"In my mind, a naturalist is someone who comes to understand the biological life and ecological relationships of a particular place with some depth and seeks to use this understanding to forge an appropriate relationship with earthly life." (14)
- Lyanda Lynn Haupt
Pilgrim
on the Great Bird Continent
(2006)
The
polarization of faith and reason in our culture is unfortunate, as it limits
our options and undermines our wholeness as human beings. Those who have
'faith' seldom reason as well as they should, and those who live by reason
seldom allow themselves to have any degree of (at least acknowledged)
'faith.' For me, a naturalist perspective grounded in science demands
just as much 'faith' as I needed when I was religious; it is just anchored
differently and expressed more subtly.
There
are two senses of 'faith' that must be considered. Big 'F' faith is the
kind of 'absolute trust' that fanatical religious and ideological cults demand
of their followers. This kind of Faith is all-consuming – as anyone who
has been a "true believer" knows – and as such blinding. Big
'F' Faith is the kind of 'trust' that can tolerate no doubt and no challenge to
its subjective authority—as it is ultimately very weak, and as a result makes
the person of Faith very insecure. Therefore, they have to be constantly
bolstering their Faith, making Big claims for it, and – sometimes even without meaning to – foisting it on others.
The
second kind of faith – small 'f' faith – is what I mean when I allude to a
Naturalist's 'faith.' This is the kind of faith that manifests itself as
trust in one's environment, in one's friends and family, and in the world as a
place where, because we have evolved here and become more or less adapted to our
world, we are able to survive. The kind of faith that I have as a
naturalist is a basic trust in the world as it is; as we have found it upon
coming to consciousness as individuals. Many of us are born into a world
where there is more or less continuity; some degree of security and always new
horizons to explore and move beyond.
Our
species has been walking about on this planet for something like 200,000 years,
and our ancestors – "proto-human species" for lack of a better term –
have been ambling about, making a living out of their environments, and doing
self-enriching things for somewhere on the order of 200,000 to 5 million
years. We are a fairly successful species, generally speaking, and as
such – barring environmental catastrophes and despite the deplorable state of
injustice that leaves some billions of our fellow humans in poverty while
the rest live in more or less resplendent style – we are likely to survive
for some time. This, for me, engenders a kind of faith in our
existence. We are more or less well-adapted to the planetary environment
in which we have evolved.
We
are also endlessly creative and industrious, so it would seem changes in our
planetary environment may well be overcome, providing we wake up in time and
assuming they are not too disastrous or happen too quickly. Now, if we
could just correct the economic and social injustice in the world, develop a
global ethic that would be workable for everyone, and find ways to make sure
whole populations aren't starving, at war or under-valued, then we would have
an even greater reason for faith in our situation.
As
a naturalist, I also have faith in reason. This is not the kind of Big
'F' faith that bestows worship on something, but rather the small 'f' faith
that can be construed as 'trust-in' something. I try to use reason to the
fullest extent; to figure out the nature of reality, to come up with ways of
living my life that are compassionate, creative and honest, and to work out my
ethical responsibilities. I also use the imagination to do these things,
and I'm a very intuitive person as well; so I am not a "reason-monger"
or a "reason only" advocate. The emotions – with which
evolution has invested us and which natural selection has not weeded out but
rather preserved – are also poignant guides to the living of life, and I can
say that, as a naturalist, I have a small-f 'faith' in these human faculties as
well. Intellect—Imagination—Emotions; these are all important tools. It is important to always keep these
different abilities (reason, emotions, intuition, imagination) in perspective,
to know their place in the project of being human, and to acknowledge their
limitations.
Faith
– from this naturalist's perspective – is what produces solace and gives us
peace; respite from existential angst (when properly placed) and a sense of
dwelling in Earth & Spirit that is, in itself, humanizing. I would
argue, ultimately, that small 'f' faith is part of our existential toolkit as
human animals, and that to 'deny' it's value is to be less prepared for living
life to the fullest.
"We watch, hopefully. We keep watching. We fill out days with care, watching our words and minding our vision and our evolution continues. We branch, we rise." (50)
-
Lyanda
Lynn Haupt
Pilgrim on the Great
Bird Continent (2006)
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