A few years ago, a certain former president gave one of his most famous sayings of all when he said “It depends on what the meaning of the word ‘is’ is.” Now I wasn’t even into apologetics then, but I still kept thinking “Well you just used the word. You wanna tell us what it means?”
I wonder though how often we have pondered what the meaning of the word “is” is though.
Let us consider this: DeeperWaters is an awesome blog. Now I really hope that that’s a true statement. If it is a true statement though, that simply means that it corresponds to reality. Let us consider the statement. If this is an awesome blog, then the above statement is true. Let’s consider the opposite.
DeeperWaters is a terrible blog.
Wow. I really hope that one’s false. A good question would be, “Can both of them be true?” Now I know some of us might say this is a matter of personal preference, but I really don’t see that. It is either true or it isn’t. While we may have different tastes, most of us would agree that some sights are beautiful and some are ugly.
Yet I wonder how much we ponder how amazing it is that we can make descriptions of reality and use adjectives. We use words that we don’t really think apply to material phenomena. We say that something is beautiful or wonderful or amazing. All manner of descriptions that seem to transcend the senses.
Not only that, we believe they are accurate, even if they are of the physical world. Have you ever considered the excitement that there really is a world outside of your mind? Have you considered how amazing it is that you are not caught in the Matrix? Isn’t it great that you don’t have to really consider solipsism?
In the Christian worldview, we can understand why our minds correspond to the universe outside them. God made it that way. If the atheistic worldview is true, I don’t see any reason why I should make that assumption. I don’t even see any reason to not be a solipsist.
I also see a great danger. Can you really say “Is”? Can you really say that something is good for instance or evil or any term that is not based on physical properties? As soon as you do that, you are admitting of some standard beyond yourself and opening the door wide to theism.
The wonder of is. It is a small word, but there’s much packed into it. Consider it the next time you describe something.