What is...is what it is!

"Let's get to the bottom of this!" ... is something people say when they want to get to the truth in any given situation. The search for the truth is a search for foundations. If we don't know where we stand we really can't say we know where we are. In the last post I dealt with a common notion in our current culture that defines reality in "the moment", meaning that the supreme source of truth is personal experience. Let's relate this idea to the second law of logic, the Law of Cause & Effect. To assume that only my causes effect me alone is erroneous. Everybody knows there are effects outside of ourselves that impact our existence. To live otherwise would be insane! If a crosswalk light is red and you see it as green the consequences could be dire. Red may not be red to a person handicapped with colorblindenss but the personal experience of the sight impaired is not going to effect the reality. The effect will be opposite... reality will effect the experience of the person who misinterprets the data or for that matter interprets it correctly. This is why cause always precedes effect and brings us to the First Law of Logic.

When we speak of cause we are speaking of "origin" or "beginning". It is a common misconception of many to assume there are forms of logic. This is not so. Logic is the same in Tibet as it is in Wyoming. Whether you are Jew or Christian, male or female, rich or poor... logic applies equally in form and function. It is what it is and in a nutshell that is the first law of logic... the Law of Non-Contradiction or, what is... is what it is. In essence and for all practical purposes logic could easily be understood as THE interpretive grid. All efforts to understand reality must be based on reality. You really can't say you have your own little world unless and until you're willing to acknowledge your little world as fictional or not real. Theoretical conceptions are just that... theoretical! Of course when I say that you could easily say, "fine... but there are those that believe logic is just theoretical... you can't see, touch, taste, smell or hear logic! Hence it cannot be perceived by the senses relegating it to the domain of concept or idea". Fine... point well taken. In the next post we will deal with ideas or knowledge. More precisely that subcatagory of philosophy labeled Epistomology... how do we know what we know?

Moving Beyond The Moment

Well, this is my very first attempt at blogposting and I must say it's not as complicated as I thought it might be. Let me first say that my intention is to provide immediate access to information for those that I share Christian ministry opportunities with. This would include Bible Studies on and off campus through the church I am a member of and lead Christian Education in. Those involved with "outreach" ministries to the locked-up and those working through the recovery processes that are miriad in nature may find some helpful info here as well. My primary emphasis, however, is to connect with those interested in the wide range of topics related to Christian Apologetics, Sytematic Theology and Philosophy and how these studies influence and effect Christian ministry.

I have heard the following quote attributed to Mother Theresa, "eternity is now".  We all  know the catch phrase, "live for the moment" as if it were true that the real present is the present. My question is this... is it true that all that really matters is the here and now, biblically? That is, does the Christian worldview limit itself to momentary realities to define ultimate reality? I think we could all pretty much agree that it's very difficult to get to the root of personal probelms unless we back-track and do some real soul searching. Doesn't that involve history... moments from the past... past moments that effected the future, which is now?

Galatians 6:7 (New Living Translation)

Don’t be misled—you cannot mock the justice of God. You will always harvest what you plant.

These words ring true because they are true. Not just theoretically but literally. The Second Law of Logic, the law of Cause and Effect is a reality for many reasons, not the least of which is that if you don't live by it it's just a matter of  time before you are going to get hurt or die. Try to cross the street without using this law and you're  going to disregard the cause... stepping in front of oncoming traffic with the effect... some serious hurt!

You see God set things up to work a certain way. He engineered laws into creation that function properly when valued and respected. While you will not find a direct quote of any of  the laws of Logic in the Holy Writ you cannot miss their inference everywhere in the text.

Next post we will take a clearer look at these Laws of Logic, see their use in our lives and even more importantly how the use of them effects our understanding of that Ultimate Reality revealed in created order and God's revelation of Himself in the Bible.

Please bear with me as I construct this blogsite... thanx