The truth is absolute. The truth is relative. The truth is both and you grow weary of this game. If my truth is absolute and yours is relative, we will agree on nothing, except perhaps, we each have a right to our belief and to disagree. If we don't agree about this, you are wrong, of course. Off course. Way off. If we agree on nothing then, why don't you just get lost? No! Don't go! Come back! I was wrong. (Got you now!) Don't you agree? See, I knew there must be things we can agree on. It suddenly struck me we must agree about choice, and that choice comes in two flavors, conscious and unconscious. I made a conscious choice to drive you away and another to call you back. You made a conscious choice to go away and another to return. We agree that we make conscious choices. At some time we may have made a conscious decision to breathe. But we have not made it on any regular basis, so breathing today must be an unconscious choice. Since we agree about choice, we can say we believe what we choose to believe. You have chosen to believe in relative truth and I have chosen to believe in absolute truth. The same is true about our other core beliefs, like creation versus evolution. The question now becomes, why do you and I choose differently? I say we choose to achieve a desired outcome. We sense or know there is a consequence to our chosen belief; maybe more than one. These consequences can be quite predictable. To believe life is a random event relieves one of responsibility. What will be will be. It does not matter what one wants or what one does, so one is free. Such freedom feels good even if it results in self victimization, as it often does. Look at those absolutist suckers! They are driven as madmen. I'm so glad I'm not one. To be an absolutist is to quite naturally assume responsibility. One is here for a reason. One thinks one knows what that reason is. If one doesn't, it will come. If it doesn't come, one will seek it. One finds patterns and structure for life. One finds comfort in those patterns and structures. Look at those relativist suckers! They don't have a clue. I'm so glad I'm not one. Now we see we know intuitively why we choose any belief. We are choosing between likely consequences. You might have been an absolutist like your dad. You could not stand that sense of being driven. You noticed the relativists seldom were. You wanted what they had and you made a new choice. Somehow you knew how lucky you were to learn you could change your choice of belief. You have seen people much older than you, who lived as though the choice they made was the only one possible. You even sense that someone else made this choice for them. Because of the choices we make, we don't fit in everywhere. We are most comfortable with others who have made the same choices. When the absolutist hears a new truth, it rings like a bell. It brings her joy. It creates changes in behavior. It drives her on to new truths. She shares this new truth with her relativist neighbor and the neighbor could not care less. There is a great ball game on TV and he doesn't want to miss another minute. Before she knew about making choices, she might have considered becoming a relativist, so she could enjoy TV with her neighbor. But now she is sure it's OK to be different. We can be tolerant of those who choose differently. If we seek those who have made the same choices we have, we will find them. All would be well if everyone knew they make choices based on the likely outcomes. Everybody doesn't know. Many believe if the choice isn't a conscious one, none has been made. Most of us have met someone who appears to be unable to decide anything. They think the universe chooses for them. We call them victims. They often agree to the label and they often act the part, their entire lives. If you tell them that is a choice they have made, based on the likely consequence, they will tell you, you don't know what you are talking about. We call this denial. There is something about these folks that evokes our sympathy. Much of society wants to help them and believe they had no choice and have none now. We see they are in a hopeless trap. We reach out to release them and they bite us. We are reminded. Everyone chooses and they choose for the consequences. Truth has value for them only in respect to their choice. If the truth undermines or exposes their choice, they will have none of it. Give them the sympathy they desire and get on with your life, relative or absolute. Absolutists take heart. Majorities count for nothing. (PUBLISHERS! Free Promotion Here - Now! If you will leave a comment and your URL or hyperlink on this or any article of mine: 1.) Some of my on - site readers will visit your website. 2.) I will visit your website. If I like what I find, I will write a positive review and publish it here at EzineArticles. You may delete this generous offer when re - publishing this article.) |
