I Don't Know

“I don’t know.” I grew up thinking this statement was a sign of weakness. My father set the early goal of making me a leader--with middling results--by establishing tenets drawn from self-help books and cliches such as “never let them see you sweat” and “shoot first, ask questions later.” His uncharacteristically geeky role-model, Captain Kirk, always had the answers even when the situation was completely unknown. While this worked out for the main character of a successful television show, but in the real world the “no-win-scenario” actually isn’t winable and some questions just don’t have accessible answers.

I eventually dropped Kirk as my inherited role-model for the more analytical Batman. This was partly because Bats was way cooler and partly because I didn’t want to end up as an away team red shirt. Bruce Wayne’s alter ego is considered “the world’s greatest detective” and is an accomplished scientist in many fields. (For the purposes of this argument, please familiarize yourself with the Batman of the comic books. I recommend Grant Morrison’s JLA or Batman: Hush. Christian Bale’s depiction was great and all, but he wasn’t the hero we deserved.) Among nerd conficts of superheroics, it is accepted that, given enough intel and perparation time, Batman could beat anyone. Seriously, Superman, Thor, Yahweh, anyone! I consider him a posterchild for the importance of knowledge.

via AmazingSuperpowers.com

Religion has proven itself a source for answers throughout history--and history has proven religion’s answers false at nearly every turn. Yet people still hang on to the few answers that religion holds over the growing wealth of verified human knowledge. Abiogenesis, pre-Big Bang and post-death happenings, and existential meaning are all supposedly answered by invoking a single word, “God.”  That kind of baseless research tells us nothing. We should instead sit at our Bat-computers, gather information, study, learn, and contribute to knowledge. If that all fails, we need to accept what theists and Kirk don’t understand--that “I don’t know” has value. The value is honesty.

You Are Not Gladiator.

Meet Gladiator, pictured left. He's an alien hero from the Marvel universe who is most known for his interactions with the X-Men. He has the apparent powers of Superman, the skin tone of a smurf, and the mohawk of...okay, let's be honest, no one rocks the mohawk like Gladiator these days. What's more, he's a testament to the fictional power of faith.

Before I ever read a Gladiator comic, I had something in common with him. We both believed we could fly. Of course, that's were our similarities ended. His belief in flight is what actually allowed him to fly. Gladiator is the only hero I know of with faith-based abilities. His mental state informs his physical state. His self-confidence is everything. In the real word, my belief that I could fly didn't translate into any measurable affect. It's a real shame.

Mind over matter is a concept I lingered on to far longer than I should. After my childlike superhero musings, I moved onto Christian Science, where the word "Mind" was always capitalized as a synonym for God. "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." ~Philippians 4:13. In retrospect, this was a step in the wrong direction. Youthful imagination can come up with some crazy ideas, but when I believed I could fly, I placed unfounded faith in myself. Placing unfounded faith in an unfounded deity is stupid squared, and I was guilty as charged.

Faith in the supernatural, from within or without, is an obsession that humanity needs to outgrow. That's why I write this blog. I don't want anyone to look as silly as a blue man with a mohawk.