In the Gospel of John, when Pontius Pilate had Jesus in his palace, the question he asked to Jesus was "What is truth?" A good question to ask God if you perceive Jesus to be God. It was a question he received no answer.

Although another point in the Gospel, Jesus is praying to the Father (John 17:17), and Jesus makes the off-handed comment: thy word is truth.

In other words, if we take this literally, truth is the language of God. Actually, I like this definition of truth for a few reasons.

It answers why mathematics and logic seem like truth to us. It is because these 'languages' are similar to the language spoken by God.

It tells us why certain truths so often correspond to reality and cohere with other truths, because language is based on reference and because it is a language it tends to be well-structured (coherent).

It also answers why truth tends to be pragmatically useful, language's number one purpose is to be used for communication. It has a purpose beyond just sitting back and making pronouncements, no, it gets us involved in hearing and doing based on what we hear.

And, finally, a language is internal - inside the mind, and then it references the external as it flows out of us. Truth comes from God's mind (as a language), and then all the references to the world are made as a result. For us too, truth (the only kind humans know), is a result of something internal that comes from our minds, but 'connects' to the world of reference through the process of communication. Sometimes we miss communicate with nature, but with a little practice our communication improves.

So, next time someone asks the question "what is truth", you know what to tell them: it's the language of God. The question now, is trying to understand that language.

• Has God Told YOU The "Whole Truth?" - quiet - July 20, 2003 - 15:19 UTC
  • God is over all... - lysithea - July 20, 2003 - 21:25 UTC
  • Not the God of inane little spams, Leesa -- the other one! - quiet - July 20, 2003 - 22:15 UTC
• comment - dolphin - July 21, 2003 - 05:04 UTC
  • Existence itself? - harvey1 - July 21, 2003 - 11:52 UTC
    • I wonder if there's a language... - lysithea - July 21, 2003 - 20:28 UTC
      • I don't think so - harvey1 - July 21, 2003 - 21:02 UTC
        • That doesn't sound right - mikelev - July 22, 2003 - 14:08 UTC
          • That's right - harvey1 - July 22, 2003 - 14:39 UTC
            • That's not right - mikelev - July 22, 2003 - 15:32 UTC
              • Sure, it's right - harvey1 - July 22, 2003 - 16:57 UTC
                • touche! - mikelev - July 22, 2003 - 17:57 UTC
                  • Dick is... - harvey1 - July 22, 2003 - 18:12 UTC
                    • Another genius? - mikelev - July 22, 2003 - 18:38 UTC
                      • Just be prepared - harvey1 - July 22, 2003 - 18:44 UTC
                        • Btw - harvey1 - July 22, 2003 - 18:45 UTC
                    • Um if I may comment... - dolphin - July 23, 2003 - 07:32 UTC
                      • Not true - harvey1 - July 23, 2003 - 19:46 UTC
                        • what is a logicist? - dolphin - July 23, 2003 - 21:12 UTC
                          • Simple definition - harvey1 - July 24, 2003 - 14:54 UTC
                            • Then you already know - dolphin - July 27, 2003 - 05:44 UTC
                              • My view is this - harvey1 - July 27, 2003 - 13:16 UTC
                                • misunderstanding - dolphin - July 31, 2003 - 11:13 UTC
                                  • Serious question - harvey1 - July 31, 2003 - 13:45 UTC
                                    • No - dolphin - August 4, 2003 - 00:42 UTC