Exploring Truth Together

The purpose of this project is to unite people through the exploration of truth and oneness. 

Introduction

Oneness includes how human beings are one with each other; how we are one with nature; and how we become one with spiritual reality through the soul's conscious connection to God through the Spirit. Human beings explore reality by drawing on insights from all sources of knowledge, including reasoning (science), faith (religion), inner character strengths (e.g. love, justice, humility), intuition (communication through the heart and soul), and lived experience.  

The Challenge to Exploring Reality

What we need is a way to explore reality together that results in increasing levels of collective understanding and deeper bonds of unity, rather than approaches to studying truth and reality that result in fragmentation and a retreat to traditional dogma.  This means we need to understand different ways of thinking about reality, particularly the difference between relativism and oneness. 

Understanding Relativism 

What people understand of truth is closely associated with their personal identity, which means that any discussion of "the truth" easily leads to debate, disagreement and fragmentation of ideas based on different people's propositions, claims, beliefs, education, culture and life experiences. Experiencing such diversity in human thought has led many people to accept relativism as a central tenant in the exploration of reality. Relativism is a philosophy stating that what is real, true or ethical is determined by each person's own mind; meaning the mind has the power to circumscribe reality itself and therefore decide what is real and what is to be valued. Under relativism, axioms of science, religion or ethics can be discarded outright with the simple statement "I don't believe that." This is the philosophy that allows authoritarian rulers to ignore science and ethics, because whatever they decide becomes the only accepted "truth." Relativism permits the individual to follow any idea they can imagine, until it conflicts with the needs and aspirations of people around them, at which point they experience conflict, leading to authoritarianism which dictates one interpretation of reality and opposes all others. 

Understanding Oneness

There is another understanding of reality that is not relativistic, that of oneness. It is not the human mind that determines reality, truth and ethics, but rather a supernatural living Being that circumscribes the human mind and communicates with the mind through various senses, feelings, intuition and reasoning about what is true, right and real. Rather than the mind being the final arbiter of truth, truth itself is inherent within the universe, meaning that truth is present within each of us, and is limitless, like the universe. Therefore, some amount of truth is knowable and some amount will always be unknown. 

Truth is interconnected, or one, because truth cannot be divided against itself, and it is always being discovered by the mind over time. The philosophy of oneness requires that the human mind stay in a condition of learning, in a state of humility that is ready to learn each day.  Rather than going to war for an ideology, the mind interrogates the origin of its own beliefs and seeks to understand the origin of other's beliefs, to arrive at a deeper understanding of human relationships, thought and behavior. Here, the goal is to continuously learn rather than to control or to win in a debate. 

The only conflict that results from a humble posture of learning is a healthy competition to innovate, for example, to solve a problem faster than a competitor in the marketplace: the competition to learn more. For example, the leader of a technology or healthcare company cannot declare what is true and real and demand the allegiance of consumers. Rather, products, medicines and procedures must be tested until they prove more effective than existing methods. And, when useful knowledge is discovered, eventually it is applied in many forms, worldwide, becoming universal: like how to purify water for safe drinking, how to administer vaccinations, how to fly commercial airplanes safely, how to generate and use  electricity, and so on. Kernels of truth, such as scientific discoveries, become universally adopted into the web of human knowledge as a further expression of the oneness of truth and reality.  

How Truth Unites

The oneness of truth holds out the possibility that human beings can likewise progress through stages of deeper unity, overcoming division through progressive stages of integration. These stages are obvious upon reflection: humans first united themselves in small families and clans; then into larger tribes; then cities, kingdoms and ancient civilizations that traded with one another; then into nation states; and now, nation states are integrating further through supranational institutions such as the European Union, the United Nations and others. Human unity is an evolutionary process gathering more and more groups into common association and cooperation, but ingathering is possible only when the groups involved have recognized a common truth (e.g. such as the value of trading with each other).  

The ability to discover, recognize or learn any common fact or truth is the ultimate promise of human unity - truth eventually unites us because it requires that we discard or renew social constructions of knowledge (ideologies, paradigms, conceptual frameworks) that are destructive, inaccurate or incomplete.  

Applying the Power of Truth to Unite

The discovery and application of truth is the ultimate driver of unity and peace. To the extent that we explore and discover truth together, we will also become increasingly united. Therefore, the purpose of this project is to be a source of unity through the exploration of truth. 

Understanding the Denial of Truth

What lies at the heart of the denial of truth? Ignoring what is (known to be) true is a sign of injustice, because denying the truth causes division and prevents unity. To deny the truth is to perpetuate an existing system of oppression, an existing injustice built upon a fabrication about reality. To deny the truth is also to prevent others from learning, which is unjust. To deny the truth is to perpetuate an untruth, and lying is unjust. Conversely, a person who upholds the moral principal of justice will not allow inconvenient truths to be discarded and ignored but will respect and accept those truths. Therefore, a strong moral sense of justice is needed to commit to the truth, to accept the truth even when a large portion of society is denying it (e.g. an easy example is to consider how the truth of racial equality was so widely ignored in the 1800's, yet many abolitionists recognized the injustice of racial discrimination and tried to adhere to the truth of equality). 

Relationship Between Truth & Justice

Upholding the truth is an expression of justice and ignoring the truth is an act of injustice. This is why, in a Court of Justice witnesses are sworn to tell the truth because, without the truth, how can justice be administered? To administer justice means to make a decision, a judgement, and without the facts and the truth, no trustworthy judgement can be made. Without justice, people do not adhere to the truth and without the truth, justice cannot be administered. Truth and justice are inseparable. 

Highest Form of Justice & Source of Justice

Where is the highest form of justice and what is regarded to be the source of justice? 

Baha'u'llah says, "Know verily that the essence of justice and the source thereof are both embodied in the ordinances prescribed by Him who is the Manifestation of the Self of God...He doth incarnate the highest, the infallible standard of justice...His law is naught but manifest justice." Gleanings, LXXXVIII. Thus, pure justice appears in the world through the Revelation of God which brings His law; His law being the standard of justice. 

Exploring Reality

It would be wise to explore reality by starting with its source, the Creator of reality, God. 

"All praise to the unity of God, and all honour to Him, the sovereign Lord, the incomparable and all-glorious Ruler of the universe, Who , out of utter nothingness, hath created the reality of all things, Who, from naught, hath brought into being the most refined and subtle elements of His creation." Gleanings, XXVII

God

The Holy Spirit

Baha'u'llah

"Whenever I chose to hold my peace and be still, lo, the voice of the Holy Ghost, standing on my right hand, aroused me, and the Supreme Spirit appeared before my face, and Gabriel overshadowed me, and the Spirit of Glory stirred within my bosom, bidding me arise and break my silence." Gleanings, L. 

Manifestations of God

"The Person of the Manifestation hath ever been the representative and mouthpiece of God." XXVIII.  

Whatever pertains the Manifestation of God, "all His acts and doings, whatever He ordains or forbids, should be considered in all their aspects, and under all circumstances, and without any reservation, as identical with the Will of God Himself." Gleanings LXXXIV.