We Do Know Things
In my previous two posts, I have commented on Greg Koukl’s argument in the latest issue of Solid Ground in which he claims that postmodernism self-destructs. Koukl winds up his argument with a simple statement of reality - We actually do know things to be objectively true! There are many illustrations which could be offerred to support this statement. Koukl uses the illustration of a map. He describes what takes place when one uses a map:
Maps gives us a representation of reality that we initially believe is accurate, that is, we hold its information to be true in the objective (correspondence) sense. There is a simple way to test to see if that belief is correct. We find our current location on the map, plot a course, and move out. If our beliefs are true, we get where we intend to go. If not, we’ll learn that soon enough.
My wife’s Honda Oddysey contains a wonderful invention called a navigation system which has helped on numerous occasions. It is basically a map with the ability to tell you exactly what is your location on the map and how to arrive at your destination. It is almost always correct in its analysis of reality. It can be intensely frustrating, however, when it is wrong. But, guess what! I know when it is wrong and when it is not. I know when what it says matches up with reality. Koukl continues the analogy:
Our beliefs about reality are like that map. We are constantly testing our beliefs to see if they are true, that is, they match up with the world. We lay them on top of what we think is reality and then look for a fit. We pay attention to our awarenesses of our environment. We form beliefs. Then we test those beliefs against the world. When they match up, we know our beliefs are true. We drive and then arrive. Every time we use a map, or take medicine, or drive on the freeway, or navigate from the bedroom to the bathroom in the middle of the night, we prove postmodernism false. Virtually everything we do successfully relies on getting some of our beliefs about the world right. If we couldn’t consistently know objective truth, we’d be dead in a day.