The Cornerstone

by Brent Towell

Everybody has a worldview; Doctors, teachers, firemen, Christians, Muslims, scientists and authors alike. People who do not know they have a worldview possess one even as people who can articulate theirs.

People who deny they have a worldview, or even that it is possible for someone to have a worldview, are promoting a worldview.

Simply stated, a worldview is the mental grid work we use to make sense of the world around us. Everything seen and unseen, immanent and transcendent is filtered through our worldview. It happens so often and naturally that we are unaware of it for the most part.

Input is not the only thing that is filtered through our worldview. Our actions and thoughts are also a result of our worldview. When I think to myself, “I should apologize to Jim because I hurt his feelings last week,” I have just made a statement about a moral or ethical component of my worldview. My worldview dictates that when one is wronged by another party, the offending party should apologize to clear things up.

Of course, the issue goes much deeper than this. We can ask more questions, such as, “What constitutes an offense?” “Why am I morally obligated to apologize?” “What if the offended party does not want to hear my apology?” “What if I just thought that Jim was offended, but he really was not?” When I apologize am I “doing the right thing,” or do I am doing it because “I feel bad about it?” If someone wrongs me, do I expect an apology from them also?

So far, we have only asked questions regarding the Ethical aspect of our worldview; but, are there other aspects to a world view?

The late Belgian philosopher Leo Apostel created a seven point model to help us categorize different parts of our worldview.

1. Ontology – The nature of Being. What is reality?
2. Explanation – The rules and laws governing the Cosmos.
3. Futurology – In Christian terms this would be Eschatology, the End Times. How things will play out when we reach the end of time.
4. Ethics – What is good and right conduct for man?
5. Methodology – What are the acceptable methods to get things done in our worldview (Francis A. Schaeffer wrote a whole book about this entitled How Should We Then Live?)
6. Epistemology – The study of Knowledge. How we know what we know.
7. Etiology – The study of Causality. The reason things are the way they are.

Every statement, action or thought that you or anybody else in the universe says, does or thinks will be connected to one of the above categories (and more than likely several). As you can see with our previous example of the transgression and apology with Jim, all seven of these come into play, either directly or indirectly.

All authors have a worldview. Their worldview shapes everything they write. It colors all of their perceptions, and whether they admit it or not, it can be seen in everything they write. Some authors just write, never thinking about their worldview. Others set out to write with the intention of convincing others that their worldview is correct, or at least merits further investigation.