On (lack of) reasoning
Lately I've been noticing the ever-present trend of reasoning through concepts without giving much consideration to how one may be influenced by their own biases and presuppositions, coupled with a shallow investigation into the circumstances around whatever's being thought about. This is by no means new and it's extremely pervasive - it's just been highlighted in my mind as of late.
Take the following hypothetical:
- You perform a task.
- The person you're performing the task for mentions that you missed something in that task.
- You mention that you followed all the requirements of the task, as far as you're aware.
- The person dismisses your statement and completes the task their own way.
- You opine that you can't fathom what the other person's considering as being missed.
- The person retorts that, of course you cannot fathom you'd make a mistake, that's the definition of a narcissist.
- You look like the confused guy meme, because you never said you couldn't fathom making a mistake, rather that you couldn't fathom what the other person was seeing as a mistake.
This sort of failure to pay attention and think things through is a concerning lack of discernment and a potential danger area for lack of perception.
Here we have a perfectly reasonable interaction that devolves into chaos because one person is obviously looking through the lens of sin, thinking the worst of the other, instead of being charitable and considering that their reading may be incorrect. This could be from a variety of different factors, ranging from just having a bad day, to trauma, to actively murdering one another in the heart.
This sort of failure to consider context and examine the situation holistically, tends to present itself in the person's biblical interpretation and exegesis of scripture. The person can oft be found to make the same mistakes in interpreting scripture as they do in conversation.
I think the root cause most often boils down to pride. This is why proper humility is a key aspect of the Christian walk. If we think less of ourselves (e.g. deny ourselves), take up our cross, and follow Christ - then as we are progressively sanctified, we begin looking less through that lens of prideful sin and looking more through the humble lens of scripture.