I was reminded yesterday, by a cousin, of the importance of context. It is within the context of our lives and personal experiences that we form our opinions and beliefs. As we age we tend to lose , no not lose, but forget, our contextual references. It is good to be reminded every once in a while and conduct a review. We also need to remember that not all reference is correct. Sometimes the things we reference were contextually wrong when we learned them. Stereotyping and prejudicial thinking are two examples of that. It they were present in the society in which we were raised, we will adopt those actions as well. If we then leave that same society we will carry that with us. In the " new " society these things are not tolerated. The context has changed. Now we are wrong and we may have a hard time understanding why.
Context is the circumstance that forms the setting for an event and in terms that we can understand. In the old society these actions were acceptable, now they are not. Has the world changed ? Yes, the circumstances have changed. In fact several set of circumstances may exist at the same time. Just talk to a younger or older sibling about a specific event. You will quickly discover that their context is different than yours. You were both present at the time but experienced different circumstances based upon personal context. Knowledge may change that context. It often does. Circumstances may or may not explain an action. Incorrect actions are never justified by circumstance. One must change the action to change the circumstance.
The biggest obstacle to progress that I see is the failure to understand context. You can not change what once was. You can only hope to gain an understanding of the action and place it in proper context. Using past mistakes as justification for present day actions is just folly. It is this thinking and reasoning that is creating this " victim " mentality that we see so much of today. The circumstances of our ancestors are not ours ! We may feel empathy for the circumstances of their lives but that is all. We should not adopt that as our own. Understanding something is not enough. We must act upon that knowledge to gain progress. It is only through action that circumstance can change.
There are times when we feel our " core values " are being attacked. These values are the things that we learned and adopted over the years as truths. When these truths are called into question our immediate response will be one of defense. That is just human nature. What we should do is place these values in context. Are these " truths " valid in the society today ? Truth and morality are different objects. We should question truth while adhering to our moral standards. Does morality define truth ? That isn't always the case. That would only hold true where there a universal standard of morality. That standard does exist but is often taken out of context to suit the desires of man. At least that standard exists in my mind. Thomas Jefferson attempted to delineate those standards in the Declaration of Independence. Those unalienable rights endowed upon us by the creator. He and I hold those truths to be self evident. Context, it is of utmost importance.
Context is the circumstance that forms the setting for an event and in terms that we can understand. In the old society these actions were acceptable, now they are not. Has the world changed ? Yes, the circumstances have changed. In fact several set of circumstances may exist at the same time. Just talk to a younger or older sibling about a specific event. You will quickly discover that their context is different than yours. You were both present at the time but experienced different circumstances based upon personal context. Knowledge may change that context. It often does. Circumstances may or may not explain an action. Incorrect actions are never justified by circumstance. One must change the action to change the circumstance.
The biggest obstacle to progress that I see is the failure to understand context. You can not change what once was. You can only hope to gain an understanding of the action and place it in proper context. Using past mistakes as justification for present day actions is just folly. It is this thinking and reasoning that is creating this " victim " mentality that we see so much of today. The circumstances of our ancestors are not ours ! We may feel empathy for the circumstances of their lives but that is all. We should not adopt that as our own. Understanding something is not enough. We must act upon that knowledge to gain progress. It is only through action that circumstance can change.
There are times when we feel our " core values " are being attacked. These values are the things that we learned and adopted over the years as truths. When these truths are called into question our immediate response will be one of defense. That is just human nature. What we should do is place these values in context. Are these " truths " valid in the society today ? Truth and morality are different objects. We should question truth while adhering to our moral standards. Does morality define truth ? That isn't always the case. That would only hold true where there a universal standard of morality. That standard does exist but is often taken out of context to suit the desires of man. At least that standard exists in my mind. Thomas Jefferson attempted to delineate those standards in the Declaration of Independence. Those unalienable rights endowed upon us by the creator. He and I hold those truths to be self evident. Context, it is of utmost importance.
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