The Truth about Truth

Lately I have come across a variety of blogs and websites talking about the Truth. Or, at least, the Truth as they see it, though many of them claim it is the “Truth.”

Most of these websites have a religious bent, or else it is a religious blogger, or else it is someone pretending to be a blogger who sneaks in proselytizing messages. Sometimes you can’t even really tell they’re trying to convert you unless you know some of the wording of that particular religion. Other times they throw it in at the end like a bonus.

Being someone who spent about 15 or more years completely immersed in the search for Truth through religion, I can tell you two things:

1. There is NO one fundamental truth. If your path or way or religion focuses on Dogma about why you are right and everyone else is wrong, then that religion or path really has some growing up to do. Some people believe that their way is the only way (I grew up fundamentalist, I used to toot that horn), but it’s those who go around telling everyone else that they’re wrong who are actually wrong. It never ceases to amaze me how you can write the exact same two sentences, and one group will perceive it as “True” if their religion is the one named as the correct one, but “blasphemous” if it is a different religion. Show the same sentence to another group, and the opposite one becomes “Truth” while the other is False. Obviously it is not the sentence that is true, but the beliefs of people who determine whether it is true or not. Each group has a different perspective, and so the Truth is not Universal, but is different for different people.

2. All of the major (and even most of the lesser-known) religions boil down to a few sets of principles that are pretty much the same. Basically these are ideals that help a society function such as “treat each other well,” “don’t go around sleeping with other people’s wives or husbands or killing anyone,” and “try to get along.” Most of my atheist friends follow these same principles, not because they’re written down in a book and someone told them to, but because they’re good people who can tell the difference between right and wrong.

Incidentally, many other truths founded by controlling and very dogmatic religions include going to a service every week and giving people your money, lessons about how it is okay to be poor, teachings that people who have a lot of money will not be rewarded later (so they better get to the temple or wherever and give it to the people who control that religion), and other such nonsense such as women need to be kept down, and the women and children in a family are property. In some religions men and women are kept separate during services, and women are not allowed to ask any questions. Historically, assets were passed to controlling religions’ leaders instead of the wife if the man of the house died. Of course, homes, lands, and property were also seized by religious leaders for various reasons as well.

What am I getting at by all of this? There is no such thing as Truth. What’s true for some people is bad for another. Truths are actually based on societal constructs and norms. What was true 5,000 years ago does not always apply to today’s society. What is true in more modernized places is not always true in places that are still wild and open. What is true for many religious leaders is NOT what is true for the masses. A lot of religions were designed to keep people in check. While it wasn’t always this way, even the earliest texts of some religions quickly evolved into a list of how to make people act.

While it is good to have some ground rules and guidance, things spiraled out of control pretty early on. Leaders began to realize how much power and control they could have. If you read how different religious texts changed over time, it is easy to trace these issues.

And don’t think I’m picking on any one religion. Many, many of them are guilty of this – even Paganism. Feel free to read up on Aleister Crowley and get back to me.

I believe that it is great for people to believe in something. I hope everyone finds a path or a way that is good for them. But there is no reason for people to go around telling everyone else they are wrong. This is just arrogance and hubris at its worst. It also is completely disrespectful towards people that you are supposed to “love.” I don’t need to hear why anyone else’s way is right. That will lead to nothing but what we call “Circular Logic.” As in, “I’m right because my book says so. Also, my book is right because it tells me it was right.” I wouldn’t have passed high school English with this, so you don’t get to pass judgement on anyone else’s life with it.

So please, stop telling people you are going to tell them about the Truth. Because you aren’t. You are telling them about Your Truth. And Your Truth is not the Truth for anybody else. It’s just Yours. And Mine is Mine.

What’s your “Truth?” I’d love to hear about it. I also love to hear about how people’s Truth has changed over time. If it hasn’t changed, maybe it’s time to take another look at it.