341. Be Careful When You Say You “Don’t Believe”
When it comes to intuition and spirituality, I’m pretty non-PC, an open book. I want to make sure that we’re all being honest, transparent and telling the truth. It’s hard for me to come up with words or a phrase, which isn’t completely hate speech, which I don’t like. But there is one which I’ve found is not particularly helpful. It is an interesting conversation as a whole, as I know that our speech and language in some way, shapes how we think, talk, and perhaps act and behave. It’s pretty important. And we do know that how we speak can not just impact ourselves, but in particular, impact others. Choosing the right words can drastically change our relationships with ourselves, as well as the world. Think: Talking negatively to ourselves about ourselves.
So what is this phrase? It’s saying that you don’t “believe” in something. Typically when this is used in speech, yes, it can simply be asking someone if they think something did happen, is happening or can happen. It’s typically used in a more ambiguous sense. Of course, there is a certain type of denial with and about things which as a collective we deem as “fact”. But for the most part, we’re talking about things which “exist” but a person does not adhere to. A good example of this would be religion. Someone may say that they don’t believe in a certain religion. But here’s the problem with this sentiment.
When we don’t believe in something, or in particular, someone. We essentially cut off our connection with it. We refuse to acknowledge it, or believe it exists. But here’s the thing. If someone else feels that something exists, it does exist. Maybe it’s not “real” in a physical sense, but it’s certainly real in a mental or emotional sense. If you don’t “believe” that someone is going through a certain experience, you are in a state of denial which can be invalidating, hurtful, or just plain rude. Believing is seeing, but not in a physical sense. It’s “seeing” metaphorically that existence goes beyond the physical. And it’s important that we lean into acknowledgment vs. dismissal.
It may seem like a stretch to say that our denial is based in the word “believe”, but the door swings both ways. You may “believe” ill things about people which aren’t true. It’s not just denial. Your “belief” level is simply your perception value, and if you refuse to acknowledge certain things, you not only are no longer connected to them, but you do no take responsibility for them. I do feel that our hate as human beings is tied up with our belief system, which needs to seriously be addressed. Can we change the way we believe by modifying this phrase? My suggestion is to change this to “I do not subscribe”. This way, you’re still acknowledging that something exists, but you are simply stating that it’s not something that you’re aligned to. You are still therefore, connected to said thing. This concept of connection is pervasive. When you feel connected to all things, living or not, is it not true that you are more considerate? Take better care? There are unlimited benefits to being more connected.
Our beliefs and our rejection and denial can leave others in the dust. It can make it so that we immediately “delete” responsibility. Our subscriptions need to be preference based, and our beliefs to be trust-based, based on the words, thoughts, feelings and emotions of others. We must re-connect and see the world through their eyes. In that sense, seeing is again, believing.
