[Vision2020] Religious Diversity Education (again)

[Luke]

Mr. Moffet

> You are not answering the questions posed in this dilemma.  If your
thinking
> is flawed and limited, how can you be certain you understand God's truths
> correctly?

    How hard are the 10 commandments to understand? "Do not covet."
"Do not commit adultery."  "Do not steal." Hmm, I wonder what those mean?
Extremely confusing!

    You try to claim that truth is some obscure blob, an off-white jello far
away from us that we can never truly see. Yet you admitted that you have
many doubts about your own beliefs, that you can never claim surety, that
all absolutist belief systems are false (yet not the belief that absolutist
belief systems are false), and that I cannot be sure without being arrogant,
of which you are sure. One self-contradiction after another, it seems.
    Even though there may be confusing facets to language and logic, there
still is truth and falsehood. You seem to think that because some logicians
tangle themselves into a knot, it therefore follows that if I use logic, I
am in a tangled knot also. But this is clearly false. A scientist can make a
mistake in a painstaking calculation, rendering his entire experiment
useless, but a child may still add two plus two, and get four.
    Truth is not the off-white jello on the horizon, but rather an infinite
puzzle board; some pieces are placed together for us, giving the general
picture; we try to fit the small pieces in, and some have more success than
others. And then there are those who refuse to look at the puzzle-board at
all.


> I think it is clear that there is reasonable doubt about these spiritual
> issues, and people of faith believe what they do based on faith.  But then
> this position of religious belief leads us to the view I am advocating, a
> respect for other religions based on a humble realization that the
> intentions and thoughts of God may not conform just to one religions
> interpretations.

And the teacher said, "Children, each of you has his own opinion on these
subtraction questions. We're not going to judge you, so each of you gets
100%." The young students cheered madly, and he prided himself on his
mathematical humility. After all, 1 + 1 could equal 3.

All the best,
Luke Nieuwsma