One of the Intramuralist’s key ambitions is to routinely encourage what is good and right and true. But let’s face it. In a society bombarded by seemingly constant moral digression, sometimes what’s good and right and true is difficult to discern.
We watch people fight. We watch them denigrate the different and call others names. We watch them refuse to listen.
And those are just the adults.
My sense is that part of our downfall is we’ve polluted the third pillar in the good, right and true metric; we’re confused by the definition of truth. Our airwaves and even casual conversations are befouled by quotes depicted as “brainy,” that in actuality speak of truth differently… I am my truth… Your truth and my truth may not be the same… This is my truth; tell me yours…
All of the above, therefore, prompt us to ask today’s zillion dollar question:
Is truth relative?
To ensure we are aligned, let’s put forth a few definitions…
truth | tro͞oTH | – noun
the quality or state of being true
- (also the truth) that which is true or in accordance with fact or reality
- a fact or belief that is accepted as true
true | tro͞o | – adjective
in accordance with fact or reality
- [attributive] rightly or strictly so called; genuine
- [attributive] real or actual
- said when conceding a point in argument or discussion
And last but not least…
rel·a·tive | ˈrelədiv | – adjective
considered in relation or in proportion to something else
• existing or possessing a specified characteristic only in comparison to something else; not absolute
So let’s get this straight…
“Truth” or “true” means that which is in accordance with fact. Facts are not debatable nor deniable. They are proven reality.
“Relative” means possession a characteristic only in comparison to something else. In other words, by definition, it is not fact.
Hence (and clearly, this isn’t rocket science nor actually any kind of science), truth cannot be relative.
“I am my truth,” therefore, instead implies that I am mixing up the words “truth” with either my “preference,” “opinion” or “desire.”
“Your truth and my truth may not be the same”… Such is also understandable, yet we’re getting lost in a most poetic idea, wherein “truth” is getting confused with either “perspective” or “experience.”
And as for “This is my truth; tell me yours”… That’s another good one, but here we’ve misplaced “truth” on top of “story” or “conviction.”
It makes sense that we would each have different preferences, opinions, desires, perspectives, experiences, stories, and convictions. With absolutely all due respect, it does not make sense that there exist different truths.
Truth be told, if we tell the truth — the whole truth and nothing but the truth, that is — truth is not relative. It’s can’t be. That’s good. That’s right. And it’s actually true.
Respectfully…
AR