On truth and humanity...

Yesterday I had a really good discussion with some friends... about everything, faith, life, God, purpose, crisis, desert, spring, etc., etc., etc...

I hadn't had such a good conversation in a while. It's good to have people that will challenge your thinking, and with whom you can have an open, honest conversation and say everything that's in your heart.

Today when I was thinking back on it, I realized something: when I don't have people like that around me, I feel less myself, and more than that, I feel less human. It's almost like my humanity is tied, or connected to my ability to express myself. I like words. I like speaking. And maybe this realization comes because being in Germany and not being able to speak the language and express whatever I'm thinking/feeling, is starting to get to me. I'm not used to it, and no, the 3 months I've been there have not made me "more used" to it.

And I realize the language barrier is only temporary, and that I am learning more and more and will hopefully be able to speak enough to get my message across in another couple of months (here's to hoping!). But that won't completely solve my problem. I also lack the people to be open with... and that seems like a bigger problem to surpass...

But back to the main point of this post:
Is the capacity for truth part of what makes us human?
I mean, does being truthful make us "more human" and being deceitful "less human"? Feel free to comment...

p.s.: You may be thinking that this post makes no sense at all, and that's fine... I'm just typing the random thoughts going through my mind... 

The invention of lying

I saw this movie a while back, called "The Invention of Lying." Imagine a world where not only people only and always say the truth, but they also can't keep their mouths shut. Imagine the scenario: Beautiful girl meets fat guy. In a regular encounter in today's world, they would be polite, say things like "nice to meet you", etc, even if it wasn't exactly accurate. In the "no lies" world, not only would they not say "nice to meet you", but they would actually say things like "wow, you're beautiful and way out of my league... I'm uncomfortable just looking at you" and she would probably reply with "you're right. You're fat and ugly and I'm wasting my time just talking to you."

I have to admit that I would absolutely hate to live in a world like that. Not because I want to lie. No, I would probably be perfectly happy in a world where nobody lied... but where they knew how to keep their mouths shut whenever they had something inappropriate in their heads.

Being polite is not lying. Being polite is a matter of courtesy and education. Of behaving well in society. And in all honesty, that also includes "white lies." If you meet the most obnoxious person in the world in a job interview, you're almost obligated to say "it's nice to meet you" even if you're thinking they're the last person on the planet you'd actually want to meet. If your best friend just got the worst haircut in history, you always say "it's not that bad" even if it is-- you don't say it's beautiful, cuz that would just be a plain lie, and you don't lie to your friends. But you do try to cheer them up... "it'll grow fast, you won't even notice it..."

Anyway, just hadn't posted anything here in a while, and remembered this movie, which is actually quite interesting, I definitely recommend it!

What is truth?

I just googled "what is truth?" and a LOT of hits came up. There are entire websites dedicated to the question of what is truth.

Is there such thing as absolute truth? Some argue that there is. Others say that truth is relative.

It got me to thinking... if there is no such thing as absolute truth, then can we really affirm anything? Even the simplest things seem to became relative. "This sweater is blue." Is it really? Would a person who was colorblind agree with that?

If something so simple can be interpreted differently by a different people, what can we do with more complex questions, like the existence of God, what is truth, who is my neighbor, etc.?

Of course, so far I've been speaking in the general Truth with a capital 'T' sense. That Truth matters to our lives in a more cosmic sense, and consequently is much more important. But we usually manage to put that aside and not think of it so much. The one we can't put aside and have to deal with every day, every moment of every day, is the truth with a little 't'. We are constantly interacting with the world around us, and therefore everything that comes out of our mouths, our expressions, our actions, are based in either the truth, or in falsehood. It is also here that the question of "omission" comes into question: if you didn't lie, just didn't say anything, are you still to blame?

I had a professor in college a few years ago who defined my view of truth vs. lies forever. I don't know if he knew he would have that big of an impact on my life, and maybe some of the other students as well, but I have never heard a better definition:

"A lie is everything and anything, even the truth, if said with the intention of deceiving someone." 


We should all be more careful with what comes out of our mouths... 


"Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks."

Inconvenient truth...

C.S. Lewis is one of my favorite authors. Besides the famous Chronicles of Narnia, he wrote a lot of Christian books with lots of philosophy thrown in. He also wrote about literature, history, and even some poetry (which I find really great!)

He had a peculiar knack for saying things in the simplest possible way and make you think for hours. He spoke a lot about truth, and I found this interesting quote by him:

"If you look for truth, you may find comfort in the end; if you look for comfort you will not get either comfort or truth only soft soap and wishful thinking to begin, and in the end, despair." 

                                                                          C. S. Lewis 

Looking for truth is inconvenient. It may be painful. Sometimes you'd just rather not know, because it may be too much to bear. But if C.S. Lewis is correct, in the absence of truth you don't get to live blissfully in ignorance. You get wishful thinking and despair. 

Finding your way through the dark to reach truth might be hard, and the truth itself might hurt, but you'll feel liberated and free at the end, and you'll be able to rebuild from there. Ignorance is not bliss. Ignorance is like closing your eyes when the house is on fire and imagining you're on the beach and the warmth is coming from the sun. 

The only way to true happiness is grounded in truth. 

Honesty, truth, and when to shut up

Honesty and truth are universally considered as good things and necessary character traits. But today I started thinking:

-Is there such a thing as being too honest?
-Should we always "tell the truth, the WHOLE the truth, and NOTHING but the truth, so help us God"?

Aren't there lots of instances when we should just shut the heck up?


And if so, how can we tell the difference? Sure, common sense helps in most circumstances, but what about those complicated situations that involve other people's feelings? Should we always tell the truth, even if it's something that will hurt someone? Are we going to get shot for being the messenger?

Feel free to comment...