Tuesday, August 10, 2010

Appealing to the Mind instead of the Heart


I've been reading Adler's How to Read a Book, and today I came across a quote that I think applies to how we approach the proclamation of God's truth.  While Adler is discussing propaganda - or the putting forth of ideas - I think this has also ramifications in our teaching and preaching.  Our appeal should be to the mind, not  to the heart.  



Quote (pg. 198):
"The best protection against propaganda of any sort is the recognition of it for what it is.  Only hidden and undetected oratory is really insidious.  What reaches the heart without going through the mind is likely to bounce back and put the mind out of business.  Propaganda taken in that way is like a drug you do not know you are swallowing.  The effect is mysterious; you do not know afterwards why you feel or think the way you do."

3 comments:

Riley said...

So cool. I need to read this book on reading. It's sitting on my shelf, just waiting...

Unknown said...

What would it look like to only speak to the heart?

en karin said...

Communication that speaks only to the heart is communication that relies on evoking emotions, purely for the sake of the emotion and an emotional response. Now, speaking to the mind can also have an emotional effect, but that emotion comes as a result of reflecting upon the truth being spoken. The best illustration of communication that appeals to the heart (that I can think of right now) is the example of stirring up a mob. There is very little, if any, rational thought in mob mentality.

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