The worldview of each individual varies depending on the occasion, personal beliefs, and life experiences. However, Myers and Noebel (2015) ten key filters in the process of understanding the world. Those filters are biology, ethics, economics, history, law, philosophy, politics, psychology, sociology, and theology. These lenses help a person to study the world and form their own perception of its realities. Nonetheless, they are often seen as a subject studied at the university level or high school. Despite this fact, their true value lies in unity as Myers and Noebel (2015) argue that combined insight from each of these disciplines would closely resemble the ultimate truth in an ideal world. Nevertheless, in practice, each field is a separate entity that rarely interacts with others.
Therefore, these lenses should be understood separately for detailed comprehension. Theology, when translated this word means “the study of God.” Theologists try to understand the origin of everything through the comprehension of God and its nature. Philosophy refers to “love of wisdom” when translated from Greek. Philosophy is the study dedicated to the nature of reality – “how we know what we know, and how to accurately know about reality and knowledge.” Ethics is translated as “goodness,” but it refers to that term in a much broader sense. Ethicists are concerned with the exploration of “the good life” and ways to attain this life that, in reality, is good. They take into consideration the personal belief of individuals and analyze the way each human being acts based on those beliefs and how it brings them closer to the good life. Psychology is the study of the human soul, the discipline which tries to understand the innate characteristics of humanity that differentiate our species from animals. This academic branch researches human and animal behavior to draw conclusions on human intentions and guide those who struggle in search of a better life.
Sociology is the study of communication, cooperation, and the relationships between individuals, in other words, it explores human communities. This academic field is driven by the question of “How do we live in community with one another?” in order to find an ideal method to live in harmony (Myers and Noebel, 2015). Biology studies the nature of living beings and tries to understand human aliveness through the study of and cross-comparison between individuals and species. Law refers to the rules through the utilization of which people are governed. This field is dedicated to the concepts of justice and fairness and acts as the means to mitigate chaos and uncertainty in the natural world. It is common practice, in my opinion, to address politics as a negative research area due to its corrupt image. However, the importance of the field for optimal organization of human communities is immense as it tries to nourish virtue within the governmental rule. Economics from Latin is understood as “the art of running a household” (Myers and Noebel, 2015). However, the modern view on the subject frequently involves the circulation of money. History is the study of human experience that seeks to differentiate the best possible outcome today based on what happened in the past.
In reality, these lenses constitute a much deeper knowledge base that spams across various smaller academic fields. Nevertheless, it is evident that each discipline, despite the differences in methods and focus, searches for the methods to approach a meaningful life as individuals or the community.
Reference
Myers, J., & Noebel, D. A. (2015). Understanding the times: A survey of competing worldviews (5th ed.). David C Cook.