What Makes Up a Worldview?

So what components, what pieces, make up a person’s worldview?

Other articles in this series address worldview formation, application, and specific roles played by worldview in Biblical application, in teaching and learning, and in personal transformation, but here we will consider important characteristics and components of our most basic assumptions. Each is first grounded in the “posture” we hold in heart and mind, a posture that is revealed by asking, Am I ready to entertain authority beyond my own, am I willing to surrender thoughtfully to such authority or am I determined to vest all authority in myself? The answer to these questions, the posture of our heart, influences and informs the various characteristics and components of our basic assumptions. And when these are explored and “thought out,” they sharpen the focus of the proverbial “lens” of an individual’s worldview and shape the foundations for living out one’s life individually and in community.

Worldview Characteristics
The degree to which one can recognize the content of the assumptions making up their own worldview or that of others is proportional to the thoughts and questions they apply to the task. It is often said that “everyone has a worldview,” however much or little they have considered what that is. A worldview still shapes understanding and action even when unexamined, thus it is worth “testing” a worldview’s characteristics to see if they meet basic levels of satisfaction.

A worldview should be, at core, rational and consistent in all its affirmations. For example, when holding a firm materialist worldview, the logical result is to also argue that humans only think they have an immaterial soul. In that case hoping for a better deal when you reincarnate would be rubbish in terms of rationality. Though this is a simplistic example, it can help you take the time to ask yourself about consistency in your own worldview or within concepts you teach.

Because a worldview relates to the evidence of your experience, of empirical thought, of what is really there, it should relate to all that matters in your life. For example, consider relating Eastern-influenced thinking, which argues that the material universe is only an illusion sourced in the “oneness” of the impersonal force of the universe, to daily life experiences like stubbing one’s toe in the night. Unfortunately, real pain would have to be denied; it could only be an illusion. Again, a simplistic example, but do not fear exploring your own worldview to find the connections or disconnections to the stuff that really does seem true.

A worldview should also provide a livable path through life. What sort of worldview best allows for both strength in the challenging circumstances and genuine joy in what life offers? How much do we find remarkable those who navigate life by demonstrating such? For a negative example, holding that personal perfection in all areas of one’s life is the path to happiness and eternal life makes it tough to live out daily life. Could a person ever find what they hope for or would much of the day be spent regretting each personal imperfect thought or action?

Worldview Components
One’s worldview is different from a philosophical construct, but the two original questions of western philosophy are a necessary underpinning, considered or not, to one’s worldview in theory and practice. Let us look at these components as questions:

First, what is really real? Does reality consist of only time, matter, energy, and space? Is there the possibility or the firm commitment to the idea that the immaterial, indeed the truly spiritual, is also a real thing? These will profoundly shape other components of one’s worldview. Apart from the “lens”, another common metaphor for a worldview is a “filter.” Filters allow in and screen out numerous working beliefs and actions. Think of a tragedy where people “send their thoughts and prayers” to the victims. Do you believe that does anything real? Depending on your worldview you could just be expressing sympathy, you could be believing in some sort of telegenic comfort, or you could be misspeaking about the person to which one prays.

Second, how do we know anything? How do we make knowledgeable commitments to truth? Is scientific proof the only way to really know? Does “feeling” have a role? How about supernatural revelation through Scripture or spiritual forces? Are some roots of knowledge more “trustworthy” than others? What about the mind – is that capable of truly knowing? A weak confidence in the ability to know accurately and substantially enough can paralyze one’s practical approach to living or create a naive trust in one’s own authority to know without anything more than one’s “gut.”

Some other key components:

The question of origins is huge. From where did I, did this all, come? Was it accidental, impersonal, and random? If so further exploration of purposefulness, significance, and meaning are greatly circumscribed or filtered out if one holds consistently to that belief. One may decide their own answers to these questions but there is no grounding beyond preference. On the other hand, if a personal and intelligent force, dare I say God, is the source and guiding force of all then there is more, much, more to our understanding and experience of life.

What is a human? The answer to this question is at the core of moral thinking, human significance, human rights, and our relationships to one another. A cosmic accident of cycles of cosmic and biological evolution at one end of the spectrum and an image bearer of one’s Creator God at the other - which end leans more into the life and society we really desire? Your posture toward your own life and the lives of others is grounded in your answer to your heartfelt definition of humanity.

What is good? Does good truly exist (a reality question)? How can I determine good (a knowledge question)? Without an objective source of good, one is left with only a subjective source, either personal preference or dictated ideas, however inconsistent those may be for holding to an accidental origin. “Good” is usually asserted, even if only as a matter of personal preference or the whim of those in informal or formal power. But to personally function well (a moral judgment) and even govern rightly (also a moral judgment), good must be accessible and objective. Even the question of how to best live my life is framed by the judgment of what a good life is.

Human death makes virtually everyone confront the question of destiny beyond this life. Extinction of all life and consciousness forever is the consistent conclusion/belief for the materialist, but that position also honestly requires the acceptance of no hope beyond the grave. A sense of there being “something beyond” animates aspects of life and can even introduce hope beyond our present path or, alternatively, power a determination to “do better.”

Purpose, value, and meaning are recurrent questions for humans who take the time to consider such things. Victor Frankl wrote Man’s Search for Meaning, an account of those who successfully survived the experience of the World War II Holocaust, himself included. A sense of meaning turned out to be key to survival in the concentration camps. What is the point? We ask this when engaging in a task we do not enjoy and deem fruitless. How much more deeply do we ask it when facing challenging situations in our lives or observing them in the lives of others? Making sense of the story of our lives or the story of our people, our nation, our world requires a sense of purpose grounded in a solid foundation.

The oft-repeated claim that worldview is the filter through which a person sees, analyzes, and responds to reality is widely held. It is not everything or, better yet, it is not autonomous, in that worldview is shaped by factors emotional, spiritual, and cultural. Explore these characteristics and components of your own worldview to see how well it jibes with Paul’s expression of how, in Christ, we live and move and have our being. Understanding worldview will also energize how we can teach in ways that stimulate others to examine and transform their own.

Russ Kraines
Russ is a 30+ year veteran of teaching in middle and high schools both in the US (public) and in Germany (private, Black Forest Academy, BFA). Most recently, he taught the senior level class Worldviews course at BFA for 11 years. Russ and his wife Diane began their service with TeachBeyond in 2001 and currently work from home in the U.S. supporting TeachBeyond’s Informal Education efforts.