Epistemic Humility

 


A new term I learned and it is called, “Epistemic Humility.”  Epistemic Humility is the admission that while man is capable of creating and doing great and wonderful things, he is often times wrong [1] and in expounding upon this definition, though men have made great strides in mechanical, medical, scientific, and technological advancements for the betterment of himself, and though he is able to brighten up the atmosphere with artistic expression in various fields of entertainment, he is also capable of terrible evil, immense destruction, and horrific cruelties.
 
Those possessing this sort of humility will be willing to admit that though they are capable of doing much good and performing great accomplishments and feats, they are also fallible in character, no matter how good and noble they try to be, limited in their own strength and power no matter how successful they may be, and limited in knowledge and wisdom no matter how resourceful they may be and no matter how much knowledge and wisdom they may possess and try to apply.
 
It is in possessing this epistemic humility that in admitting that men are limited in their abilities power, fallible in their character and thereby subject to error in their thinking, words spoken, and in their actions, that those institutions to which they look, whether they be those of religion, the realm of private enterprise, media, academia, entertainment, and of governing powers, are also subject to fallibility in character, limitations in their resources, capabilities, knowledge, and wisdom, and error in their way of thinking, what they may propagate, and in their actions.
 
It is also this epistemic humility that acknowledges that there may be times in life when men eventually come to the end of themselves when they are faced with an adversity that they cannot overcome in their own limited power, wisdom, and intellect and perplexities that even the institutions upon which he has relied upon may be powerless to resolve and therefore must call upon a power and force greater than himself and any earthly power for aid, guidance, provision, deliverance, and restoration; a power not of this world or universe but one that is outside of this universe; a power credited for holding all things together and sustaining all things and to which all life owes its existence and an authority to whom all men owe due reverence and which is the sole creator of our reality, the source of and sole arbiter of truth, and the definer of what is right and wrong, good and evil and before whom all men must eventually stand and give an account for the things that they have done in the life both good and bad and therefore demands that all men take care that they are living and conducting themselves in a manner that is good and pleasing in the eyes of this High Power that the laws of all governing powers are in conformity with those of this High Power if they expect to acquire His favor and blessing.
 
And if men find themselves falling short of the moral standard required of them by this High Power, it is then this epistemic humility that will drive them to repentance as often as they find themselves falling short of that required standard, no longer relying on their own goodness, but upon the mercy and grace of this High Power to whom they owe their existence and credit for being the Creator of all things.
 
But if epistemic humility confesses that men are flawed in character and limited in their attributes and capabilities, and that they must rely upon a power greater than himself for all things, that it is by the laws and precepts of this High Power that they must be governed and by which each life must be ordered, and that this High Power must be given due reverence, and it is this High power before whom all will be judged and that those who have sought to live uprightly before Him will receive everlasting honor, joy, and peace, and those who have lived wickedly before Him will be subject to everlasting contempt, shame, and torment, then there is an epistemic pride and arrogance that places no faith in this High Power and even goes so far as to deny His existence.
 
It is this epistemic pride that causes men to place all trust and reliance upon their own capabilities and in the capabilities and attributes of those around them, in their own intellect, wisdom, and resourcefulness, in the institutions that he has established to provide him counsel, guidance, and to serve as a spiritual and moral authority and a governing entity in all things that pertain to this present life.
 
Epistemic pride causes a people to declare that they can do all things and endure all things in their own strength and power.
Epistemic humility causes a people to confess that they cannot do all things or endure all things in their own power and strength but must rely upon a power greater than themselves to empower them to do things that they otherwise cannot, to deliver them from evil that they cannot deliver themselves from, and to sustain them in difficult times that they otherwise would not be able to sustain themselves in, and to heal them of the ailments, wounds, griefs, and sorrows that they otherwise would not be able to heal themselves of.
Epistemic pride will stand upon not only its own capabilities, wisdom, knowledge, resourcefulness, strength and power, but also upon family, friends, a livelihood, its wealth, accomplishments, governing powers, scientists, medical doctors, our academic establishments, the media, entertainers, the private sector, and figures serving as a moral influence and authority.
Epistemic humility admits that while all of these things may serve us well, they are but instruments and vessels of a power greater than them all who uses them as means to provide for our needs, to better us, to comfort us, to maintain order and peace, and as extensions of His unfailing love and mercy, but livelihoods and wealth can be lost, our health can fail us, we may be subjugated to disabilities that may inhibit us and even prevent us from doing the things that we might otherwise be able to do, we may be set by perplexities to which the brightest minds and governing authorities may have no answer, we may be beset by an affliction for which there may be no medical remedy, we may be cheated by a private enterprise, exploited by an employer, lied to by a news source, deceived by an academic establishment, betrayed by an influential or authoritative figure, done an injustice by a governing authority, or abandoned by friends and family including a spouse or even our children and even if they don’t abandon us, they can still either by an act of evil or by falling victim to the adversities of life, be taken away from us and we are left in such agonizing grief and pain because the joy and comfort that they gave us is no longer there and that all we have to rely on in such times is that very Power who is able to right the wrongs, provide for our needs, mend the broken hearted, comfort those in grief, heal that which a physician may not be able, reveal secrets that the learned have yet to discover, cleanse the mind that has been poisoned with lies, redeem the soul from darkness, soften the hardened heart, instill a sense of purpose and meaning to life in men that cannot be found in anything else, sustain and carry us through hard and trying times, deliver us from overpowering adversities, restore or replace that which was lost to us, bring to our lives a peace and a sense of order and direction that cannot come from anything else, and place in us the interests, passions, skills, gifts, and talents that will be in accordance with each respective role that He has given to each and every one of us.
 
