Of a measles outbreak and expert opinion

By Tyler Tankersley

The state of Washington is currently experiencing a measles outbreak. Curiously, the disease has mostly been contained to a specific area of the state. Public health officials lay the blame for this outbreak on the fact that this specific area is known as an "anti-vaccination" hotspot. The region has a 78% vaccination rate, which is well below the 94% needed rate to guarantee communal protection against a disease.

This recent outbreak is a symptom of a current national trend: the lack of trust in our experts. Doctors who have been trained in pathological medicine tell us that vaccinations are an effective and safe way to treat disease. Yet, somebody might hear more an anecdote or read one blog online about the dangers of vaccinations, therefore they choose not to vaccinate their children, which places others in their communities at risk.

In the Bible, we are told to be people of humility. The prophet Micah tells us that we are to walk with God in humility (Micah 6:8) and Proverbs 18:12 teaches us that "Before destruction one's heart is haughty, but humility goes before honor." The starting place for humility is the acknowledgment that we do not know everything and that we are in need of instruction and guidance. Perhaps even from the experts in our midst.

But we Americans seem to be less and less trusting of our experts. In his recent book The Death of Expertise, Tom Nichols writes, "The bigger problem is that we're proud of not knowing things. Americans have reached a point where ignorance, especially of anything related to public policy, is an actual virtue. To reject the advice of experts is to assert autonomy, a way for Americans to insulate their increasingly fragile egos from ever being told they're wrong about anything."

I understand that we should not completely accept everything that we hear from experts. We should always be willing to do our own research and reach our own conclusions. But we should also be open to questioning our own experiences and perspectives on how we see the world.

There is an increase in ignorance in our society today. More and more people are believing that the Earth is flat and the evidence they have is: "Well, it looks flat to me." Some people do not believe in the existence of systematic racism because they think to themselves, "Well, I don't know anybody who is oppressed." Others read their Bibles and, without consulting any outside sources or the original languages of the text, declare, "Well, this is clearly what this passage must mean then." Choosing to define truth based solely on our own experiences is a heightened idolatry of the self.

Humility is the willingness to admit that we do not know everything. Occasionally, that will mean laying aside your own perspective and being willing to learn from the people who have invested their lives into the study of a certain subject. As John Adams said, "Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our passion, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence."