Truth and Lies

 One of the themes of A Conduit of Fire is truth vs widely-accepted lies. At the original time of writing -- ten years ago -- I didn't realize this would be a theme of the book, but it is. The book is already written and I am well on my way to completing the second rough draft for Book Two, but I would be lying if recent events didn't impact the development of COF as well as Book Two.

This world, as much as I love it, my country, and people (I truly, truly do; many claim to love people but they only like the idea of them, or those who are identical to them in thought, behavior, appearance, beliefs, or otherwise), is going crazy.

It is only fueling some of the ideas for the end of Book Two and development of Book Three, which has yet to have had an initial draft (I wrote draft one of Book Two before I even edited COF, and now I've definitely had my work cut out for me).

That said, this notion of truth is very important to all of our lives and how we are to live them.

One of my personal training clients and I were chatting during our workout today. He basically said that religion (namely, we were discussing Christianity, but his point was broader than one singular religion) provides a moral compass for the company/land/peoples which belong to it. I wholeheartedly agree. Now, while I have many hours of research under my belt about why Christianity is very likely the foundation of Absolute Truth, even if you disagree, his statement rings true.

This world (at least in America) seems to be spinning in defining its ideals and what's okay, what's not okay, what's acceptable, tolerable, admirable, etc., and it all stems from not having a foundation in truth. Truth is relative now, and if you have enough of a confusing argument, that means anything goes.

Okay. Some might say, "but that's because government, et al, should be separate from the Church and any religion." I hear you, agree to a point, and strongly disagree to others. But overall, whether your religion is Christianity, Buddhism, any of the other biggies or smalls, or even Atheism (it IS a religion; google Webster's definition of a religion), there are basic tenets which define that religion's goals of being the best version of a human we can be.

So. Let's take America. Half of it wants Christianity out of schools and government (and supposedly other religions, too, though the hard "Uh-unh" line seems to come with Christianity), while the other half wants it to have too much jurisdiction. But let's remove that completely out of the picture. Let's stick with science (the atheist's "bible") as truth.

I'm good with that. Let's go with that.

It still has basic tenets. It still has simple facts that ring true. Yet this world and American society has many of its parts (or at least a very loud, obnoxious small part that makes it feel like a huge part) pushing its own ideals without tolerance or acceptance to other ideals, and peculiarly enough, they are not supported by science.

In situations where such things are approached or questioned, the definitions of such things are changed outright. Now, as an English major, I love language and thoroughly understand that language evolves over time as words develop different uses, colloquialisms, or as new words develop from others with their own definitions. But the key word is "evolve." This is not what is happening. Actual definitions are being immediately changed, with the rest of the country expected to follow suit.

Basic grammar rules between singular and plural indicators are being ignored.

Basic science and the detriments of certain lifestyle choices are outright being ignored, or worse, celebrated, and people are in utter denial about what their "bible" (if we are going with the science-should-be-the-basis-of-our-society thing) claims is fact.

I supposed I don't have much comment about this, other than to blink my eyes widely, shake my head, and maybe cry a little, because some of these things are already showing some serious detriment to our youth, and I'm terrified of what the future could hold for them (and I don't even have kids).

My book is not a Christian book. It is quite definitely a fantasy, and a dark fantasy at that. But when it comes to things like this, I can only speak what I know to be the truth (not my truth, your truth, or anyone's perception of "the" truth, but the truth) and support and love everyone who struggles with what they believe to be altruistic things which actually have a very strong potential to cause more damage than good.

The Bible is a great place to start. (Check it out, honestly and genuinely; there're very good reasons it can still stand up to today's extremely scientific culture.)

Basic science and peer-reviewed studies are a great place to start.

Basic biology books are a great place to start.

But in a society who has basically decided that the truth hinges on one's emotions, I can only shake my head and do as much as I can to be a proponent of the truth, in love and kindness and patience, so that when they realize that there is an actual truth, independent of their emotions or perception (for a poor, unrelated but logically applicable example, that gravity does exist even if they don't want it to), that they do not feel alone, rejected, outcasted, or made to feel stupid.

I waffled on posting something like this for weeks, because I do not wish to push folks away or potential readers, followers, or connections, but truth is a main driving force of my life and the characters in my book fight to learn the truth in my story -- even though it was not inspired by today's events. It just... aligns right now. If this world truly desires tolerance, love, and acceptance, then I should not fear to post such concerns, as, even if they disagree, they should tolerate, love, and accept me -- right? After all, you cannot tolerate something or someone who agrees with you, because, by definition (there's that tricky word again), you do not need to tolerate them. Tolerance comes only when you are dealing with what you do not agree with. (And tolerance, while a good thing, does not mean promotion. Tolerance means accepting the person or something for what who/it is; it does not mean changing your own ideals to align with theirs because you might hurt their feelings by believing otherwise.)

Hopefully, by posting this, I'll get this off my chest and be able to focus on the fun parts of life (which rule my world on the daily; my life is great and I want to share it with you, not my political or social frustrations!). But this world is ruled by someone who is determined to confuse and lead people astray. And he's doing a great job. Praise God that his rule is limited, short-lived, and the outcome already determined. "I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace. In this world, you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." John 16:33

Jess