Quid est veritas? What is truth? As recorded by John in his gospel (18:38), Pilate asks Jesus this question. I relate to Pilate because I too have and constantly ask this question. And perhaps, you too ask this question.
To respond to this question I found this excerpt:
What is
truth? Pilate was not alone in dismissing this question as unanswerable and
irrelevant for his purposes. Today too, in political argument and in discussion
of the foundations of law, it is generally experienced as disturbing. Yet if
man lives without truth, life passes him by; ultimately he surrenders the field
to whoever is the stronger (Benedict, Jesus
of Nazareth, Ch. 7 Section 3).
Do we surrender truth the the "strongest"? How do we identify what
is truth, especially in regards to morality?
Does objective moral truth exist?
More than once in my
life, I have been labeled “black and white” and “narrow-minded.” And I suppose in 21st century
America, this type of “mind” is a public minority.
I recently read an
article called, “The Curse of Broadmindedness” by Fulton Sheen. I was astonished to see how an article
published in 1932 can be so relevant today.
Mr. Sheen says there is confusion over “intolerance” and “tolerance.”
There is no other subject on which
the average mind is so much confused as the subject of tolerance and
intolerance. Tolerance is always supposed to be desirable because it is taken
to be synonymous with broadmindedness. Intolerance is always supposed to be
undesirable, because it is taken to be synonymous with narrow-mindedness. This
is not true, for tolerance and intolerance apply to two totally different
things. Tolerance applies only to persons, but never to principles. Intolerance
applies only to principles, but never to persons. We must be tolerant to
persons because they are human; we must be intolerant about principles because
they are divine. We must be tolerant to the erring, because ignorance may have led
them astray; but we must be intolerant to the error, because Truth is not our
making, but God’s.
Persequendum est (this
thing must be continued)
1 comment:
Great quote from Archbishop Sheen! I'd never thought of that distinction, tolerance and intolerance.
Waiting for the next installment...
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