Epistemic pride produces in us a sense of self-righteousness that causes men to trust in their own goodness and compare their goodness to the goodness of others, leading us to think ourselves better than those whom we perceive to be less good or righteous than us.  It is such pride that blinds us to our own short-comings, failings, character flaws, and fallibility whereas those possessing epistemic humility recognize that no matter how good they try to be, that they are still morally fallible, flawed in character, errant in their thinking, impure in their thoughts, and tainted in their motives, not judging themselves in accordance to the laws, traditions, and ordinances of men, but rather they judge themselves in accordance to a law higher than that of any man; the laws and precepts that they credit to that High Power in which they believe in; that power and authority to whom they owe their existence.
 
Even if they do not know who that High Power is, those of epistemic humility, when they take time to study creation itself, discover that there that there is an order to things and that all things made serve a respective purpose in maintaining a much needed order and balance in creation and were made for our benefit.  They understand that if the universe is governed by natural and physical laws that keep it maintained and held together, they may also be led to the conclusion that there must also be moral laws by which men are governed and for which no man, culture, nation or earthly power at any given time can be credited and therefore, when those entrusted to maintain order and peace and to administer proper justice fail to do so, oppress, and commit miscarriages of justice against those over whom they have been placed, and when those who have been entrusted to impart useful knowledge and important information to us are found to be dishonest, they of epistemic humility, even if they cannot quite place their finger on it at least get the sense that there is something not right; there is a feeling of wrongness they sense within the institutions they are supposed to be able to trust and in the governing authorities who rule over them because they notice the flaws within the civic authorities and other institutions that shape and guide society and hold sway over how the people of each respective nation think and as to what philosophies and virtues they hold to.  They know that the media is not always truthful in what it reports.  They know that places of education do not always provide an honest education.  They know that the so-called experts in the scientific, medical, and other fields are not always honest with their data and that their claims are not always accurate.  They know that governing authorities do not always rule justly or fairly.  They also know that even religious figures are not always above reproach and can disgrace themselves.  And when they discover that they have been lied to by the media, deceived by an academic, been cheated by a business, exploited by an employer, done an injustice by a governing entity, or betrayed by a figure seen as a spiritual and moral authority, only then do they begin to consider whether there must be an authority higher and more pure than any flawed and fallible thing that they have placed their trust in and if they begin to seek out this Supreme Authority, only then might He be revealed to them as His Spirit appeals to their conscience, opens their eyes to evidence of His existence in creation, and knocks on the door of their hearts.  In an honest study of creation is His existence revealed, when the conscience is pricked when we have done something wrong, even if we are never caught by men, that tells us that there is a moral standard besides that which may be ordained and declared by any man and from an authority higher than that of any man.  And it is when this Supreme Authority and Creator speaks to our hearts and souls that we begin to seek Him out, learn what kind of a God He is and what He desires and expects of us.
 
But in order for us to know His laws and precepts, know how we might be redeemed if we find ourselves falling short of His standards, our history, future, and what kind of a God He is, His character, and attributes, that requires a God who is actively involved in the affairs of men and who interjects Himself whenever so needed and He has done so by giving revelation to prophets whom He has raised up, by giving us His written Word, by instilling His Spirit into those who seek after and submit themselves to Him, by appearing to humanity as a man to redeem the world from darkness, through the commissioning of Apostles whom He sent forth to preach His message of redemption and by whom He established His Church.  It is by these means and by various signs, wonders, miracles that He has done before the eyes of many throughout the records of His divinely inspired scripture (2 Tim. 3:16) and throughout history that He has shown Himself to be the sole arbiter of truth and of what is right and wrong, good and evil, holy and unholy, what is of the light and what is of the darkness.
 
