Where's the Logic?

(Another bonus photo from Halloween party)

Sometimes I feel like my Chinese friends are not so logical. I don’t want to sound superior in my understanding of the world, but I am often confused how my friends and students can arrive so affirmatively at their beliefs when it seems they have had experiences that might lead them to conclude otherwise. For instance, the other day I was talking to my friend about whether or not she believed in ghosts or bad spirits. “I don’t believe,” she answered very confidently in Chinese. “But if you believe in angels, then don’t you think you have to believe in ghosts?” I asked her.

“I don’t know.” she replied. “But I do think I have seen something very strange before that might have been a ghost.” Then, my friend proceeded to tell me about two different experiences when she had encountered an evil and unidentifiable spirit.

Now, help me to see how this makes sense. She just told me she doesn’t believe in ghosts, but then gives me two examples that happened to her when she encountered ghosts.

My friends final thought on this subject was that when she did meet the ghosts, she was so angry and cruel to them that they have never bothered her since, therefore, she doesn’t believe that the ghosts exist. Hmm, I’m lost.