Two years ago, my then-aquaintance Nyyki told me that eternal truth isn't relative. Eternal truth is absolute, and it is simpler than many people make it out to be.
She pointed to the building on campus directly behind us. "The location of this building is an eternal truth", she said. She could tell I was still skeptical, so she went on.
"This building's address, XXXX South Nedderman Street is an uncontestable truth...." To break it down further, one could actually contest the man-made address, but the physical space it takes up on this plane of existance is absolute.
I fear I wax verbose, but do let me go on to clarify my beliefs a bit more, something I will not often do in this blog.
Accounts of the afterlife are many and extremely varied. Every religion, every culture it seems has a different view on what happens after death. In my analytical mind, why trust what a mere mortal says about it unless... unless he's experienced it and can try to describe it with words that the rest of us can understand (though our language is surely limited). I'm speaking of course of those who have clinically died and by some miracle of either science or spirituality come back.
But... those are varied! Some describe meeting Jesus. Some say they were met by a loved-one. Others describe the Pagan Summerland. Should I try to disprove one person's account, to better uphold the account that matches my own beliefs? I don't think that's either just or warranted. Each person believes their own account with all their heart. You know what all this tells me? That the afterlife is relative.... which I have concluded, after much time and thought, means that the Afterlife is not an Eternal Truth by my standards. It simply is not the same for everyone.
(The reason I believe this is so, by the way, is because there is a loving Being in control of all of this, and said Being wants to make the transition from life to death, which can be jarring, as smooth a transition as possible).
I stumbled upon an Eternal Truth, I believe, while I was talking with my best friend Liz yesterday. She's having girlfriend woes- she was feeling sick yesterday, and her GF wouldn't make the trip from her own home town (30 minutes away) to visit Liz in her time of need because of the piss-poor weather conditions. Liz felt angry, indignant that when she most needed and wanted comfort that the one who should have been there wasn't. But she also told me she felt bad that she was angry, because she understood the GF's reasoning and (begrudgingly) admitted it was valid. "What do I do? Which should I feel?"
After a moment's pause, I warned her that if she denied her anger, effectively bottling it up and never addressing it, that it would only lead to grudges later on. Feeling bad about the anger also isn't productive, but is a sign that her rationality and her feelings were in conflict- which is a great sign that her rational thinking is healthy and working. The trick, then, is to feel the anger now, but be able to let it go later on.
That's it. What I believe is an Eternal Truth or Principle. I think it applies to everyone- to maintain sanity, feel your feelings and find a way to let them go. It is when your feelings dominate you that trouble arises.
I could be wrong. I could be full of shit. But this is life as I see it.
1 comment:
this friend you mention at the beginning of your entry has a very rigid stance on 'truth.' I think truth is both constant and dynamic. i.e. what's true will always be true (constant) and the tenets of belief do allow some flexibility and aren't as rigid as you mention in that conversation (dynamic)
I'd also like to add that I believe God created us with the ability to emote, or feel, or whatever. the church has made itself so vanilla over time, that no one wants to be the weirdo with emotions, BUT they are very much a part of who we are...which I think you'd agree with. I'm not sure that emotions themselves are good or not so good; we do have a responsibility to handle our responses in healthy ways, though.
dunno if your much of a book reader or not, but I'd give Velvet elvis by Rob Bell a try. Now, he is a pastor and there will be a decided christian slant to what you'd be reading, but the picture he paints is pretty great.
(his reference in the book to a girl who is wiccan is purely co-incidental and is no way something backhanded by me...you may like the book...that's all)
--rc
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