Most people think they already have the truth. Most people, regardless of whether they've actually spent any time looking for it, think they know what the truth is already. People hold their beliefs as "the truth" in the same way they maintain their egocentric or ethnocentric views. "Japanese people talk funny." "French people eat weird food." "USA is the best country ever!" "My mom and dad listen to weird old music." We prefer the familiar to the foreign, and we have to train ourselves (or be trained) to overcome our tendencies to judge negatively everything that's not familiar to us.
We love our beliefs because they're our beliefs. Why would we "seek truth" when we already have truth? We are self-centered. I am no different. I am a United States citizen who has lived in Illinois for most of his life. I grew up in a midwestern Christian context. I became "born again" at age 13. I spent my high school years as a Christian, and went to a Christian college. Christianity is familiar to me. Even now, I know it would take some incredibly amazing kind of evidence to make me think that the truth is found in, say, Islam. It would take more evidence than what would be needed to convince me logically in order to convince me emotionally that Islam is correct. Why? Because Islam is so foreign to me. A burka is a far cry from the t-shirts and shorts I'm used to seeing on women. The doctrines and practices of Islam feel unusual to me. Of course, I'm mature enough to not judge someone because of cultural differences. This isn't about judging someone else's culture; it's about lacking that sense of familiarity, and thus never feeling the impetus to explore options that feel so alien to us.
One memory stands out to me whenever I think about this. A group of us were sitting around my apartment years ago. We were all Christians. Somehow the conversation turned to the eastern religions (Hinduism and Buddhism in particular), and given my education in world religions, I explained the basic tenets of the religions to the group. One friend - let's call her "Abbi" - said, "I could never believe in reincarnation." I asked her why. "Because it's so weird!" she replied.
Even then, as a Christian minister in his early 20s, I couldn't help but think: "So... You think this one guy - a guy who could walk on water, feed 5000 people with nothing but a kid's sack lunch, and change the chemical structure of H2O into that of wine - you think this guy was executed, then came back to life a couple days later, hung out with folks for a while and then floated away. [pause for dramatic effect] And you think reincarnation is weird?"
Abbi would never consider another religion; moreover, she would never, ever consider the possibility that none of the religions are correct. She's even less likely to consider the possibility that god just might not exist after all. Not only is such an idea foreign to her, it runs contrary to her deepest desires.
My friend Clayton admits: "Yes, we (Christians) believe weird things." Of course, Clayton is a much more culturally-minded Christian than Abbi. Clayton would then point out that "weird" doesn't necessarily mean "untrue." I agree. Science is full of discoveries that some people might consider "weird." What makes something true or false is not the subjective label of "weird" or the equally subjective feeling of "familiar." Truth isn't based on what we feel, or where we grew up, or what we're find familiar. Truth isn't based on our desires or personal preferences. Truth sure as hell isn't based on what we were taught to believe all our lives. Critical thinking requires that we get over ourselves. Seeking truth mandates that we overcome our prejudices and biases, and follow logic wherever it may lead. We must overcome our self-centered believing to become open-minded, rational beings who value truth.
