mental acceptance of the truth of something gives it a form of ‘‘absoluteness’’ to us, how can we choose to change or alter our belief? If we are absolutely certain in the trustworthiness of an idea, thought or concept, how can we break the barrier created by our trust in it? Our opinion can stand in the way of accepting the new information.

Taking command of our mind and thoughts will put us in our rightful place as the ‘‘director’’ of our thought life.