“Critical Thought”

A follower asked me what I mean when I say “critical thought,” and I love that question because it’s something I had to figure out for myself over the years.

This is something I wrote last year, and I think it fits the question.

For me, critical thought means being willing to change your mind when you’re faced with new information and being able to really see other people’s perspectives, even if it proves you wrong.

Having an open mind means, quite literally, that you leave the door open for new information to come in. Even if it’s uncomfortable. Even if it contradicts what you believed was true. Even if it forces you to start over.

I know a lot of us were taught that faith and critical thought don’t go together. That questioning means you’re doubting God, or that changing your mind is weakness. But it’s very possible you were given a very simplified, limited version of faith — and many of us have come to embrace a much more expansive understanding of what faith can mean.

A friend once told me her dad used to say, “Doubt your doubts,” which sounds clever but really just means stop asking questions and stay in line. If someone taught you that faith means to silence your curiosity and conform without thought, what they actually taught you was a weaponized version of control — taking what could be a beautiful, expansive experience of faith and reducing it to a tool for suppressing questions and maintaining power.

But I have a different definition of faith.

To me, faith is believing there’s something bigger than us and also believing there’s no end to what we can learn. It’s knowing we’re only seeing a tiny piece of the truth of the universe.

For me, faith means never stopping the questions. Never pretending I’ve arrived. Never closing the door.

Someone with critical thought will never say there’s only one way to be, only one way to live, only one way to love — because that assumes you already possess all truth and that nothing more can be revealed to you. And if that is your belief, and it brings you peace, that’s okay — but it likely means you’re not practicing critical thought, at least not yet.

Critical thought also means that when something triggers you as being maybe not quite right, you don’t just let it go. You keep uncovering it until you figure it out. People with critical thought are not quiet in their inquisitions — even if their questions are bothersome to leadership.

It’s saying that even if what people are saying goes against everything you were taught, you keep listening and look for possible errors in your own thinking. This applies to religion, to politics, to love — really to any construct at all.

If you’re wanting to expand and develop your ability to think critically, it can feel uncomfortable at first. It’s not about having all the answers. It’s more about deciding the universe probably looks very different than what you’ve been taught and opening yourself to that possibility. It’s about letting go of certainty, embracing nuance, and allowing your understanding to keep growing.

For me, real faith and critical thought belong together. Both trust that there’s always more to discover, and both are willing to be changed by it.

I'll add one note. -

Years ago in my teens, I started to sense something was "off" with a lot in my beliefs structure. One night when I was deep in prayer, I had a very strong impression that once I truly understood "faith" - things would become clear.
I didn't like that because I thought God was saying just to stop asking questions and just to believe harder. Just another judgment that I wasn't enough.

I made studying “faith” my main spiritual focus for two decades.

When I finally figured out what that message meant, my world exploded and imploded. It was horrific and beautiful, exhausting and exhilarating. And suddenly, I stepped out of that cave of conformity and into a brilliant light could've never dreamt existed.

Into a world that never stops expanding or growing.