puppets by design

Puppets by design
_____________________________________

I had a conversation with a friend
the other day on the ever popular
topic of religion, and during that
conversation I was inspired to write
this brief pondering which is intended
to examine the relevance of belief, faith,
and reasoning, while illustrating what I
consider to be the importance of "Knowing
The Alternatives."

As many of you know,
Indoctrination is the process of inculcating 
ideas, attitudes, cognitive strategies or a professional methodology (see doctrine).^[1] 
It is often distinguished from education by 
the fact that the indoctrinated person is expected 
not to question or critically examine the doctrine
 they have learned.
(source: wikipedia)
___

Many individuals of the religious 
variety are taught from a young age 
(before the age of consent.) to believe 
in the religious views popular in their own
specific culture/society, and their "teachers" 
are parents, or other figures of authority 
who already have the power of persuasion 
over them.

Due to this reality..many individuals 
who believe  are less likely to seek 
out the alternatives to their indoctrinated 
viewpoint when they get older for various 
reasons. The most popular being that they 
are taught NOT to question, and accept 
what they're told. (for many consider it a 
sin to question, and as a result are alienated 
from their respective flocks whenever they 
rebel against their tradition.)

This reality is a dangerous one (in my 
own view) because it makes ones religious 
belief a "forced reaction to conditioning",
and as such the individual in question does 
not choose their belief, but are reacting to 
modes of Operant Conditioning from their
Childhood.).

(puppets by design in other words.)
_

I do not openly condemn anyone for 
their belief, but I think that it's important 
to expand ones horizons when it comes 
to religious,philosophical, and political 
matters simply for the fact that (to quote 
Joubert) " one cannot fully understand the 
validity of his own arguments without
familiarizing himself with the opinions of 
others."

Those who believe only because they 
are indoctrinated often have a limited view 
of the world that is not their own, and the 
much embraced (little practiced) "freedom 
of choice" ceases to be a matter of freewill,
and becomes reflective of Dogmatic thinking.

This is why it is important for one to 
critically question and examine any and 
all arguments/beliefs that they can,
because the more knowledge they 
have will increase their ability to 
genuinely "choose" what to believe.

With effort, one can cease to be a 
victim to the various political and 
religious indoctrinators of this world,
(the puppet masters in other words.)
and be their own person, who CHOOSES
what to believe based on an "awareness
of alternatives."

j.s.h.