meditatio at the water's edge

Walking in Step with Reality: a few thoughts on truth

In our day, many people will say that they do not believe in absolute truth. What some people mean by this is simply that they are uncomfortable with any ideas that they do not choose to accept—they want to determine for themselves what is ‘true for them’. Certainly, they are free to do that, but it does not guarantee that what they think is ‘true for them’ corresponds to the way things really are or even coheres in a way that sufficiently addresses the human situation (i.e., questions of meaning, purpose, justice, etc.). You are free to think that gravity is not true for you, but that does not mean you can float through the air.

There are many claims to truth around us today (including one that claims there is no truth), and very few, if any, are original propositions. That is to say that to hold to a truth means to trust someone else’s account (or the accounts of several ‘someones’ ) of what Reality is and how to live in harmony with Reality. Any claim to truth is an invitation to trust.

We define ourselves as people who trust that Jesus taught people how to live in harmony with the Ultimate Reality—God. Our trust in Jesus’ truth is expressed, not just in our words, but in how we live our lives. The Apostle John wrote, “The man who says, ‘I know him,’ but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him” (1 Jn 2:4). Truth, then, involves walking in step with reality.

If you suggest that idea to someone who believes only in what is ‘true for them,’ they may ask you, “How can we ever know if how we are living is in step with Reality?” You might respond by asking them how their ’truth’ is working for them?

But as for you, be concerned with living in the truth of Jesus. As John wrote, “This is how we know we are in him: Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did” (1 Jn 2:5-6)

A great deal of emphasis has been placed on the idea that we Christians have absolute truth. This emphasis arose in reaction to the claims of modernity--via science and philosophy (claims which seemed to call into question many teachings of the church). The reaction by some Christians was that we had to get together our own explanation (eventually using scientific claims to prove our point) and show the world that we were right all along. The problem with this whole project is that it has made us think that truth had more to do with propositions and ideas and less to do with how we actually lived our day to day lives as students of Jesus.

Jesus once said to some Jews who believed him, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:31-32). It seems to me that knowing the truth is more than just ‘having the facts’—it involves living according to a particular Way. It matters little if you ‘have all the facts’ but are not walking in step with Reality.