I decided to live the life of the mind long ago, well before I knew what that meant. I found that I admired educated persons. They seemed to develop more loyal families and make thoughtful projections about matters. There was less divorce. Broken families are more common among those with no more than basic education. They seemed to have something extra in life even though I couldn’t define it. I have learned that they read more than unlettered persons, that they tend to accept other persons better, even if they withdrew somewhat arrogantly in the doing. As there is a meaningful gap between the rich and the poor there is a gap between those educated and uneducated. For the educated the list of benefits lengthens, including higher economic status, and standards better suited to general social life. They valued time more, and seemed to have increased self-control even when engaged in objectionable behavior. They tended to be more private about the negative thoughts and practices they might follow. This was not hypocrisy so much as desire not to be the cause of deviance in the lives of others. Educated people appear more likely to make room for world balancing, even when they rationalize up/down their life contexts.
This style of humanism is accounted for in various rationalizations sometimes related to religion. In a column, Robert M. Sapolsky wrote: If Big Brother is not around, we invent him. Sapolsky argues from his belief and evidence that we are better persons if we feel we are being watched. Instead of throwing away a piece of trash if unwatched, we may pick up litter and dispose of it properly if we believe we are being observed. Identifying himself as an atheist, he believes that theists may be doing good things because they believe they are being watched of God. Although, according to his rationale, faith is a charade, we can accept it because no one is harmed, and the actor is doing some good in his watch-faith. God is invented for the Big Brother motivation. The atheist ought to let the matter go, the god-invention serves society well and that without cost. Even the imagination about God serves mankind. Persons should be left to whatever means they can find to claim a moral compass. Like most sophisticated atheists, Sapolsky believes that any peaceful motivation to do good, even a belief in hell and retribution, that will lead to better life performance ought not to be resisted – if the result is people treating each other better. It is an old idea.
Of course there are problems in all this, problems that have cursed society for centuries. What of those who are untroubled about any big brother? Masses of persons never bother with one. What happens when we dilute truth in our personal lives as related to truth needed for interpersonal lives? If an illusion (Big Brother conjured) achieves the purpose why seek truth – not so easy to find. There is no accountability beyond nature which offers no clear revelation. Why not tell convenient lies, or take whatever I can cleverly purloin? Massive populations do just that. Whatever my motives in common grace that cause me to advance decency and good will in society seems permitted of God. It is a part of common grace, found first for us when parents (watchers) called us to some punishment for something we had done, something known to the family as restricted but disregarded for our own purposes. When we grow older whose Big Brother do we follow since there are so many different brothers watching over the poor fellows who, from lack of truth, follow private vision? In a major article: Measuring the value of a business leader’s character, Fred Kiel argued that statistical research shows that companies led by CEOs of high integrity generate superior financial returns. Some of these CEOs are theists and some atheists. There would be only a few who resort to Big Brother. Success follows the rules of honesty, work, and progression – the principles related to the human good. All this, supported by Scripture, emerges from the centuries before the modern business model and technology. We go to the source of virtue, personal or corporate, to gain adequate applications. Whether found in workable common grace from God, or spiritual grace from God, the principles of truth are at work. God is too much for some persons, as a champion gladiator is too much for a small child. We, the small children, ought to be concerned about what God, may think of us. He is the eternal champion, whose angels are withheld from victory against any enemy. *Mark W. Lee, Sr. — 2016, 2020