Truth is Where You Find It

If you've ever paid attention to my blog,

you know by now that I'm a Christian. I have one strongly held, personal belief. I follow the man commonly known as Jesus. I believe that Jesus, who lived and walked on this earth about two thousand years ago, is in truth the Creator-God of the universe.

Of course, I understand that your mileage may vary.

Is Christianity Just Another Religion?

Is Christianity Just Another Religion?
Photo courtesy of Tom Skarbek-Wazynski and http://unsplash.com

But that shouldn't mean we can't learn from one another.

I've been a Christian most of my life. My maternal grandmother and grandfather taught me about Jesus, and at the tender age of five I acknowledged Him. I've grown up with reverence for the bible instilled in me at an early age.

I've also attended church most of my life, with both positive and negative consequences. Perhaps it is my nature as a scientist and engineer that has allowed me to recognize much truth outside of the church. Perhaps that same nature has also helped me see many faults within typical churches as well.

While I believe the Hebrew-Christian bible to be "true," I gladly recognize truth in other writings. Each of us has a different, unique way of looking at and understanding the world. Sometimes we may need to hear a truth restated in another form in order for it to impact us.

I recently encountered just such an example while reading a science fiction novel, my favorite form of recreational literature. The Worthing Saga was written by Orson Scott Card, an author who is from a vastly different religious tradition than mine. However, this quote from his novel resonates with me:

"I hated your answer. It doesn't depend on whether you'll live or die. It depends on what's right. And what's right and wrong doesn't come down to your personal preference. It never does. If it comes to what you personally prefer, then there's no right or wrong at all."

This truth expressing the non-relative nature of good and evil, right and wrong, is clearly taught in the bible I've learned to respect. I find that I share common ground with author Card in this understanding. We may differ in many fundamental ways, but I sincerely appreciate being reminded of this truth.

Similarly, I learned from Larken Rose to ask myself whether or not I am living up to my professed principles. For example, Jesus called "You shall love your neighbor as yourself" the second greatest commandment. Larken helped me see that by participating in human government, I was not living up to this commandment I claimed to follow.