Then and now, what is truth?

One of the gifts, that my father instilled in his children was the love of reading. We are all voracious readers. Nowadays, a couple of my siblings have gone Kindle with their books, but my other brother and I love the feel of a good book in our hands. In fact, I’ve gotten into the habit of reading up to five books at the same time from my university days. My stash was always under my bed for that read before dozing off. My daughter used to think the bed was held up off the floor by my books. Growing up, we never had a TV until I was 12 years old. And yes, TV was around long before that — I’m not that old! But we just loved to go down to the library and bring home an armful of books to read. My sister, who was the youngest in the family, began reading but found she didn’t know the meaning of some of the words. So, she would come to the dinner table and ask what a certain word meant. “What does the word redundant mean?” One of her brothers would pipe up, “Oh, that’s when you think you have finished with something only to have to do it again — re-dundant.” She would then look at my father and say, “Daddy, is that true?” My dad would look at her and say, “It’s your brothers, what do you think?” Soon, she began reading with a dictionary beside her and she no longer relied on us for an apparent truth. She knew. Truth. What is the truth, today? We live in a world where truth hangs on a very precarious thread of reality. We find ourselves always wondering, what is the truth? Our world has seen the advent of computers even in the smallest of hands. Our minds are opened up to the awe-inspiring wonders of our world. But it has also made us aware of those who change the truth only to serve their own egos or agendas. Jesus had become a threat to those in power in the Holy Land and, just like those in power today, he had to be removed. Plots were devised and carried out. Sham trials were held. Finally, Jesus, who went about demonstrating the wonders of heaven, found himself in front of the power of Rome, Pontius Pilate. Pilate had heard the claims of the accusers, but still sat down to talk with Jesus. Pilate must have heard of the exploits of Jesus and he heard the accusations of the crowd. What was true? It is interesting that after hearing all the pros and cons, he asked Jesus, “What is truth?” After his talk with Jesus, Pilate went out to the crowd and said, “I find no case against him.” Pilate had discovered the truth, but also had to maintain the peace. We know the rest of the story. Truth is known by its actions. Does it uplift a soul or denigrate it? Does it bring hope or extinguish it? Jesus said to his friends, “I am the way, the truth and the life.” When guided by the Spirit of God, we become people of the truth. Jesus told Pilate, “Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.” What is truth? It is whatever brings new life to a crying soul. It brings hope and joy and peace and love to every situation. Seek out God and know the truth. It will set us all, free. God bless you all.