Cultural stability a necessity for us humans

Religious Views, by Art Carney

For the third time in my life, I'm reevaluating my personal beliefs and the concept of life that I adopted at my mother's knee, so to speak, and while I have come to agree with many heresies outside my mother's belief system, it is probably not possible to ever be free of her influence. In effect, her teaching -- which guided the experience of my growing up -- is the cultural base from which I view the world. In a manner of speaking, we have all learned to view the world through the eyes of our mother, and even though revisions and modifications of our personal beliefs and values can be somewhat liberating or fulfilling to us, we are still more or less required to live in accordance with the same general attitudes and values we learned as a child.

It seems our cultural ideas change very little, and it is somewhat perplexing to me that our basic outlook on life has not improved very much since the Dark Ages, although our standard of living has become somewhat "heavenly" by comparison. The space age has given us a truer understanding of the universe, a sexual revolution has liberated women, and the civil rights movement has expanded our concept of freedom, and while science has fostered progress in medicine that extends our life expectancy, my grandchildren are still getting the same basic outlook on life that I did -- which is not necessarily a bad thing -- but I sometimes wonder if our progress is a bit one-sided.

As much as I'd like to change some of the old fashioned beliefs and attitudes that continue to thrive, I have come to realize that mankind's survival depends on cultural stability. Sudden or radical changes, such as those that occurred during the sixties, caused a lot of social pain and turmoil in spite of how badly the changes were needed. Evidently, the social order and security that stems from religious beliefs is less unsettling to society than the more rational concepts of life that are proposed by certain non-religious sources, such as some scientists, atheists and philosophers.

Understanding this human need for cultural stability helps me put up with certain social attitudes that seem detrimental to the common good, as well as some religious beliefs that undermine the use of reason. However, stability or not, our need to maintain an awareness of our cultural roots does not mean that we cannot rise above them. In this new age of global awareness, we are capable of recognizing the value of the past even as we move forward with new ideas and better applications of the old ones.

It is the diversity of our ideas and stimulates the progress of mankind, as well as our evolution of our personal enlightenment. In the same way that different physical mutations often evolve into more successful life-forms or species, different ideas or alternative lifestyles may develop into a new perspective of life that could foster true peace of mind. Because evolution favors those characteristics or preferences that have an advantage in the surrounding environment, any idea that is good for society has the potential to survive and contribute to man's progress.

Social improvements will continue to evolve slowly, almost automatically, but the evolution of our personal growth is an individual matter and it depends on our own efforts to understand ourselves and our place in the scheme of things. While culture provides for the needs of human society, individuals must provide for their own happiness and peace of mind through the pursuit of personal values and preferences that are compatible with the well-being of their family, friends and neighbors. The real key to a good life lies in the accuracy and honesty of our self-knowledge and a discerning awareness of our surroundings. Knowing ourselves and our place in the scheme of things makes it possible to enjoy the security of our culture, as well as the fulfillment of our personal goals.

Art Carney is a Wasilla resident. He is a frequent contributor to the Religion page.