Samuel pointed out to the people of Zerahemlah that they were rejecting his message because of who he was. They were predisposed to ignore anything that didn’t come from a Nephite. (Not that that’s a true excuse since they also rejected the words of Nephi.) it is human nature to have our biases. Republicans are more likely to ignore a warning that comes from Democrats and Democrats are more likely to ignore a warning that comes from Republicans. We are also not likely to extend the benefit of doubt to those we were predisposed to agree with.
I wonder if this tendency to reject the message based on the messenger is stronger among those coming from a place of privilege than among those who are coming from the margins of society and power.
Leave a Reply