"What is truth?"...Pontius Pilate

It's been a long cold winter. You can tell by looking at me that I have been pretty much hugging the fire all winter. Bet I've gained ten pounds and it's all right here! *patting belly* I guess I'll have to go back on the dog food diet again...lost nearly 40 pounds the last time...just load up your pockets with purina and eat a couple pieces every time you feel hungry. It contains sufficient nutrition to maintain the body without any fat or other additives that might cause harm, it'll make your hair slick and shiny, and you get used to the taste. Be careful though, I heard of a man that was on it who walked out of a store, saw a cat, chased it out into the street and got hit by a car!

As I told this yarn, before the cat statement, were you thinking that it was believeable and therefore truth? Why?...because there were some facts in it that you knew were true?...because it was me telling it in a “matter of fact” way? 

John 18:37-38

³⁷ Pilate therefore said unto him, Art thou a king then? Jesus answered, Thou sayest that I am a king. To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth. Every one that is of the truth heareth my voice.
³⁸ Pilate saith unto him, What is truth? And when he had said this, he went out again unto the Jews, and saith unto them, I find in him no fault at all.

There are two prevalent views as to the question “What is truth?”.... the correspondence view and the relativistic view. The correspondence view is based on a statement being true if and only if it corresponds to or agrees with known facts, or objective reality. In other words it is a belief in absolute truth. What is absolute truth?...a truth based on fact or agrees with some known occurrence. Example: The human body will die without oxygen. This is an absolute truth which can be backed up by scientific fact and by occurences as well. Any clear declarative statement must be either true or false. It cannot be neither, nor can it be both true and false. This view promotes the testing of a statement to determine whether or not it can be backed up by fact. A statement can be proven false if it can be shown to disagree with objective reality. At one time in history, most of the educated world thought that the world was flat! They believed and accepted this as truth for years and years. They must have been very dissapointed when the theory that the earth was round began to take hold and the ships began to prove it. So it will be for those who refuse to accept that truth is absolute.

The relativistic view is that truth depends on views or cultures, not on objective reality. Truth for one may be totally different than truth for another. It allows each person or society to live by whatever they decide is true. You'll here a relativist say things like:

“Well, if that's true for you I guess it's ok.” or, “ we can't judge other cultures.”

People of this mind set do not believe in absolute truth, yet the statement that there is no absolute truth is in essence an absolute truth, at least for them! When truth is dependent upon the individual, one person might say Jesus is Lord while another might say Allah is lord. Both statements will be true to the one who spoke them, but, the very definition of Lord requires the title to belong to only one. Those who say there is no absolute truth make decisions every day based on things they believe are true or false. They turn on a light believing in the reality of electricity. They drive a car believing in the dependability of it. Not one of them would want to be operated on by a brain surgeon who did not believe that some things about the brain are true and some are not true! If there were no absolutes, there would be no right or wrong. I could kill someone and because I believe I should do such things, it has become my personal truth and who are you to judge me?

In the absence of truth, power is the only game in town.

The true Christian view is the correspondence view. We believe in absolute truth, because truth is what is real. We believe the Bible is God's word written down by men inspired of Him. There are many passages that tell us that God is Truth. Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life, no man cometh to the Father but by me.” We believe that Jesus is the Son of God, He died on the cross, was buried and was ressurected on the third day and we take it to be an absolute truth. My Savior lives! He will return someday to take His followers home. 

Some may think” Well, how can you accept this as absolute truth?”...remember the definition..based on fact..what facts?..the factual evidence presented by the Gospel writers. How can you believe them? They were reputable men of their day, their stories matched closely even though they were in different parts of world when they wrote, and none of them ever wavered in their accounts! Think of a place you've never actually been...how do you know it's true that its there? You believe because of the testimony of reputable people who have been there. Several years ago, my Dad told me he saw a bear, my neighbor Charles said he saw it, the Motley boys said they saw it....I never saw it, but, I believe it was there because of the testimony of these reputable men. If I can believe in the truth of a place I've never been, or, the existence of a bear I didn't see, then surely I can believe in the truth of the testimony of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. My Savior lives! You say, “but, what if they're wrong just as the earth being flat was wrong?”. I say that the word of man is often wrong, but the word of God is absolutely true and has stood for all the ages.

