Are our Beliefs merely Subjective, just a Matter of our Biases?

 

 

Dr. Joseph Mattera has written (October 22, 2024) that all reason and truth claims are just a matter of faith:

·       It is my objective to illustrate that all human reasoning is founded on basic beliefs or presuppositions that are taken on faith. Hence, there are no “neutral” assumptions; one’s presuppositions are either for or against the Christian faith.

·       At first glance, this may seem like circular reasoning — basing our belief in Scripture on Scripture itself. However, this is unavoidable for any belief system. Every worldview, whether secular or religious, operates from certain presuppositions. The key difference is that the Christian worldview is rooted in the revelation of the only objective and omniscient Being in the universe, the Triune Godhead. In contrast, all other systems are based on finite human reasoning, making them fundamentally incapable of providing the certainty and coherence God’s revelation affords. Therefore, we are called to trust in His Word rather than relying on the limited scope of human reason. https://www.christianpost.com/voices/no-neutral-assumptions-either-for-or-against-christian-faith.html

However, the Bible is filled with proofs, objective evidences, and reasons to believe. While imprisoned, John the Baptist sent out his disciples to ascertain whether Jesus is really the promised Messiah. Jesus didn’t send them back to tell John, “Just believe.” Instead, He instructed them to convey to John the evidences they had witnessed. (Matthew 11)

Likewise, when Moses protested that the Israelites would not believe him if he merely claimed that God had sent him back to Egypt to free them from slavery. However, God gave them proofs so that they would believe:

·       Exodus 4:2–5 The LORD said to him, “What is that in your hand?” He said, “A staff.” And he said, “Throw it on the ground.” So he threw it on the ground, and it became a serpent, and Moses ran from it. But the LORD said to Moses, “Put out your hand and catch it by the tail”—so he put out his hand and caught it, and it became a staff in his hand—“that they may believe that the LORD, the God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you.”

He then equipped Moses with other miraculous proofs so that Israel would believe. Therefore, they would not be able to claim as Mattera that “It’s all just a matter of faith.”

Jesus purposely waited and allowed Lazarus to die when called for Him to come to heal him.

·       John 11:14–15 Then Jesus told [His disciples] plainly, “Lazarus has died, and for your sake I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.”

Such examples are plentiful. Jesus even cautioned that He shouldn’t be believed without proofs:

·       John 10:37–38 If I am not doing the works of my Father, then do not believe me; but if I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me and I am in the Father.”

Jesus provides both objective and subjective evidences (like the witness of the Spirit) the reality of the Christian faith. They are both necessary. If it’s all just a matter of faith, why then should we be Christians rather than Hindus or Muslims? Mattera reasons:

·       Therefore, when analyzing any theological, philosophical, or ideological system, the question is not whether it aligns with human wisdom but whether it conforms to the biblical worldview. As the self-attesting Word of God, Scripture is the ultimate standard against which all claims to truth must be measured. To reject this foundation is to embrace intellectual chaos, for only in Christ do we find the “wisdom and knowledge” necessary to make sense of the world.

I agree with Mattera. However, according to his understanding, whatever reasoning we use is biased and just a matter of pure subjective unprovable faith. He therefore contradicts himself.