This is not about COVID. It’s not about measles, tetanus, shingles, or chickenpox. It’s about bad ideas that spread like viruses and infect people who have no defenses against them. It’s about being inoculated against destructive lies that cause spiritual anemia or worse.
In his book The Secret Battle of Ideas About God, Jeff Myers points out that it’s possible to have a “porous” worldview—one that allows damaging ideas to seep in. He compares bad ideas to highly contagious viruses that can multiply out of control and become as destructive as a pandemic—something we’re all too familiar with since the COVID-19 outbreak of 2020.
“Ideas have consequences. Bad ideas have victims.” – John Stonestreet
Just as people can carry contagious pathogens without showing any symptoms, bad ideas are spread by masquerading as something harmless. I will give people the benefit of the doubt here and say they (mostly) are unaware when they are putting others' health at risk in this way. Ideas are not so innocent. They are dangerously deceptive. They have enough truth to be appealing, but they are really sugar-coated counterfeits. If they appeared harmful on the surface, they wouldn't be such a threat. People wouldn't accept them as readily.
Myers states that “bad viruses can’t be conquered with good viruses.” We need to develop a worldview that works like an immune system to prevent bad ideas from causing spiritual sickness that can spread and cause harm to others. What is the best way to develop such a worldview?
Contrary to popular belief, constantly reinforcing only what we already know or what we already believe to be true makes us more susceptible to bad ideas. We need to be inoculated against the disease of bad ideas by being informed ahead of time of lies that will challenge the truth. This ‘inoculation theory’ has been tested in several medical and psychological studies since at least the early 1960s. Although the studies were primarily done for application in health communication, the concept has a much broader application. This can be observed in published findings of the studies.
One such study mentions how people tend to defend their beliefs by completely avoiding any counterarguments. This lack of opposition may help them feel more confident in their beliefs, but also leaves them more vulnerable when challenges can’t be avoided. The same study set out to demonstrate that supportive defenses can also contribute to maintaining one's held beliefs against persuasion. [https://www.jstor.org/stable/2786067]
The authors of one article on inoculation theory describe the inoculation method this way: “a conventional inoculation message begins with a forewarning of impending challenges to a held position, then raises and refutes some possible challenges that might be raised by opponents.” They also stated that it’s not necessary to refute every possible challenge that might present itself in the future. They found that “inoculation messages provide ‘umbrella protection’ against subsequent attacks.”
These concepts can be applied to the study and practice of Christian apologetics. Our supportive defenses are knowing the evidence for the truth we believe. Our inoculation comes from learning the most common objections to Christianity and how to respond. We don’t have to have all the answers. Being confident in our faith and being aware of the kinds of challenges we’ll face gives us “umbrella protection.”
Myers makes the point that “we can’t just pretend bad ideas don’t exist or hope no one will believe them. It seems counterintuitive, but with so many bad ideas threatening to infect us, focusing on only what we know to be true doesn’t build up the immunity we need. Even the strongest of us is vulnerable.” [Secret Battle, p. 42]
This is why apologetics is so important. It’s important for adults. It’s important for students and children. Knowing why you believe Christianity is true and being prepared to be challenged is the best way to keep your faith from being shipwrecked. It’s how you can be inoculated against the lethal pathogens known as 'bad ideas.'
Recommended resource: The Secret Battle of Ideas About God: Overcoming the Outbreak of Five Fatal Worldviews, Jeff Myers
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