We have come to the finish line of our common myths of mathematics. Although it seems complete with five, I’m sure there are others that I’ve missed. Hopefully, you’ve learned something about the general study of one of the highest arts. This last myth, I admit, actually contains a significant amount of truth.
When I was in college taking classes on math education, there was a push to force us to understand something called math phobia. This phobia is simply a fear of mathematics. Honestly, the only place that I’ve truly encountered this phobia is in the university. However, although its existence may be debatable, it does speak to a hard truth. What is this myth and, more importantly, what is the truth behind it?
Math is scary.
When someone tells us that math scares them, our response should be of understanding. For people are generally scared of that which they do not understand. This is why Christ scared the Pharisees, gravity scared the ancients, and Bigfoot scares the moderns. Why do people claim to be scared of math? Because math is hard and they struggle to understand it.
Mathematics is absolutely hard work, which requires time, focus, failure, and perseverance. Mathematics is also difficult to understand because it is one of our highest general revelations. Mathematics reveals the hidden world of the Creator through His creation, and that makes it difficult to understand. For as God Himself has said, “Your ways are not My ways, and My ways are not your ways.”
Does this mean that math is scary? Only if you enter into the study of the mathematics with the reverence for the One that you are discovering along the path. Now that's a compelling reason to study math all the more.