Nature v. Nurture

A school in psychology (I can’t remember which one) came up with the theory that a man’s life is shaped predominantly by either nature or nurture. The former basically means that a person can attribute (or blame, whichever way the wind blows :p) his/her life to his/her genes. A person is tall or short, smart or not-so-smart based on the genetic configuration that s/he has. The latter, on the other hand, follows the thought that a person is shaped based on his/her environment. For the second one, it’s all about the exposure to the elements, in a manner of speaking.

In truth, I neither agree nor disagree with both of these. Or rather, I don’t completely subscribe to one over the other. I think that it’s a bit of both. Sure, genes cannot be taken out of the picture even if we’re talking about attitude more than a person’s appearance. One cannot recall just how many times one has heard lines that go something like, “You are as grouchy as your dad!” or “You are as stingy as your lolo!” or “You are as kind as your mom!” You get the drift. However, one can easily argue that these are easily attributable to nurture and not just to nature. Being surrounded by people who act in a certain way, it’s almost a sure thing that a person will either follow that attitude, or go the complete opposite way. Or, even if one is possessed by this or that certain trait, it doesn’t necessarily follow that that person will stick to what the stereotype that surrounds that. A popular example would be of a short guy being an excellent basketball player. So yes, it’s partly nature and partly nurture, but I think that there’s something else, and I think that that something is called choice. (Hmmm… I think I think too much. What do you think?:p)

Yeah, sure, a person can’t choose his/her own parents. A lot of times also, one cannot choose one’s own environment. What a person can choose, however, is whether or not to subscribe to a certain point-of-view that s/he is exposed to. I believe that ultimately, it’s in the person’s choices that will determine what kind of a person s/he will be. You choose to be who you are by your actions. Sure, a person can always put up the defense that s/he has been set up, or backed into a corner so that there’s nothing left to do but that one way, which just so happens to be completely opposite to what one wants to do. However, a person can’t keep on saying that that’s the case for the rest of his/her life. That’s not always the case. Besides, first and foremost, we all have the freedom to choose. I don’t think I’ll ever tire of saying this, that each one of us is blessed with an organ up there in our heads called the brain, and that we should use it, because that’s the reason why it’s there. It’s our choice whether we limit ourselves or we allow ourselves to broaden our horizons. We can choose to be narrow-minded little prats or brainless robots if we want, but then, why should we? Why would we want to be like that?

Of course, there’s a limit to being broad-minded – almost everything has a limit, when you get down to it. I’m referring to the term to cover only a certain scope. We should be broad-minded not in the sense that we just accept anything and everything as perfectly all right (which is just wrong), but that we discern for ourselves what is good. It’s not about the relativity of goodness – we’ve been equipped by God with a conscience that makes us know instinctively whether what we’re doing is right or wrong. Job 34:4 says, “Let us discern for ourselves what is right; let us learn between us what is good.” We see for ourselves whether something is bad for us and for our soul. Of course, there will always be things that are mala in se (bad by themselves), such as pagan worship and pornography, but there are also things that are dependent on what kind of person you are. For example, a person can get exposed to certain literature, such as music or books, which will not affect him/her at all, because the person will not allow that to twist his/her ideals, concepts, or whatever since s/he knows that that’s just what these are – literature. On the other hand, another person might be exposed to that same medium, and end up not as unscathed as the first person. S/he will be so affected by it that there will be something inside him/her that would be changed, and even possibly forever. But here’s the deal: a thing cannot get to you unless you allow it to. Besides, as Mk 7:15 says, “Nothing that enters one from outside can defile that person; but the things that come out from within are what defile.” We might go and “ingest” all things seen as “pure,” but if what comes out of us are filled with venom and spite, what good would subscribing to these things do? Absolutely nothing, except to make one be in danger of being so incredibly self-righteous without realizing that one is no better than the rest of humanity. Again, it’s about discerning what is right for you, and what is not an abomination for Him. Each person has his/her own weakness, his/her own Waterloo, and if one knows of it, then stay away from it. If you think that you’re vulnerable to something, then don’t expose yourself to it, but do not assume that everyone else is suffering from the same weakness that you have. Romans 14:3 says, “The one who eats must not despise the one who abstains, and the one who abstains must not pass judgment on the one who eats; for God has welcomed him.” To extend this thought (and the chapter further), let’s see verses 8-9, “For if we live, we live for the Lord, and if we die, we die for the Lord; so then, whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s. For this is why Christ died and came to life, that He might be Lord of both the dead and the living.” God does not discriminate. If we choose to see Him from this angle while another looks at Him from another, it does not mean that you are the one who is right and the other is wrong. That is just your ego talking.

As long as we know we are in the center of God’s Will, as long as we know we are following Him, we are letting Him lead our lives to where we’re supposed to be, it’s fine. We’re not going to go and do something that’s contrary to what He wants for us just because – and especially not so when we have already come to know Him. That would just be insulting. We live for Him and not for what other people are saying. If we know inside us that we are living for His glory, why should we prescribe to what people around us are doing? They have their own different path; all of us have different paths because all of us are different, but all of these ultimately lead to Him, for He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life (Jn 14:6). He has a different call for us, but all of these are to bring us to Him, not away from Him. If we go and condemn other Christians for keeping the faith in a way that is a bit different from ours, even if they are following what God wants of them, we would be no better than the Pharisees of old who think that they’re the only ones who are right, and follow the law for its own sake. We do not see that it’s not so much about the method of walking, but that we have our hearts, our souls, our minds focused on our goal: our Lord.

Sirach 15: 17 “Before man are life and death, whichever he chooses shall be given him.”