What is truth? Pontius Pilate asked this question 2,000 years ago and it is still an all-important question today. Is truth fluent and subjective or is it objective and binding on all people, in all place, for all times? Just the other day I saw a twitter post the other day that read,
Objectivity is a myth, the truth is usually a political construct, and listening to and amplifying the voices of people who are actually impacted by oppression is always more important than getting the oppressor’s official comment, ok, love u byeeee.[1]
Objectivity is a myth? Truth is a political construct? What the author of the tweet is appealing to is a postmodern view of truth. The postmodern view of truth (as seen by the tweet) is radically different than the corresponding theory of truth because, on this view there is no objective truth, all truth is subjective and purely related to one’s background and experiences. Therefore, what is true for one person may not be true for someone else. Recently, Oprah Winfrey, while speaking at the 2018 Golden Globes, stated, “What I know for sure, is that speaking your truth is the most powerful tool we all have.”[2] I like Oprah, I think she has done a lot of good for people in her lifetime and has become a very successful person. However, her statement appeals to a postmodern view of truth and provides a good critique of the postmodern view of truth.
what if when you tell "your truth" and I tell "my truth" they are opposite "truths"? What if one person believes abortion is ok and another person doesn’t, yet both are “speaking their truth?” Two statements that are directly opposite of one another cannot both be true. However, postmodernism forces us to accept both as right. This is the biggest problem with the postmodern framework of truth. If everyone’s truth is correct then nothing can be deemed as wrong.
The correspondence theory of truth is a much better way to approach truth because it is independent of people. This theory of truth states that truth is directly linked to reality, it corresponds to the way things really are. In other words truth could be seen as “telling it like it is.”
In adhering to this model of truth, it should also be understood that truth is transcultural, meaning if something is true, it is true for all people, all times, all places, all circumstances or situations. 1+1=2 is true no matter who you are or where you come from. This equation is true for the rich and for the poor.
Another fact about truth is that while our beliefs about truth change, truth itself is unchanging. There were times in human history where the consensus scientific view was that the earth was the center of the universe and that the earth was flat. But, that didn’t change the truth about the earth. The only thing that changed was human’s belief about the earth. [3]
This leads to another truth about truth, beliefs themselves cannot change the nature of truth, no matter how sincerely or passionately someone may be in holding to their beliefs. Someone could sincerely believe that the Sun shine all day, every day. They could even passionately door-knock to convince people that their belief is right; however, their belief does not correspond to the way the sun operates in relation to the earth, therefore, the belief is false.
Furthermore, when it comes to truth, beliefs themselves cannot change the nature of truth, no matter how sincerely or passionately someone may be in holding to their beliefs. Someone could sincerely believe that the Sun shine all day, every day. They could even passionately door-knock to convince people that their belief is right; however, their belief does not correspond to the way the sun operates in relation to the earth, therefore, the belief is false.
This is important because we all have an opinion about the nature of truth which shapes how we view the world and how we interact with the world. If our theory of truth is incorrect we may hold beliefs that are completely false. By adhering to the correspondence theory of truth an following the three points mentioned, all of us can know and identify objective truths and rid ourselves of untrue beliefs and worldviews.
Footnotes
[1] https://twitter.com/SatansJacuzzi/status/1054861733779697664 access 10/23/18.
[3] Frank Turek and Norman Geisler, I Don’t have Enough Faith to be an Atheist. (Wheaton: Crossway Book, 2004) pg. 38.