Both/and or either/or

There are two types of dualisms: The both/and and the either/or.

The both/and means that I can love both Moose Tracks and Peppermint ice cream.

The either/or means that one may be either married or not married.

Sloppy thinking occurs when we try to force a both/and into an either/or. I don’t have to pick which of my four children are my favorite. They are all my favorite.

Sloppy thinking (or worse) also occurs when we try to force an either/or into a both/and. A choice must be made. Choose wisely.

So Jesus said to the twelve, “Do you want to go away as well?” Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life, and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God.” 

John 6:67-69