Try to believe the sky is green right now.
Not pretend. Not imagine. Actually believe it.
You can’t. Even if someone offered you a million dollars, you couldn’t genuinely believe the sky is green. Your mind won’t let you.
This shows something strange about belief. We talk about “choosing” our beliefs, but that’s backwards. Beliefs choose us.
When I look outside and see blue sky, belief happens automatically. The evidence hits my brain and belief follows. I don’t decide to believe the sky is blue any more than I decide to feel pain when I stub my toe.
People say things like “I choose to believe in God” or “I’ve decided not to believe in climate change.” But they’re describing the end result, not the process. What they mean is: after weighing everything, this is where I landed.
The weighing happens below conscious control. Your brain takes in evidence, applies your existing frameworks, and spits out belief. You experience the result, not the calculation.
This is why rational argument sometimes works and sometimes doesn’t. If someone’s weighing system is different from yours, the same evidence produces different beliefs. You’re both passive recipients of whatever your particular minds conclude.
Sometimes I wish I could choose my beliefs. It would be convenient to believe I’ll live forever. Comforting to believe everything happens for a reason.
But belief isn’t a menu. It’s more like weather. It happens to you.