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| Antonio Ciseri's depiction of Pontius Pilate presenting a scourged Christ to the people Ecce homo! (Behold the man!). (Photo credit: Wikipedia) |
A fool takes no pleasure in understanding,
but only in expressing personal opinion.
Proverbs 18:2
New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)
How often does conflict stem from differences of opinion? My initial reaction would be "Always". That of course is my opinion and certainly open for discussion. As I see it whether it be a matter of boundaries, theologies, or perceptions of the world around us, we all can have varying opinions about what we see as the truth and those matters of view can be and often should be discussed and debated in a civilized manner of offering evidence and argument.
How often does conflict stem from differences of opinion? My initial reaction would be "Always". That of course is my opinion and certainly open for discussion. As I see it whether it be a matter of boundaries, theologies, or perceptions of the world around us, we all can have varying opinions about what we see as the truth and those matters of view can be and often should be discussed and debated in a civilized manner of offering evidence and argument.
Often we think of argument as heated disagreement which leads to conflict and fighting, but this does not have to be the case when intelligent discussion and reasoning is involved. Unfortunately when obstinance and resistance to listening to reason and coming to points of agreement takes hold then conflict enters the picture and that conflict can lead to serious consequences. Wars have been started over differences of opinion.
We should always seek the truth in any disagreement. Sometimes that truth might lie somewhere between two disagreeing parties and successful resolution can bring them to a happy meeting point. At other times both sides might cling tenaciously to what they see as the truth. This is the point when the decision has to be made whether the disagreement is worth the conflict.
The next time you have a sense that conflict is rearing its ugly head, stop and take into consideration who the disagreeing parties are, why are they disagreeing, and what is the gain of being right and how much is lost in admitting wrong. Truth is not always what we want to hear, but it is what we should want to hear.
If we cling to foolish ideas because it's a matter of us being right, then if we are shown to be wrong we will look all the more foolish in the eyes of others. Truth can result in condemnation as well as salvation. It's better to stand alone for truth than to accept the foolish opinions of the many. And if you're stubbornly hanging on to unfounded opinion then isn't it time to start thinking about what is true?
“What is truth?” retorted Pilate. With this he went out again to the Jews gathered there and said, “I find no basis for a charge against him.
John 18:38
“What is truth?” retorted Pilate. With this he went out again to the Jews gathered there and said, “I find no basis for a charge against him.
John 18:38
New International Version (NIV)
The problem these days is that there are more people who have differences in "platform" than opinion. They argue their party's platform until they run out of planks they understand/can parrot, then start in with insults such as accusing the other party of being closed minded. An honest difference of opinion isn't a bad thing... Being a mindless shill to the platform wastes 90% of internet time.
ReplyDeleteI have recently changed my mind on two big issues in my life. After I learned all the real facts, not "anecdotal" comments. And, Arlee, I felt good. I am copying the Proverbs quote, it says so much in a few words.
ReplyDelete