You can't argue a person into heaven. In order to make an argument, one must accept the fact that some absolute truth exists. They can't see how illogical their side of the argument is, nor can they see how logical your side is. If a person says there is no God, the statement itself must be an absolute for him, else he has no basis for argument. His statement then by definition must be based on fact..no way..because all the historical facts that we have back up the existence of God.

So, to answer Pilate's question “what is truth?”, God is truth. Go back now to verse 37 above and substitute "God" for each phrase "the truth". Can you see why Jesus came? Pilate had no clue. A person can call himself whatever he likes, but, he can't call himself a Christian unless he holds the correspondence view of truth. Christians believe in the moral absolutes of right and wrong. Christians accept Jesus and His Word as the ultimate source of truth regarding morality and salvation. Because we know and speak the truth, the world hates us. We are often called bigots, hippocrites, and judgemental. Even so, we must continue to speak and demand the truth. Hold fast to the truth of God's word as we defend the faith. Speak it  when given the opportunity with tactfullness, compassion, and love for our fellow man.

 

 

"Open ye mouth and swaller this!"

Growing up in the 1950's and 60's was quite an experience. Our parents, who had grown up tending livestock and working in fields, were now beginning to earn wages from factories or from trades that they had learned after World War II. Families began to acquire things that made living a little easier, yet, the mentality was still buy what you need to just get by. Frugality ruled and people worked hard trying to live without borrowing money.

In those days, a trip to the doctor or dentist only took place after all the home remedies failed and sufficient time had passed to make sure a body would not heal itself! We didn't like going anyway because in those days you expected to feel pain to get healing. Doctors and dentists can do some terrible things to a body...guess that's why they call their business a "practice"! *rollin eyes*

Houses were not built as tight as they are today and the "frugality" factor always took hold at night, so,
in winter, gas heaters were turned off at night and fire places were raked up and bedded for coals the next morning. We slept under piles of quilts and blankets.....it was cold! The croup was a common occurrence and I still remember what it feels like. Usually within a few hours after waking, your voice would return to normal, but, there would be a little tickle in your chest. The cure?....Vick's salve...on your chest, neck, and face and then a rag poultice of it worn around your neck until the croup was gone.

Sometimes a cold would get in your chest and cause a cough and maybe fever. The cure...A tablespoon of sugar with a little turpentine dropped into it. "Open ye mouth and swaller this." Mama would say. Eating sugar laced with turpentine!...don't know if it cured or not, but, it did seem to sooth the croup and made you quit complaining for sure!

Small cuts were "doctored" with merthiolate or mercurichrome (not sure of the spelling) which were basically rubbing alcohol. Both solutions came in small bottles with application sticks attached to the lids. Parents would swab a cut with it then say "Blow, blow!". The stinging would make you dance for sure!

For more serious cuts or bruises, they would pull out the coal oil. It was a well known fact that coal oil would take out soreness. Many cuts that should have been stitched were wrapped up tightly and then the bandage would be soaked in coal oil. I bear a scar from a vicious cut that was treated in this manner.

The vilest "medicine" we were made to take was castor oil. Parents believed that it did a child good to take it, whether they were sick or not! Grandma used it as a form of punishment. I had rather take a whipping with a switch than swallow castor oil. Mama would say "Open ye mouth!". I wouldn't. She'd say "Open ye mouth or I'll call ye daddy!" That would usually do it. I would take the dose. Horrible, vile, terrible, nasty, disgusting...all rolled up in one..that's the taste of castor oil.

