Is there any such thing as truth? Or even 'the facts'? The more I think about it, the less sure I am. From what I observe on a daily basis, truth, like beauty, is firmly in the eye of the beholder.
I remember a dinner party, where I was having a debate with a devout Christian; he would brook no argument about a particular passage from one of the gospels, as it was "the word of God". My take was that it was an anecdote by someone who had contributed to an important set of stories. Who was telling the truth? I feel that we both were, according to our own perspectives.
But the truth or the facts need not be based on a belief system. I was recently at an event and commented on the gorgeous shade of turquoise a friend was wearing. She thanked me but shook her head, as her husband looked on in bewilderment. "He thinks it''s pink!" she laughed. And, to him, it was.
And then there are arguments, often over whose version of 'the truth' is correct. "You said...!" "No, I didn't..."! is a common refrain. Are these disagreements situations where one person is right and the other wrong? Or are both parties right - or wrong? If there was an impartial referee with a comprehensive list of what both people had ever said to each other, would he or she be able to show them the 'truth' of what they'd said? Probably not, because a lot would have depended on how they said whatever it was that caused offence and the circumstances at the time.
There are many more examples of variations on 'the truth' from eye-witness account of events, which often bear no relation to one another, to people with differing political beliefs reading the same speech and coming up with wildly different messages. None of these people is actually telling lies, they are just remembering differently or colouring what they read with their own beliefs.
So is the truth the majority view? In a world of very few absolutes, maybe it is. That may not help the two people having the argument but it is of use in wider society.
If the opposite of truth is lies, lying to oneself in opposition to the majority view can be devastating. According to research, most paedophiles believe that they are having a 'loving relationship' with the child they are abusing. To the vast majority of people this is clearly a lie and totally repugnant but to the perpetrator, it is the truth. In such cases and to safeguard the vulnerable, truth must be acceptable to the majority. The only caveat with that model is that the majority view must be informed and free of bigotry.
My truth is that I try to keep an open mind and heart and examine a subject from all angles before making up my mind about 'the facts'. If I can avoid hurting anyone, I will and I have my own moral compass, which may or may not tally with yours. Do you know what yours is?
