What is…        

Over the recent break I had to privilege of attending an International Transforming Education Conference in Perth with over 1000 other Christian educators. It was a fantastic time of learning and wondering. One of the keynote speakers got us thinking about how we can be salt and light in the marketplace of ideas/ideals. This marketplace tends to focus on several transcendental questions. What is truth, justice, love, success and freedom? We are all seeking answers to these questions, we have been seeking answers to these questions for thousands of years. The cultural tug of war over these ideas can at times feel like a battle. Our era of 24-hour news cycle and social media has certainly added heat to some of these areas of debate. Here at GPCC we have some answers to these questions and as staff we work to share these with our students. Over the next few weeks, I will share some thoughts on each of these areas and how we, at GPCC seek to answer them.

Truth

What is truth? At first blush this seems like such a simple question, yet we currently live in a world where there is ‘fake news’, ‘alternative facts’ and claims we live in a ‘post truth world’, it is quickly evident that things may not be as clear as we might like.

Our understanding of truth will naturally be grounded in the worldview or story of reality that we consciously and unconsciously hold onto.

To the modern mind, truth does exist. It corresponds to reality, and we can follow evidence to where it leads and find truth. For the modern mind it is the contest of truth where the battle is.

The post-modern mind is deeply suspicious of overarching stories and often rejects them. Truth in this context is often considered a power grab and a device used by those in power to perpetuate their position and perspective.

For some this has evolved into a post truth position where ‘truth’ doesn’t matter, only my individual feelings about truth matter. Our culture tends to swing - at times wildly - between these broad poles.

Here at GPCC we believe that truth is revealed. It is revealed by the Triune God who created the universe and who reveals himself through His creation, through His Word in the Bible and most fully, through Jesus. We therefore see truth as part of a grand story, and we believe that truth can be known and shared. Through Creation we can see truth in the laws that govern the universe, in fractal geometry and in the intricacy of the human mind.

In John 14:6 Jesus says, "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life". Jesus in claiming that He is the truth, creating a relational element to truth. Truth is entirely static and objective, it also has a component of relationality and perspective to it. In this way God takes some of the modern ideas about truth and some of the post-modern ideas and holds them together in a beautiful tension that is greater than the sum of the parts.

I hope that here at GPCC we continue to deepen our understanding of truth, as revealed to us by the person of Jesus and that as a community we can share this with our students and our broader community.

Writing a short article on a topic that has had as many words written about it over the millennia as truth is challenging. I do hope it might bring a topic that generally operates subconsciously in all our lives, a little closer to the surface. I will finish with one of my favourite quotes by CS Lewis.

"If you look for truth, you may find comfort in the end; if you look for comfort you will not get either comfort or truth only soft soap and wishful thinking to begin, and in the end, despair."