What Will You put Your Faith In?

Lately I have been thinking about truth.  Mostly because I am finding that in this world I am surrounded by partial truths, and flat out lies.  The problem is that we are taught to buy into these partial truths and lies or else be labeled ignorant.  If you doubt me, then go to any major university and tell the science professor that you do not believe that the earth and all that is in it evolved, but was rather created.  I can almost guarantee you that you will not leave feeling smart.

Yet evolution is a theory.  It has never been proved.  Some might argue with that, but it is true.  It is simply a theory.  Science is full of theories that are accepted as truth.  Since my background is in medicine, I can give you two examples right off the top of my head.

1.  High cholesterol causes heart disease.
2.  Vaccines are safe and effective. 

Point #1 is a theory.  It has never been proven.  This past weekend, I had a long and very interesting discussion with one of my favorite doctors.  I asked him many questions including whether or not he believes in the statin drugs, and what he thinks is the cause of heart disease.  He admitted that there is no proven connection between cholesterol and heart disease, but rather it is based on an assumption due to the results of a study done by drug companies on the outcomes and recurrence rate of heart attacks in patients.  He admitted that you cannot prove that the body magically takes cholesterol and turns it into fat plaques in the arteries.   Yet, if your doctor puts you an a low cholesterol diet and you question the wisdom in that, you are labeled as non-complaint at best, and idiot at the worst.

Point #2 is a theory.  There has never been a double blind placebo-controlled study of vaccines.  Therefore, the safety and effectiveness cannot be stated as fact.  I challenge anyone to provide solid scientific evidence that proves the reduction of disease in any part of the world that was contributed to inoculations.  There simply is no proof.  ( I am talking about documented scientific proof, not speculation)  Yet if you refuse to have your child vaccinated chances are your pediatrician will spend a considerable amount of time trying to convince you otherwise.  Depending on the type of person they are, they might try to scare you, bully you, or ridicule you into doing what they want you to do.  If, by chance, your child gets whooping cough, they might try to go after you for negligence.  Who knows?  What they won't tell you is that 85% of the other kids that suffered the same outbreak were fully vaccinated.

So science becomes a religion of sorts.

I agree with Paul Feyerabend when he called all science theoretical and stated that scientists defend their beliefs just like an ancient tribe defending their gods.  

Then there is politics.   If you are a Democrat, you are labeled as a tree-hugging ATM machine for the chronically unmotivated.  If you are a Republican you are labeled as wealthy, uncaring, corrupt person.  If you are a Tea Party member, you are full of hate and are somehow responsible for the Arizona shootings.  At that point, someone much wiser and more caring than you must step in and censor what you say.  Someone might take it the wrong way and use it for more evil.  Right?  Isn't that what we have big brother for?

I have a theory.  My theory is that there is very little truth in any of these things. My theory is that is is dangerous to let any one mindset rule.  My theory is that it is dangerous to restrict speech.....even speech that we do not agree with.  Why?  Because no side of the political fence corners the market on truth.  Just because people take unfortunate incidents and blame them on their opposition (as is happening in the news media with the Arizona shootings and Sarah Palin) doesn't make the allegations true.

I know what I believe to be truth.  I believe it because it changed my life.  I believe it because it has never been wrong.  I believe it because, unlike Nostradamas and this preacher that says the world will end in May......It has never been wrong.  I believe in God's Word.  I can't prove God to you in a laboratory much like you cannot disprove Him to me.  But my belief in a creator says nothing derogatory about my intelligence.

God's Word says that we are fallen.  The Bible was wise to say:  "And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration in the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God."  2 Corinthians 2:4-5

Therefore, I will not put my faith in man's ideologies.  I put my faith in God.  After all, whether we believe it or not, we all put our faith in something.  After looking around for perfection down here......I know we fall short.