What is truth? What makes something true? Does the truth even exist?

Is there more
than one truth? When thinking about just the word truth my mind went a million different
directions. I think the fact that it did this is because there is no exact definition of truth. People
have been debating about what the truth is for centuries. In my research of philosophers I
discovered this. There wasnt a single belief that was the same.
C.S. Lewis, an author, thinker, and philosopher, that I studied, believes that God is, in all
certainty the Truth. However, he takes a stand on all truths, he believes in the correspondence
theory of truth. This theory is relating the truth to reality. Your personal reality may change,
which means that your truth will probably change as well (C.S. Lewis Biography). On the
other hand, Karl Popper, an Austrian philosopher searched for truth in the sciences. Popper
created a mathematical equation to determine verisimilitude or truthlikeness (Thornton,

Stephen). And yet another philosopher is Ernst von Glaserfeld. He distinguishes between
knowledge and experience and how both can be different in every person because of their
sensory- motor actions and conceptual operations in their mind, so truth is the perception of your
experiences (Hardy, Michael D.).
I found all of the philosophers that I researched had very different and intriguing ideas on
truth. However, the two that I feel I share similar beliefs with is C.S. Lewis and Ernst von
Glaserfeld. I believe that the truth is found within our own perception of reality. For example, if
you were raised in a community where everyones hair was brown and no one told you different,
you hold the truth in your mind that that is just how life is; your hair is brown. Or a more realistic
example, if as a child you were told Santa was real and you found that everything your parents
told you happened (the stockings, the cookies, the milk, etc.) so you believed that Santa is real
and true. As humans it is so easy to believe what our eyes see. We hold that as the truth almost
hundred percent of the time. But heres the problem, everybodys eyes see different things,

everyones eyes are in different places, and everyone has different experiences. This is the reason
that there has never been one single definition of truth and I dont think that in this world we will
come to an agreement. That is why I believe that truth is perception.
Imagine a world where everyone believed the same thing, held the same truths. This is a
beautiful image and will be the reality in the end, but our world is not like that now. Many people
in the Middle East believe with certainty that Allah exists. Other people believe that Buddha is
the truth and who they should follow. And even other people believe When you talk to most
religious people they will argue with you that their religion is the truth and way. This is because
of their perception. If you were raised in a community where everyone believed in Buddha and
you were surrounded by that culture, most likely you would come to believe in him yourself. If
you feel like you have had a personal connection or experience with a religion you may come to
believe that way as well. This is their truth. That is their perception.
So how do we know what the actual truth is? How do we know Allah isnt real or true? I
know these are big questions to be asking, but I feel as though they are important. I know
personally that Allah isnt the truth because God is the The Truth. I know this because of the
Holy Bible and because of my own personal experiences with my Savior. John 14:6 says I am
the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me. (New
International Version) . God says that he is the truth, and these words have been written down for
centuries for all to read. It is not just the words that I read that make me believe in God, but the
experiences I have. There is no way I could have gotten through some things in my life without
Him, he has saved me from hurt and pain numerous times, He has shown me grace and love and
mercy, and He has been my comforter in times of trouble. God is my light. C.S. Lewis once said

 I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen: not only because I see it, but by it I
see everything else.
The worlds truths are perceptions, because of sin it is like looking through a foggy
window. As humans we can see a faded image of whats on the the other side but not the entire
thing. Our eyes are dirty. That is why there are so many truths and why they are perceptions of
reality. The only thing that will clear our window and cleanse our eyes is the Light, God, The
One and Only Truth. By saying truth is your perception I am not saying that every person's
perception is The Truth, it is their truth for that time, that experience, and that place, whatever it
may be. It is what they can perceive through their clouded vision. In the end, when Jesus comes
again the foggy window of truth will be cleared and The Truth will be revealed, whether you
have always believed it or it is just being revealed to you.

Works Cited
C.S. Lewis Biography." Bio.com. A&E Networks Television, n.d. Web. 06 Apr. 2015.
<http://www.biography.com/people/cs-lewis-9380969#the-chronicles-of-narnia>.

Hardy, Michael D., and Peter C. Taylor. "Von Glasersfeld's Radical Constructivism: A
Critical Review." Academia. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 Apr. 2015.
<http://www.academia.edu/6183789/Von_Glasersfelds_radical_constructivism_A_critical_revie
w>
New International Version. London: Wilkinson House, 2012. Print.

Thornton, Stephen. "Karl Popper." Stanford University. Stanford University, 13 Nov.

1997. Web. 07 Apr. 2015. <http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/popper/#Lif>.