Impact of A Worldview

The peh Factor

“Seeking balance in a polarized world”

As have most of us, I have spent a lot of quarantined time sitting, listening, and observing the events that have surrounded me over these past weeks. I have made a file on my phone of the humorous pictures and comments people have made. I have also filed insights to which I have wanted to return. Mix these in with lots of time to reflect while walking the dog and taking drives and reading books and being the armchair philosopher I was trained by my father to be and it has been an reflective period of time.

This past week a thought came together for me that was new-ish. I had heard the term "World View" for years. I have read about it and worked on my own definitions. I thought (and think) I know my own world view. But, this past week as I watched the world go by and have listened to the various players make their statements and their commentaries on events, I realized how each person was addressing this experience through their own world view. Let me see if I can explain.

Every person has a world view. WorldViewU.org gives us this definition:

• "A worldview is a way of looking at and explaining life and the world. It serves as a lens through which the world is interpreted. It is a set of beliefs that influences a person's perspective, values and actions. A worldview is a type of belief system or ideology."

Every person has a worldview but not every person has taken the time and done the work to develop and understand their unique world view. Sometimes a person’s worldview has only been shaped by the home environment in which a person was raised. Other's have allowed their cultural sub-group to shape and mold their perspective. Still others have gone to school, studied intently, gone through the rigors of academic studies and research and questioning with the end result being the type of lens through which they see the world. I have begun to see this Covid-19 drama unfolding on the world stage as being shaped by the worldview of the primary actors. Here are some examples.

I have been telling folks for quite some time that I sense the President of the United States sees everything and evaluates his decisions through the lenses of his business worldview. How are we doing as a nation? The stock market is up. Why do we need to renegotiate a variety of trade agreements? Because we have been treated poorly financially through them. Why do we argue with our allies in NATO? Because they haven’t been carrying their fair share…financially. What happens if we fail economically? We will just declare bankruptcy, reset our financial clock and move on. It worked for me a number of times in business. Why do I only tell partial truths or outright lies? I did it in business to keep people off balance. It worked for me there it will work for me here. I believe Mr. Trump’s chosen (or developed) form of humor – sarcasm – reflects this model. It worked in the business worldview why wouldn’t it be OK in the much more nuanced world of national and international politics? What’s the worst that could happen from this worldview? A broken economy and many shattered lives.

Now, the president’s worldview has been brought more vividly into the spotlight during the Covid-19 pandemic. At daily briefings (some have said they are political rally replacements?) President Trump has been placed side by side with another worldview, the medical/scientific worldview.

Drs. Fauci and Brix have been representatives of the medical worldview. In the midst of the leadership from a business model, they have stood firm in presenting and defending the data they have come to respect from years of standard medical and research practices. Have they been truthful in what they have shared privately with the administration? I believe they have. Have they been diplomatic in their public presentation? I believe they have. Have they demonstrated the principles of the Hippocratic Oath, the summary of the Medical worldview? I believe they have. Here is a modern version of that oath, written in 1964 by Louis Lasagna, Dean of the School of Medicine at Tufts University.

• I swear to fulfill, to the best of my ability and judgment, this covenant:

• I will respect the hard-won scientific gains of those physicians in whose steps I walk, and gladly share such knowledge as is mine with those who are to follow.

• I will apply, for the benefit of the sick, all measures which are required, avoiding those twin traps of over treatment and therapeutic nihilism.

• I will remember that there is art to medicine as well as science, and that warmth, sympathy, and understanding may outweigh the surgeon's knife or the chemist's drug.

• I will not be ashamed to say "I know not," nor will I fail to call in my colleagues when the skills of another are needed for a patient's recovery.

• I will respect the privacy of my patients, for their problems are not disclosed to me that the world may know. Most especially must I tread with care in matters of life and death. If it is given me to save a life, all thanks. But it may also be within my power to take a life; this awesome responsibility must be faced with great humbleness and awareness of my own frailty. Above all, I must not play at God.

• I will remember that I do not treat a fever chart, a cancerous growth, but a sick human being, whose illness may affect the person's family and economic stability. My responsibility includes these related problems, if I am to care adequately for the sick.

• I will prevent disease whenever I can, for prevention is preferable to cure.

• I will remember that I remain a member of society, with special obligations to all my fellow human beings, those sound of mind and body as well as the infirm.

• If I do not violate this oath, may I enjoy life and art, respected while I live and remembered with affection thereafter. May I always act so as to preserve the finest traditions of my calling and may I long experience the joy of healing those who seek my help.

From a medical worldview, what is the worst that could happen? The loss of life, potentially in the millions as reflected in a number of scientific models. Each number presented on the morning news or White house briefing impacts those who made a commitment to this oath. People of a business worldview might prefer to look at percentages. People of the medical worldview seemingly prefer to look at numbers.

Now, why have I taken all these words to present this Worldview treatise? Two-fold. First, I hope it will cause you the reader to think about worldviews as you listen to various speakers. Ask: What is the worldview of a reporter as they ask questions? What is the worldview of a news anchor as they speak on CNN, Fox, ABC, NBC, the Drudge Report, etc. What is the worldview of a legal analyst as they process information? What is the worldview of those in panel discussions/debates? Worldviews matter.

(If we took the time to broaden this question, I would add questions about the worldview of the writers of television programming or movie producers. The list could go on and …)

The second reason I raise this issue is to challenge you and me to reflect on our own worldview. A few years back I was challenged by an interview I saw on a TV program. To be honest I have forgotten the program and the incident that was the focus. I do remember the person being interviewed was a Muslim woman and I remember her comment:

“I am a Muslim. Why would you think I would behave differently?”

I thought then and I think now, there is a woman with a well-defined worldview.

The truth of the matter is our actions better define our worldview than our verbiage. As the old saying goes, “Talk is cheap” and another, “Actions speak louder than words.” For me, I say I am a Christian, but, would anyone know it by how I live my life? Or, as someone once quipped: "If you were brought to trial for being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you?"

When Jesus walked this earth he began his ministry with this simple statement:

• “The time is fulfilled, the Kingdom of God has come near; Repent and believe this good news.” Mark 1:15

This was Jesus' worldview. I believe his teachings, his miracles, his life demonstrated his worldview. Jesus taught his followers to pray for God’s Kingdom to come and God’s will to be done on earth as it is in heaven. We say we are followers, disciples, students of Jesus Christ, and so I ask again:

What is your worldview?

How do you actions reveal it?

Amen.