But those of epistemic pride will deny all of this.  Show them that even the most simple of life forms to be far more intricately complex than the most elaborate structures of men, or that no two snow flakes are alike, and how finely tuned the universe is and they will dismiss the evidence.
 
If they witness a miracle, they will seek some other explanation.
If calamity befalls a nation or people because their wickedness and evil has reached a certain measure, they will simply claim happenstance.
If their conscience or heart is touched, they will try ignore the voice speaking to both and deny it to be of any significance.  They will not even bother to ask themselves why they may feel uneasy some of the things they give themselves to, the choices they make, and the manner of life they are living.
 
They may have no problem with religion as long as it is one that suits their preferences and requires no transformation of their soul and is one that they can mold into their own image rather than conforming to the image of God and rather than submit to the source of truth who is God (Jn. 14:6), they would rather define truth as they see fit or at least allow influential and authoritative figures upon whom they rely for guidance and direction to be the arbiters of truth for them and in doings allow the same to also be the arbiters of what is good and evil, right and wrong rather than God since epistemic pride has always been and still is in rebellion against God Almighty, His truth, His laws, His precepts, and His counsel and guidance.
 
In fact, it was pride that began the age-long war between God and a cherub named Lucifer who, in his immense arrogance, thought to make himself equal with God, forgetting that he was just a mere creation of God just like everything else in existence (Is. 14:11-21, Ezek. 28:12-19) which is why the cause of every discord, division, conflict, strife, and even war is always a moral and spiritual one and not merely political, economic, or even resource or land-related.
 
Columnist Ben Shapiro, the author of the piece from which I first learned about the term epistemic humility, in spite of examining the intensifying polarization between the right and left, the anti-Christ party and the GOP from primarily a political perspective seems to get the idea that the polarization taken place is more than just political, but rather spiritual when he finally discusses “epistemic humility” but the conflict runs far deeper than even what he mentions in his column.
 
When Lucifer lost his position at the throne of God, he then set his sites on a newly formed creation called earth.  Before evil found its way there, only peace, joy, happiness, and perfect uninterrupted unity and fellowship between God, man, and nature existed.  All things were made and ordered exactly as God desired things to be until Lucifer, who became Satan, and also known as that old serpent (Rev. 12:9) came to the earth and entered into the garden of Eden in which the first man Adam, and his wife Eve, the first woman dwelt and tended, leading them to eat fruit from a certain tree called the tree of the knowledge of good and evil which was forbidden to them.  They had been warned by God that in the day that they ate of that fruit, they would surely die (Gen. 2:16-17, 3:3) and when they did eat of that fruit, everything changed from the perfect peaceful world they once knew into the decaying and dying dark world in which we live today.  That change began when a corruption called sin entered into Adam and Eve after having eaten that forbidden fruit and when that happened, the sentence of death was implemented (Gen. 3:19) and not just on them but upon all of mankind since, having descended from Adam and Eve, we are all inherently sinful because the sin that entered into them was passed down to the rest of us (Rom. 5:12) and therefore we all sin and therefore we all die as a consequence for as it is written, the wages of sin is death. (Rom. 6:23)
 
But sin is not just a mere outward act or manner of conduct.  It is not even merely carelessly or cruelly spoken words.  It is much more than that; it is the corrupted condition of human nature itself which resides in each and everyone of us influencing not only our actions, behavior, or our speech, but also the attitude of our hearts, our motives, ambitions, and even our thought life.
 
Sin taints, corrupts, spoils, defiles, and destroys everything that it has ever touched and still touches and for this reason, we are born estranged from our Maker for by sin are we cut off from our Creator and because of sin ever present within us, our own goodness, even that of the best of us, is tainted by sin which is why it is written that all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (Rom. 3:23) which is moral perfection, yet sin makes that impossible for us to attain moral perfection by our own efforts and merit but the affects of sin is not confined to just man; the consequences of Adam’s disobedience also extended to all of creation which why to this day, the creation groans and travails in pain (Rom. 8:19-22) due to the curse that came upon it because of sin.
 
