My sincere apologies for not writing lately, I have been either very busy or alternately too tired to blog, but since I've not had much of a release in this respect lately, my intellect is about to explode out of my head and start taking hostages.
So,
What is truth?
There's a guy who teaches at our church some times, especially in front of youth. Lately he's had the habit of getting up and prefacing his message with claim that he's "bringin' the truth." This bugs me, alot. Now I can't just sit down and enjoy the message, I have to pick through everything he says and point out every tiny thing that he says that is either not true or questionable. I can't enjoy the sermon anymore. Thanks alot you arrogant so and so.
The thing is, what he's giving me is not the truth per se, it's his version of the truth. It's the truth as he sees it. It is not THE TRUTH simply because he says it is. I see this kind of thing in conservative circles all the time. Just because something believes in absolute truth, they automatically think they have it.
There is absolute truth, but I'll guaran-d***-tee it, you aren't in possession of it. You can't be. You're human. Even if someone told you the truth, the absolute truth, you'd mess it up somehow before you could repeat it. You're human.
When I tell you something, it goes without saying that what I am telling you is the truth, so far as it is known to me. But I'm not going to preface my "truth" by saying that it is the truth. Remember, it's the people who say they are honest that you should look out for. I believe what I am saying is the truth, just as I do about what I'm saying now, but you should evaluate it for yourself to see if it is really the truth. Because when someone says "I'm telling the truth," my first reaction is "no you're not." Wrong or right, that's the way it is.
But back to absolute truth. I just want to recapitulate the idea that though there is absolute truth, your and my grasp of it is finite. I love to listen to Rob Bell, but he has this curious habit of making small mistakes when explaining scientific things. So I'm watching and going "hmm, yes, good research, that's an interesting idea, oh, I think he messed that one up a bit, that's interesting, I never thought about it that way, etc.
I also hate April Fool's Day. Do you know why? Because I hate lying with an ever-burning passionate hatred. So I wake up and my wife tells me she's pregnant, and there goes the day. Sojourners says that Rush Limbaugh is singing a different tune, and the anger wells up inside me. Then JDizzle's phone rings and he says his wife is going into labor, and I'm about fit to be tied. My new favorite TV show? Lie to me.
Did I pull any AFD jokes on anyone? Absolutely not. I used to be a liar, I don't do that anymore. Not for the holiday, not for anyone. That's not who I am anymore. And I am absolutely disgusted with people who claim to have the truth, because they don't. Sure it's the truth that something may be on the left and something else may be on the right, but if you turn around, it's all screwed up.
Moral of the story, don't tell me you are giving me the truth, and I won't doubt your credibility.
WiredForStereo
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