What is Truth?

"Once to every man and nation comes the moment to decide, in the strife of Truth with Falsehood, for the good or evil side”

Abolitionist James Russell Lowell, addressing the troublesome issue of slavery, pinned these words in 1844, lamenting “Truth forever on the gallows, wrong forever on the throne …” What is truth? How do we respond on those occasions when we must face the truth? Can we even handle the truth?

The court-martial scene from the 1992 film, A Few Good Men provides us a memorable movie moment. Tom Cruise plays the part of Lt. Daniel Kaffee who is questioning Col. Nathan Jessup (played by Jack Nicholson). It is a pivotal scene, one full of emotion.

Jessup: “What is it you want?”
Kaffee: “I want the truth!”
Jessup: “You can’t handle the truth …”

Not only is the truth sometimes difficult to handle, it often becomes so twisted and distorted that it is impossible to recognize. The truth is that the truth is elusive. “Look me in the eye, and tell me the truth,” my father used to instruct whenever he thought that I was being less than forthright. My wife, Nancy employs the same technique in her inquisitions. Perhaps that is why I am a terrible poker player – I just can’t seem to hide my lying eyes. Unfortunately, we accept and perhaps even expect our leaders to be 'truth impaired.' They look us eye to eye and say, “I am not a crook.” We read their lips and hear “No new taxes.” They ignore, twist, deflect and spin the truth, for example:

“It depends on what the meaning of the word ‘is’ is. If ‘is’ means is and never has been, that is one thing. If it means there is none, then that was a completely true statement.”

The 'Teflon President,' gave us that classic. And while our ex-presidents may have been masters of ‘spin,’ they do not hold a monopoly on the biased employment of figures, events and situations. After twenty-some debates there remains ample ambiguity concerning where the current candidates for the Oval Office really stands.

Thus, the American electorate relies on ‘spin doctors,’ operating in ‘spin rooms,’ to interpret the ‘facts’ and guide our vote. It seems that we have come to expect ‘spin’ to the point that we subconsciously discount almost everything we hear, even the broadcaster who cautions “You are about to enter the no spin zone,” prior to beginning his commentary. What is the truth? I guess it depends on what the meaning of the word ‘is’ is.

Defining Truth
If you want to really exercise your mind, then go online and research the many theories that philosophers employ to define truth. A scholarly examination of the German statement, 'schnee ist wiess,' results in the logic that "snow is white is true if and only if snow is white." Think about that.  There are no less than five substantive theories, dozens of lesser theories and hundreds of corollaries, including:

The Correspondence Theory
A statement is true if it corresponds to the facts or to reality. “That is really how it happened.”
The Pragmatic Theory
A statement is true if it allows you to interact effectively and efficiently with the cosmos. “It is true because it works.”
The Coherence Theory
A statement is true if it is logically consistent with other beliefs that are held to be true. “It is true because it makes sense.”
The Consensus Theory
Truth is agreed on by a group. “Everyone believes he is guilty.”
The Constructivist Theory
Truth is constructed by social processes base on history and culture. “That is the way we do it here.”

My understanding of truth is reflected in a print that I recently selected for my new office in Brevard. It is a reproduction of an 1890 painting by Russian artist Nikolai Ge that portrays Jesus being questioned by Pontius Pilate. It strikes a nerve and causes me to think about that monumental encounter of Truth with Falsehood; good and evil.

Pilate thought he had a good handle on the truth in this case, reliable witnesses corroborated the facts, public consensus was clearly substantiated and all of the cultural constructs were in place. Pragmatically anyone that claimed to be a king was no friend of Caesar, and it just made sense to get rid of this troublemaker. That night, in the Hall of Judgement, Pilate looked truth in the eye. He read its lips when Jesus spoke of truth. And despite his best efforts at spin and deflection, Pilate could not avoid the moment of decision.

Ge’s picture is a reminder to me that we all have to face times of decision. We encounter the truth. We can spin it, deflect it, ignore it and rationalize it all we want to, but we can’t wash our hands of the responsibility. Ultimately we have to look the truth in the eye and make a choice. Can you handle the truth?

"Quid Est Veritas?"
The vulgate translation of Pilate's question to Jesus (John 18:38).  "What is Truth."  This 1890 painting by Russian artist Nikolai Ge was removed from exhibition because of pressure from the Church.  Although Ge was inspired by genuine religious feeling, his portrayal of a tired, haggard Jesus was offensive to some religious leaders.

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