That is why we live in a world in which death and decay reign, and in which misery, suffering, grief, sorrow, pain, strife, violence, evil, and calamity abound and increasingly so as the day of judgment, which must come upon all evil and sin, draws near but if the day of judgment is delayed, it is delayed because God is not willing that any should perish but that all come to repentance (2 Pet. 3:9) for though all sin and evil must eventually be judged and punished, God, in His love for man and in His mercy has provided redemption in Christ Jesus who came into the world to redeem mankind from their sins by purchasing our redemption by His shed blood upon the cross and justifying our faith in Him by His resurrection (Rom. 4:25) showing His sacrifice on our behalf to be that perfect and acceptable sacrifice before Almighty God for it is by His sinlessness (2 Cor. 5:21, Heb. 4:15) that He was made to be the perfect unblemished sacrifice needed for our redemption and also by His resurrection, He showed Himself to be the conqueror of death, Hell, and the grave for just as Hell itself had no power over Christ, so we who place our trust in Him alone for salvation, Hell will have no power over us, for by the cleansing of our souls from sin, we are now no longer under condemnation for we are redeemed from what would otherwise be an unimaginable and everlasting torment in the fires and darkness of Hell and just as death and the grave have no power over Christ, so the day will come when death and the grave will have no power over us as well for just as our souls are cleansed from sin in Christ, so shall our bodies be made free from death when these corruptible shells in which we live are changed into the incorruptible, no longer contending with sinful passions and lust nor subject to death but instead be forms in which only holiness and purity dwell and which will never die. (1 Cor. 15:51-55, 1 Thess. 4:13-18)
 
And lastly, creation itself will be redeemed when it is made anew with the present world and all of its evil and darkness being done away with and replaced with a new and better world in which there is no sin or cures and in which death and decay are no more and in which there is no evil, suffering, grief, pain, or sorrow, and in which dwells no darkness but in which there is only happiness, peace, and joy before God Almighty. (Rev. 21-22)
 
The only thing that will keep anyone from being a citizen of this new world to come is in short pride; pride in those things sinful, evil, and of the darkness rather than those things that are good and of the light, pride in their own goodness rather than the goodness of God, pride in those figures whom they prop up to be the sole arbiters of truth, rather than in the source of all truth, and pride in some other proposed way to enter into Heaven and to receive eternal life rather than that prescribed and ordained of God.  In the fourth chapter of Genesis, the first two children of Adam and Eve, Cain and his brother Abel, had brought offerings before God.  Abel’s offering was accepted because it was the kind of offering that God had required of him, but Cain’s offering was rejected because it was not the kind that God had asked for.  It was humility that had a part in Abel’s obedience to God.  Pride led Cain into disobedience and when his offering was rejected, instead of humbling himself before God, he became angry and so angry that he murdered his brother Abel.  (Gen. 4:1-16)
 
How many, like Cain, have sought, and still seek to enter Heaven by some other means other than what God has provided in Christ only to find themselves shut out of the Kingdom and out of the new world to come and face an eternity of darkness and torment?
 
All it takes to become a part of this new and better world to come is humility; the humility to admit that we have sinned in some form or fashion and fallen short of the glory of God, that we need redemption, that we embrace the Redeemer sent to us, and submit ourselves to the laws, precepts, counsel, guidance, and truth of Almighty God who is the source and creator of all things.
 
If you have not done so already, and are somehow sensing the call of the Spirit of God to come to repentance, do not hesitate for another moment.  Repent and submit yourself to Christ Jesus for the forgiveness of all sins so that you may be able become an everlasting citizen of Heaven and of the new and better world to come.  Do not find yourself shut out of the Kingdom when the day to stand before your Maker comes.  Salvation is but a simple and sincere prayer away:
 
 
 
"Lord Jesus I need you.
 
 
I realize that I am a sinner
who has fallen short of the glory of God
and that my goodness falls short
of your standard of Moral perfection.
 
Please forgive me of all of my sins.
Come into my heart and into my life
to be the Savior and Lord of my life.
Make me into the servant and follower
that you want me to be.
In your name Lord Jesus, I pray.
 
 
Amen."
 
 
Know that God is not concerned with the words that you use to call upon Him forgiveness, but with the attitude of your heart and if you have, with all sincerity, have asked Christ to forgive you of your sins, placing your trust in Him only for your salvation and in nothing else, then your sins are forgiven and your place in Heaven is certain.
 
 
 
End notes:


 
1.  Ben Shapiro, “What if 'polarization' is just a symptom?” WND, October 5, 2021
https://www.wnd.com/2021/10/polarization-just-symptom/?utm_medium=wnd&utm_source=jeeng
 
 
 
Scripture references:
 
 
 
1.  2 Timothy 3:16
 
2.  John 14:6
 
3.  Isaiah 14:11-21
 
4.  Ezekiel 28:12-19
 
5.  Revelation 12:9
 
6.  Genesis 2:16-17
 
7.  Genesis 3:3
 
8.  Genesis 3:19
 
9.  Romans 5:12
 
10.  Romans 6:23
 
11.  Romans 3:23
 
12.  Romans 8:19-22
 
13.  2 Peter 3:9
 
14.  2 Corinthians 5:21
 
15.  Hebrews 4:15
 
16.  Romans 4:25
 
17.  1 Corinthians 15:51-55
 
18.  1 Thessalonians 4:13-18
 
19.  Revelation 21-22
 
20.  Genesis 4:1-16