On Relativism: 5- Pragmatism

The following is a scene from G. K. Chesterton's play "Magic" (which some say inspired Ingmar Bergman's film "The Magician"). A little clarification may be needed. Smith is a Christian Pastor, and the Doctor is a firm skeptic of all things religious. This scene takes place in The Duke of the parish's house, right after his nephew suffers from a sort of shock after he fails to explain a seemingly supernatural event.

Smith: And what harm came of believing in Apollo? And what a mass of harm may have come of not believing in Apollo? Does it never strike you that doubt can be a madness, as well be faith? That asking questions may be a disease, as well as proclaiming doctrines? You talk of religious mania! Is there no such thing as irreligious mania? Is there no such thing in the house at this moment?

Doctor: Then you think no one should question at all.

Smith: [With passion, pointing to the next room.] I think that is what comes of questioning! Why can't you leave the universe alone and let it mean what it likes? Why shouldn't the thunder be Jupiter? More men have made themselves silly by wondering what the devil it was if it wasn't Jupiter.

Doctor. [Looking at him.] Do you believe in your own religion?

Smith: [Returning the look equally steadily.] Suppose I don't: I should still be a fool to question it. The child who doubts about Santa Claus has insomnia. The child who believes has a good night's rest.

Doctor: You are a Pragmatist.

I had wanted to write this post for over a year now, & start it with that particular scene, but didn't quite know how to approach it best.

I think now I do.

What G. K. Chesterton is demonstrating here and later on in the play, is that Rev. Smith is not a believer at all, in fact he is not that much different from the skeptic doctor in that regard. He is merely a pragmatist. He believes that religion affects people positively in the practical sense, hence it should be adopted.

Now consider this:

Someone says they believe in some religious belief, and it suits them. However, they think it might not suit somebody else.

This is becoming a classical relativist statement. Now I'd like to draw your attention to two things, one of them I've always thought is clear as daylight, the other I've only noticed yesterday.

The first is what I referred to before in the second part of this series, how "A cosmic philosophy is not constructed to fit a man; a cosmic philosophy is constructed to fit a cosmos." as per -incidentally- G. K. Chesterton.

Which I think is pretty easy to understand; you may say that a certain work of art doesn't suit your taste, but a Religion, a Cosmic Philosophy, can't possibly be personal taste. It is about the Universe, not only about you!

Except if...

What if we sometimes think of a Religion mainly in terms of how useful it is to us?

You know, belief in heavenly reward makes people do good things, belief in hell as punishment stops people from doing bad things to each other, religion in general helps answer existential questions... etc.

That is the second implication of discussing religion as a relative idea... that I might be seeing it only in the light of what it brings to me.

If so, then the idea of "suits me, but not necessarily everybody" can be very true!

For example, it suits me to fear hell as punishment, but maybe it'll drive someone else to rebellion rather than submission to God (An atheist I've actually corresponded with wrote that they'd rather believe in no god than believe in my cruel god), therefore it does not suit them.

This means that what we're talking about now, is how said religion affects you, rather than the beliefs of the religion itself.

That is all very well of course, but that is not belief at all!

Like the Doctor said in the scene from the play, that is just pragmatism.

Believing that practical effects of a certain belief are good is not, of course, a bad thing. But believing in a certain doctrine merely for its practical effects, surely is.

It has nothing to do with how true you believe your religion is.

And I thought we were looking for the Truth... weren't we?