The Rambling Disciple

 We've now discussed two of the three transcendentals. We've seen that truth is ultimately about what is real, and that God is transcendent Truth itself. We've seen that goodness is ultimately about flourishing and growth, and that God is transcendent Goodness itself. Both truth and goodness are things that generally churches have pursued. We understand the importance of seeking out the truth, especially in regards to the Gospel. We also understand the importance of contributing to flourishing, especially in serving the poor.  Beauty is something we haven't pursued as much. Just like truth and goodness we crave beauty. We seek it out relentlessly. It is something we need in our lives. Look at the music industry or the fashion industry. We spend billions and billions of dollars seeking some form of beauty. Most people understand the value of a skillful painting or a talented musician, but we aren't sure why. Beauty is fundamentally about perfection. It's about th...

Much like our innate desire for the truth, we all have an equally deep need for goodness. We seek this just as much as we do the truth. Goodness corresponds to flourishing as truth does to the real. Everyone wants to do more than merely exist but thrive. It is a powerful impulse within all of us to not only personally flourish but for our society to flourish as well. We see our quest for goodness manifest in our car for the sick and left behind. Soup kitchens, homeless shelters, hospitals, and all other sorts of charities are a result of our search for goodness and flourishing. We seek fairness under the law, equal opportunities, and chances to improve our situations in life. As with truth, the various ways we find goodness in this world correspond to some ultimate Goodness: God. God is Goodness itself. He is life eternal. To know what flourishing truly is is to look at the inner life of the Trinity. We seek to participate in that Goodness. As Christians we are called to be Goodness pe...

 We all have an innate desire to know the truth. It's hardwired into us to seek out what is real and authentic. You can see this in a variety of places in human life and society. Our dedication to scientific advancement and discovery, the plethora of books on philosophy, and the meticulous nature of most justice systems point to our desire, our need, for truth.  This happens on a personal level as well. For many people, starting right about their teenage years, they begin the process of "finding themselves." We often treat life as a journey of discovering truth either about ourselves, the world around us, or some combination of the two. True happiness is then found when you find your "true self." While none of the things I've mentioned so far are perfect or even good, they all point to the same innate longing in all of us; the need for truth. Behind all our attempts at discovering truth, either scientific, historical, or personal, is the implicit assumption ...

I'm going to skip right to the chase; the three transcendentals are truth, goodness, and beauty. The word "transcendental" refers to a field of interest and its transcendent ideal. In this case the three are truth, goodness, and beauty. This is an ancient philosophical concept that originated most cogently with Plato, but was picked up and developed in a thoroughly biblical and theological way by Christians centuries later. So, why am I talking about this? Well, because I think it's right. There are at a fundamental level only three areas of human interest and life. There is truth, the study of what is and what is not. This includes things like science, education, research, and law. There is goodness, which is benevolence, medicine, charity, and community. There is also beauty, which we see in art, music, and film.  Everything in our life can essentially be boiled down to a pursuit of either truth, goodness, beauty, or a combination of these things. We instinctively s...