Truth as a Mosaic

Psst, come with me!   Here, stand here with the tips of your toes touching this wall and your nose centimeters from it in front of you.  Ignore how weird you feel.  Ok, tell me, what do you see?  Thousands of shards of glass, brightly colored, spiraling out it all directions.  Uneven edges, sharp and dull, vibrant and alive.  No two are alike.  Side by side they rest, embracing their variety and uniqueness.  Now take a few steps back.  Your breath is taken away.  What lies before you is not a random sea of mismatched color-tiles, but instead a mosaic masterpiece.  A picture emerges: a landscape, a building, a face.  The truth that was once hidden in the individuality now shines out in the community.

Could life be that way?  Like pixels to a TV, atoms to an object, or particles to light—a bunch of little bits put together to become one whole.  The Truth of life is all of us put together.  Looking at one person, you can see Truth but not the whole Truth, just a part of it.  Their place is next to another shard of glass, the Truth stronger between the two than with just one.

We often think of Truth as linear, static, solid.  A + B always equals C.  My religion says this, which is the Truth.  Anyone who does not believe what I believe is a liar.  My government says that democracy is the best form of government.  Anyone who does not believe what I believe is wrong.  My taste buds say that Superman is the best flavor of ice cream.  Anyone who does not believe what I believe is dumb.   

But what if the Truth is instead fluid, organic, communal?  What if A + B sometimes equals C but sometimes it also equals D or E or none of these or all of these?  What if the Truth emerges in the growth of life, in the change, in the movement?  What if my truth is just as beautiful as your truth (this is assuming of course that I recognize that my own truth is fallible and incomplete)? 

This would mean that together we are better, together we are truer, together we are beautiful.

It also would mean that we believe in a God that lives and breathes in every tile of the mosaic, a God who is not confined and restricted to a few tiles, a God who is not divided and exclusionary.  Our God is mighty, our God is great, our God is everywhere. 

If, then, I truly believe this (that Truth is a mosaic), how would this influence my life?  In a myriad of ways!  My life would ever be curious and exploratory, seeking to taste and feel and see all the different facets of God’s creation.  My mind would open up to learning of beliefs and ideas, lifestyles and thoughts different from my own.  My heart would open up to loving those who are different than me.  Most importantly: my soul would open up to believing in a God that is MUCH bigger than I could ever imagine.  A God who can speak things into being.  A God who paints the sunsets and gives light to the stars.  A God who was, is, and forever shall be.  A God who knows all, sees all, and loves all. 

I have a little of the Truth in me, and I see you do too.  Want to share?

Stay tuned!