Belief is Stronger than Truth
We live in a world where what we believe influences more than truth itself. But what happens when these misalign? What happens when we choose to believe that which is wrong over that which is true?
We Follow Our Beliefs
People are naturally inclined to follow what they believe, otherwise they wouldn't believe it. Even when what we believe is wrong, we will choose belief over fact every time. If we choose fact over our belief, then we would not be an authentic believer in the falsehood and thus the falsehood would not be our belief. Thus beliefs are stronger than truths. We like to believe that everything we belief in is true, but that is not always the case. People believed that the Sun revolved around the Earth. People believed that the Titanic was unsinkable. But these beliefs changed when evidence proofed otherwise. The problem is when evidence is no longer available or when we are skeptical or dismissive of evidence that beliefs become dangerous.
Dogma Vs Truth
John Stuart Mill argued that what we believed (our truths) could be classified into two different camps: dead dogma and living truth. He argued that dogma was simply accepted as fact and dismissed any other views regardless of evidence supporting those views. The problem with dogma is that if our beliefs were wrong than we would never find the truth as it falls outside of these established beliefs. Our beliefs that are tested and challenged using evidence and discussion are living truths in that they are flexible to changing given new evidence and ideas.
NOTE: Living truths and truth are not the same. One represents a flexible belief that attempts to find the truth, while truth is simply what is actually true. Outside mathematics, most of our educated beliefs are "living truths."
Why Does It Matter
Today, so many people find evidence that locks in their beliefs but reject evidence that may present legitimate objection to these beliefs. Our beliefs should be "living truths" as Mill argued. We should be testing our beliefs and trying to find the truth rather than protecting our beliefs from potential threats. For such thought becomes dogmatic and stagnant. It doesn't help people who suffering to ignore potential solutions to problems simply because you choose not to open your beliefs to fair criticism. We value free speech because other views are valuable. These other views could be the truth. But too many times we stick with our beliefs and ignore evidence rather than the consider all of the possibilities. We need to challenge our beliefs to find truths that will help us all. Otherwise, we might be on a sinking ship we once thought could never sink.
Sources
On Liberty, John Stuart Mill
https://www.utilitarianism.com/ol/one.html