I suppose it comes with aging, as every generation says the same, but I can't help but notice a chipping away of the foundation. The truths I was taught as a child are being discarded in favor of new logic. With that comes a sadness and an anger. And it is those two emotions that I deal with on a daily basis. Happiness is a transient thing and enjoyed in a moment. Thankfully I have quite a few of those moments and so will not complain. It is a sadness for things lost, and an anger at being unable to prevent that loss, that is the stuff of everyday life. Those two feelings are the source of my introspection. I spend a lot of time in introspection. I watch the world around me and question myself. Are the principles I cling to correct ? How can I know but by examination? In order to examine anything you must first have an example to compare with. Where shall I get that example ?
The fact is you cannot be certain. That is why there is faith. You must reach a point were you believe. We must however guard against blind faith, blind allegiance, and ignorance. That leads us to this question of " proof. " I have said it many times and believe it to be so, belief requires no proof. Faith is dependent upon belief. Is introspection the search for truth ? Ideally yes, you would have to say it is. It is a self analysis. I find it much easier to analyze others than myself. That in itself is a warning sign to me. I should be aware of all that influences me. I don't have that knowledge about you. So logic would dictate I should make a more accurate examination of myself. But, I don't. That is because I find excuses enough to justify my choices. The examination is accurate enough but the results of that examination could be called into question. And they are ! I find myself questioning. Of course the first thought that comes to mind is, am I a doubting Thomas ? Is it proof I seek ? The answer is no, I don't believe I require any physical proof. Now, I'm not just talking about religious faith here I'm including those basic principles I was taught as a child. Call them the axioms of Mom or whatever, but they were the guiding principles I was raised with. Did some of those guiding principles contain prejudicial material ? Absolutely, I was raised by real people after all. Have I been able to identify and erase all of that ? Probably not. The real question there is, what is prejudicial and what is simply fact, the two are often confused. I find that more common in todays world than say thirty years ago. How can we know if truth is an absolute ? Some would say that there are no absolutes. Those who hold this view believe everything is relative to something else, and therefore there can be no actual reality. Because of that, there are ultimately no moral absolutes, no authority for deciding if an action is positive or negative, right or wrong. This view leads to “situational ethics,” the belief that what is right or wrong is relative to the situation. This obviously leads to chaos and confusion. As the situation changes so do the ethics ?
Personally I can not subscribe to that way of thinking. I believe there is absolute truth. Being a human being I can not know the workings of the entire universe and all it contains. The more knowledge we gain of those workings the more I am convinced. Hey, face it, we don't even understand or comprehend the size of the universe. It is infinite ! Do you understand infinite ? I sure don't. So what is the absolute truth ? That is a question man has been asking since the beginning. I don't believe we will ever know that answer. The best we can hope for is a revelation. Will we find that in death ? Maybe, maybe not. The truth is, I don't know. That is an absolute. That is also the " proof " that absolutes do exist. I exist and I am energy. Energy can not be destroyed only transformed from one state to another. Why shouldn't that be true in regard to us ? I believe that is an absolute truth. That is only one however, how many more absolutes exist ? I believe there must be an ultimate authority. Without that how can order be maintained ? The mysteries of the universe. There is no doubt that it is an ordered structure. Something has to be directing the show ! The situation may have changed, but I believe the ethics must remain the same. I'm watching them change and don't like it. That pretty much sums it up.
The fact is you cannot be certain. That is why there is faith. You must reach a point were you believe. We must however guard against blind faith, blind allegiance, and ignorance. That leads us to this question of " proof. " I have said it many times and believe it to be so, belief requires no proof. Faith is dependent upon belief. Is introspection the search for truth ? Ideally yes, you would have to say it is. It is a self analysis. I find it much easier to analyze others than myself. That in itself is a warning sign to me. I should be aware of all that influences me. I don't have that knowledge about you. So logic would dictate I should make a more accurate examination of myself. But, I don't. That is because I find excuses enough to justify my choices. The examination is accurate enough but the results of that examination could be called into question. And they are ! I find myself questioning. Of course the first thought that comes to mind is, am I a doubting Thomas ? Is it proof I seek ? The answer is no, I don't believe I require any physical proof. Now, I'm not just talking about religious faith here I'm including those basic principles I was taught as a child. Call them the axioms of Mom or whatever, but they were the guiding principles I was raised with. Did some of those guiding principles contain prejudicial material ? Absolutely, I was raised by real people after all. Have I been able to identify and erase all of that ? Probably not. The real question there is, what is prejudicial and what is simply fact, the two are often confused. I find that more common in todays world than say thirty years ago. How can we know if truth is an absolute ? Some would say that there are no absolutes. Those who hold this view believe everything is relative to something else, and therefore there can be no actual reality. Because of that, there are ultimately no moral absolutes, no authority for deciding if an action is positive or negative, right or wrong. This view leads to “situational ethics,” the belief that what is right or wrong is relative to the situation. This obviously leads to chaos and confusion. As the situation changes so do the ethics ?
Personally I can not subscribe to that way of thinking. I believe there is absolute truth. Being a human being I can not know the workings of the entire universe and all it contains. The more knowledge we gain of those workings the more I am convinced. Hey, face it, we don't even understand or comprehend the size of the universe. It is infinite ! Do you understand infinite ? I sure don't. So what is the absolute truth ? That is a question man has been asking since the beginning. I don't believe we will ever know that answer. The best we can hope for is a revelation. Will we find that in death ? Maybe, maybe not. The truth is, I don't know. That is an absolute. That is also the " proof " that absolutes do exist. I exist and I am energy. Energy can not be destroyed only transformed from one state to another. Why shouldn't that be true in regard to us ? I believe that is an absolute truth. That is only one however, how many more absolutes exist ? I believe there must be an ultimate authority. Without that how can order be maintained ? The mysteries of the universe. There is no doubt that it is an ordered structure. Something has to be directing the show ! The situation may have changed, but I believe the ethics must remain the same. I'm watching them change and don't like it. That pretty much sums it up.
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