I don't have any statistics, nor do I know of any studies proving that my generation was tougher than this one, but, logic tells me it must be true. So it was with our fathers' generations and I expect the cycle will continue. We just didn't visit the doctor much in those days, we took care of ourselves. "Open ye mouth and take it! It's good for you, it'll make ye grow!" still rings in my ears as I remember those days. It's a wonder that we survived!

The Death of a Lady

Her given name came from the small community in which she stood back in the 1920's. It was a time when one room schools existed where there were sufficient numbers of children within a small area. When automobiles began to appear, transportation became less an obstacle and the one room school began to disappear in favor of a large campus housing all grades in different rooms. So it was with her. Several small one room schools came together to form a bigger school, and because of the most central location, she was built in the community containing Beulah Baptist Church, therefore, her given name was Beulah.

Her surname came from the founders of the school out of respect for the state superintendent of education of the day, a man named J.F. Hubbard, who apparently had a part in the consolidation effort of the time. In any case, the school became known as Beulah Hubbard school, and it churned out its first graduating class in the 1929-30 school year.

She was built of rough cut timbers and lumber with handsaws, hammers and nails. Her floors were of heart pine that were oiled on a regular basis to prevent rot. Her walls were lathed with strips of hardwood and then plastered over. Restrooms were built inside the building which was quite innovative and a novel thing at the time. Each classroom was well lit by huge windows that lifted up easily for ventilation during the hot August days. Early on she was heated by coal burning heaters and later, large butane heaters in each classroom provided heat on the colder winter days. She was a marvelous construction in her youth, a long hall of classrooms with a large auditorium attached to the back, a gymnasium within a few yards of the north end that also had a small lunch room on the back and a bus garage underneath and people were proud of her. Teacher's housing was made available across the road from the school, and as numbers grew, an additional building was constructed to house grades 1-5, the old house that had been used to house home economics and agriculture classes was replaced with an add on to the south end of the school, and a new stand alone cafeteria was constructed. Her district lines were permanently fixed when the northeastern and east central part of the county were taken in. Now, the family called Beulah Hubbard was almost complete. Integration became law in 1968, but, black students had a year of choice before they were compelled to attend the public schools. Some chose to go ahead and attend, but most waited until the 1969-70 school year to begin their education in the "white" schools. Now, the family was complete.

The little country school called Beulah Hubbard produced graduates who became doctors, lawyers, school teachers, business men and women, bankers, preachers, and farmers, all of which were successful in what they did with their lives. Very little money was allowed through the county for her maintenance, most needs had to be met locally by fundraising efforts, and though everyone contributed as much as they could, age began to wear her down.

It's difficult to explain how important the school became to the community. The smaller communities...Beulah, Hopewell, Greenland, Rock Creek, Pleasant Grove, Battlefield, Duffee, Center Ridge, Oakland, Hebron, and a few others now had a common thread..the grand old lady Beulah Hubbard. Life blood, fabric, focal point...all good descriptors, yet, they fall short in trying to explain the atmosphere surrounding the school and community. Most of the staff were local people and those who came in from other places quickly bought in to our way of doing things. The student body averaged about 250 grades K-12. They knew each other well and all were accepted no matter about social status. They were taught at home to act right and respect their elders, and they allowed themselves to be taught. They were great athletes and able to play with most schools with much larger numbers.

The talk began in earnest around 1986...that dreadful word..consolidation..became the desire of the controlling interest on the county school board. Much debate took place over the next few years, many tempers were lost, many ideas were presented to the school board in hopes of saving all or part of her to no avail. Every vote was 3 to 2 in favor of the controlling interest until the death sentence was pronounced in 1989.

Beulah Hubbard school is no more, the lady is dead, yet, those of us who attended or worked there remember that sense of belonging to something very special...just a little country school, made up of country people who loved each other and loved their school. Deep down inside, each of us who were a part of her still harbor a hope that she will someday be resurrected in some way. As the consolidated school becomes larger and larger, perhaps...just maybe...only time will tell!!